Boxing Day Walks Near High Wycombe, From West Wycombe Hill to the Thames

1. The Rye and the Dyke

The Rye is the big green park beside the London Road, a short walk from the High Street, and at more than 22 hectares (53 acres) it is the second largest park in the district, according to Buckinghamshire Council. The Dyke, a long stretch of open water fed from the Wycombe Abbey grounds, runs along one side and spills over a waterfall into a stream that leaves the park to the east.

The council says Holywell Mead, at the town end, was the site of a Roman villa and later watercress beds, and that townspeople once had the right to graze cattle on Rye Mead. It holds a Green Flag Award.

A loop of the grass and the water makes an easy hour, with the Ropes on the Rye play area for children who need a reason to come.

Walk park paths and grass around the Dyke, any length
Open at all times, free
Parking Holywell Mead car park, off Bassetsbury Lane from the A40 London Road
Toilets public toilets at the car park
Address The Rye, Bassetsbury Lane, High Wycombe HP11 1QX
Website buckinghamshire.gov.uk/schools-libraries-and-parks/parks-leisure-and-staying-active/find-a-park-or-play-area/the-rye-and-holywell-mead
Good for a flat walk from town, buggies, children, play area

2. Hughenden Park and the Hughenden estate (1.2 to 4 miles)

Hughenden Park is the council’s biggest park in the Wycombe area, about 25 hectares of parkland trees either side of the Hughenden stream, and it runs straight up to Hughenden, the National Trust house that was Benjamin Disraeli’s home. The Trust’s calendar has its garden open from 10am to 4pm on Boxing Day, the cafe from 10am to 3.30pm and the Manor from 11am, after closing on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day; it is dressed for Christmas at Hughenden until 3 January.

The Trust waymarks four walks from its visitor kiosk. The Woodcock Wood walk is 1.2 miles with blue arrows, mostly level, back along the old Coffin Path.

The German Forest walk is 1.5 miles through the evergreen woods the Disraelis planted after visiting Bohemia. The Monument walk is 2 miles there and back, with moderate climbs, to the monument Mary Anne raised to Disraeli’s father, which the Trust calls one of the best views in the area.

The Boundary walk is an energetic 4 miles round the estate past a rare chalk stream.

Walk Woodcock Wood 1.2 miles (blue); German Forest 1.5 miles (purple); Monument 2 miles (orange); Boundary 4 miles (red)
Open park at all times; National Trust garden 10am to 4pm, cafe 10am to 3.30pm, shop 10.30am to 4pm, Manor 11am to 4pm on 26 December; last entry 3.30pm
Price council park free; National Trust parking free for members, included in the admission ticket for others (the Trust's published adult rate is £18)
Parking small council car park off Hughenden Road (A4128); National Trust car park at the Manor
Cafe Hughenden cafe, 10am to 3.30pm on 26 December
Address Hughenden, High Wycombe HP14 4LA
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/oxfordshire-buckinghamshire-berkshire/hughenden
Good for history, dogs, a cafe open on the day, short or long walks

3. West Wycombe Hill, the church and the Mausoleum (5.5 to 8.5 miles)

West Wycombe Hill is the one with the golden ball on the church tower, visible from the A40, and beside St Lawrence’s Church stands the six-sided flint Dashwood Mausoleum. The National Trust car park is at the top, by the church.

From there, the Trust’s Chiltern Hills three-in-one walk runs 8.5 miles to Bradenham and Hughenden and back, or 5.5 miles on the short loop between West Wycombe and Bradenham; it warns of steep, slippery paths and kissing gates. Its West Wycombe ridges and bottoms walk is 8 miles and four hours over the valleys to Bledlow Ridge and Radnage, mostly off Trust land, so the Trust asks you to carry an Ordnance Survey map.

Both routes finish by climbing from the Hellfire Caves to the Mausoleum. For a short walk, simply climb from the village to the church for the view over the valley.

West Wycombe Park, the house below, is shut until April, and the Hellfire Caves have published no December hours.

