Slow travel: Explore the gems on our doorstep this Bank Holiday

With bank holiday weekends coming up in April and May, this spring offers the perfect opportunity to rediscover what’s right on our doorstep – and to think a little differently about how we travel. Many of us will already have booked our summer holidays, but there’s growing pressure on airlines to be more transparent about the true environmental cost of flying. 

From April 2027, airlines and travel agents will be required to display clear, standardised emissions figures at the point of booking, giving passengers the information they need to weigh up the environmental cost of their journey.  

The news was welcomed by environment group CAGNE, which had been campaigning on the issue for over a decade. But a spokesperson said the warnings should be similar to those on cigarette packets – warning of the risks to the health of the planet – adding that people should have all the information so ‘they can then seek greener forms of transport whether that be a different airline or travel by train or not to fly’. 

With that in mind, we thought the spring bank holidays are a wonderful excuse to explore the trails and treasures on our own doorstep. 

The High Weald Landscape Trail winds 90 miles from Horsham through to Rye, passing ancient farmsteads, sunken lanes and orchards coming into blossom in spring – so it’s the perfect time to pass through.  

For those who prefer gentler gradients, the Downs Link follows a former railway line from Guildford to Shoreham-by-Sea – around 37 miles, mostly flat and traffic-free, and ideal for families on foot or by bike on a sunny spring day.

For something more ambitious, the Sussex Diamond Way offers a 60-mile route from Midhurst to Heathfield, crossing heathland and woodland through the heart of the Low Weald. It’s easily broken into stages, so worth doing over a few weekends. 

 

Walkers looking to take the train can use the rail network to hop between villages across the South Downs – Amberley, Pulborough and Arundel are all worth a stop – making it easy to explore without a car. 

And don’t overlook the Serpent Trail, a 64-mile route through the heathlands of the South Downs National Park, which is divided into 11 manageable sections – so you can set yourself the challenge of completing it in a few stints. To explore the trail, you’ll find all you need to know here: www.southdowns.gov.uk/get-active/south-downs-walks/long-distance-hikes/serpent-trail/ 

And if you’re taking a break in the UK this spring, discover walks across Britain, with different gradings for beginners all the way up to experiences hikers, here: /www.ramblers.org.uk/go-walking 

By Bex Bastable