Walk three-in-one 8.5 miles, short loop 5.5 miles; ridges and bottoms 8 miles (4 hours); hilltop stroll from the car park
Open hill and churchyard paths at all times
Parking National Trust car park on West Wycombe Hill by St Lawrence's Church, HP14 3AH
Access steep, slippery paths and kissing gates; not suitable for wheelchairs
Address West Wycombe Hill car park, Church Lane, West Wycombe HP14 3AH
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/oxfordshire-buckinghamshire-berkshire/chilterns-countryside/chiltern-hills-three-in-one-walk
Good for views, history, dogs on leads, a long walk

4. Bradenham beech woods (4.4 miles)

Bradenham is the small National Trust village two miles up the A40 from West Wycombe, with a green, St Botolph’s church and Bradenham Manor beside it. The Trust’s Bradenham beech woods walk is 4.4 miles and about two hours from the car park by the cricket pavilion, climbing into the beech woods and down past the Small Dean Bank conservation area.

The Trust points out sarsen stones and puddingstones on the edge of the green, ancient earthworks and wartime bunkers on the way. It warns of soft paths that turn muddy, gates and several short steep climbs.

For a longer day, its Chiltern hills and valleys walk from the same car park is 8 miles, three and a half to four hours.

Walk beech woods 4.4 miles (2 hours); hills and valleys 8 miles (3.5 to 4 hours)
Open at all times, free
Parking National Trust car park by the cricket pavilion, east of the church (satnav HP14 4HF); second car park in Smalldean Lane (HP27 0PR)
Access gates and several steep, short climbs; muddy in winter
Address Bradenham village green, Bradenham HP14 4HF
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/oxfordshire-buckinghamshire-berkshire/chilterns-countryside/bradenham-beech-woods-walk
Good for beech woods, history, dogs on leads around livestock

5. Whiteleaf Hill, Princes Risborough

Whiteleaf Hill stands above Princes Risborough with views over the Vale of Aylesbury. The Chiltern Society, which looks after the nature reserve, says the Whiteleaf Cross cut into its northern slope is about 100m tall and first appears in writing in 1742; nobody knows why it was made.

The hill also has a Neolithic barrow and First World War practice trenches, and the Ridgeway National Trail runs across it. The cross is best seen from a distance, so walk down towards the town and look back.

The society has two walk leaflets for the hill on its site, the Brush Hill and Whiteleaf Hill Walk and the Whiteleaf Walk. There are no trains at Princes Risborough on Boxing Day.

Walk footpath from the information board at the end of the car park; Chiltern Society walk leaflets online
Open all year, free
Parking Whiteleaf Cross car park at the top of Peters Lane, Princes Risborough
Website chilternsociety.org.uk/?p=2257
Good for views, history, the Ridgeway, dogs

6. Higginson Park and the Thames Path, Marlow

Higginson Park is Marlow’s riverside park, about 23 acres on the Thames beside the High Street, a public park since 1926 and a garden since 1758, according to Buckinghamshire Council. It has the Sir Steve Redgrave statue, a brick-in-grass maze made for the Millennium, wetland kept for kingfishers and waterfowl, and the start of the Thames Path walk upstream.

The path follows the north bank west towards Temple, but the old through-route to Hurley is broken: Temple footbridge has been shut since 2023, and the Thames Path National Trail says it is unlikely to reopen before 2028, with a diversion back over Marlow Bridge and through Bisham. Walk out along the river as far as you like and turn round, or follow the signed diversion over Marlow Bridge for a longer loop.

Walk Thames Path upstream from the park, out and back; diversion loop via Marlow Bridge and Bisham
Open at all times, free
Parking Pound Lane car park by the main gates
Toilets public toilets in the park
Access level ground from Marlow station, five minutes' walk
Address Higginson Park, Pound Lane, Marlow SL7 2AE
Website buckinghamshire.gov.uk/schools-libraries-and-parks/parks-leisure-and-staying-active/find-a-park-or-play-area/higginson-park
Good for a flat riverside walk, buggies, children, play area

7. Cliveden woods, Taplow (2 or 3.1 miles)

Cliveden is the National Trust estate on the chalk cliffs above the Thames near Taplow, and its calendar has the garden and woodlands open from 9.30am to 4pm on Boxing Day, with the Conservatory Cafe open to 3.30pm, the refreshment kiosk to 4pm and the Woodland Lounge coffee trailer from 8.30am to 3pm. The house and the riverside trailer stay shut.

The Trust’s 2-mile woodland walk from the information centre is mostly flat, along Green Drive to the clifftop path and views over the river. Its 3.1-mile gold trail from the woodland car park drops down a steep, slippery track to the riverside path, past islands and birdlife, then climbs back along the clifftop.

You need membership or an admission ticket for both: the Trust’s published adult rate is £23, and parking is included.

Walk woodland walk 2 miles (1 to 2 hours); gold trail 3.1 miles (1.5 to 2 hours)
Open garden and woodlands 9.30am to 4pm on 26 December; woodland car park from 8.30am; main gate closes 3.30pm in winter; closed 24 and 25 December
Price National Trust members free; published adult rate £23, child £11.50, family £57.50
Cafe Conservatory Cafe 9.30am to 3.30pm; Woodland Lounge trailer 8.30am to 3pm, with indoor dog-friendly seating
Access woodland walk mostly flat with puddles in winter; gold trail steep in parts, not for wheelchairs
Address Cliveden, Taplow, Maidenhead SL6 8NS
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/oxfordshire-buckinghamshire-berkshire/cliveden
Good for river views, dogs in the woodland, children's play area, a cafe open on the day

8. Penn Wood, Penn Street

Penn Wood is 176.3 hectares (435 acres) of ancient woodland near Penn Street, one of the largest in the Chilterns, and the Woodland Trust looks after it. It has a surfaced 360m easy-access circuit from the entrance by Penn Street church, a 1km surfaced bridleway and about 10km of permissive paths, with a link to Common Wood beyond.

The Trust says buzzards are commonly seen overhead and there are ponds in the wood. Parking is in the village, including a large car park at Holy Trinity church, and the Trust asks drivers to keep the Quaker Gate clear.

There are no public toilets; the Trust says the pubs on Penn Street have toilets for customers.

Walk 360m easy-access circuit; 1km surfaced bridleway; about 10km of permissive paths
Open at all times, free
Parking Holy Trinity church car park and other spots in Penn Street village
Toilets none in the wood; pubs on Penn Street for customers
Access surfaced circuit and bridleway; other paths soft
Address Penn Wood, Penn Street, near Beaconsfield
Website woodlandtrust.org.uk/visiting-woods/woods/penn-wood-1
Good for ancient woodland, dogs, buggies on the surfaced path

9. Burnham Beeches, Farnham Common

Burnham Beeches is the City of London’s 220-hectare (540-acre) National Nature Reserve between Farnham Common and Burnham, famous for ancient pollarded beeches, many several hundred years old. The City of London bought it in 1879, when it was up for sale as land “suitable for the erection of superior residences”.

Informal paths run through woodland, heath and wetland, and the closed tarmac roads suit buggies and bikes; there is an Easy Access Path too. The City says the Beeches Cafe, toilets and information point open every day except Christmas Day, usually 10am to 5pm, and the car parks open from 8am to dusk with charges.

Dogs are welcome, with lead rules in some areas and no more than four per person.

Walk informal paths and closed tarmac roads; Easy Access Path
Open always open on foot; car parks 8am to dusk
Parking Lord Mayor's Drive car parks, charged
Toilets by the cafe
Cafe Beeches Cafe, every day except Christmas Day, usually 10am to 5pm
Address Burnham Beeches, Lord Mayor's Drive, Farnham Common SL2 3TE
Website cityoflondon.gov.uk/things-to-do/green-spaces/burnham-beeches
Good for ancient trees, buggies, dogs, a cafe open on the day