Tate Modern's chimney and the Shard seen across the Thames

Self-guided

Self-guided walks

13 London routes from station to station, and 28 trails in 12 regions from the coast path to the fells. Every walk has a map and a GPX file.

Grades: where an official page gives one we use it; otherwise our rule (easy up to 5 miles (8 km) and 150 m ascent, hard over 9.9 miles (16 km) or 600 m ascent) applies, shown on each walk page. Lengths come from the official page or are measured from OpenStreetMap geometry.

London, station to station

  • The glass and iron roof of the market hall at Covent Garden

    Soho & Covent Garden

    Soho and Covent Garden

    Squares, markets and side streets between Tottenham Court Road and the Piazza.

    • 3.6 km · 2.2 miles
    • 45 min walking
    • Flat
    • Step-free: check route

    Best in All year

  • Tate Modern's chimney and the Shard across the Thames

    South Bank

    Thames Path: Westminster to Tower Bridge

    Parliament, the London Eye and the whole South Bank, ending at Tower Bridge.

    • 6.5 km · 4.0 miles
    • 1 h 25 min walking
    • Flat
    • Step-free: check route

    Best in SpringSummerFall

  • Narrowboats in a lock at Camden on the Regent's Canal

    Camden & Primrose Hill

    Camden, Primrose Hill and Little Venice

    Camden Lock, a hilltop view and the Regent's Canal towpath to Little Venice.

    • 6.8 km · 4.3 miles
    • 1 h 30 min walking
    • Some hills
    • Step-free: check route

    Best in SpringSummerFall

  • The Cutty Sark seen across the Thames at Greenwich

    Greenwich

    Greenwich: Park, Observatory and Riverside

    Cutty Sark, the Old Royal Naval College, the Prime Meridian and the Thames Path.

    • 3.9 km · 2.4 miles
    • 50 min walking
    • Some hills
    • Step-free: check route

    Best in SpringSummerFall

  • Portobello Road with market stalls and painted shopfronts

    Notting Hill & Holland Park

    Notting Hill, Portobello and Holland Park

    A famous pub, the Portobello Road, a Japanese garden and a Victorian artist's house.

    • 5.8 km · 3.6 miles
    • 1 h 15 min walking
    • Flat
    • Step-free: check route

    Best in SpringSummerFall

  • Open grassland with the London skyline in the distance

    Hampstead & Primrose Hill

    Hampstead Heath and Kenwood

    Hampstead village, the high heath, Kenwood House and the view from Parliament Hill.

    • 5.4 km · 3.4 miles
    • 1 h 15 min walking
    • Some hills
    • Step-free: check route

    Best in SpringSummerFall

  • Buckingham Palace and the Victoria Memorial

    Westminster & Whitehall

    Royal London: St James's to Whitehall

    From Green Park to Buckingham Palace, Horse Guards and Westminster Abbey.

    • 4.0 km · 2.5 miles
    • 55 min walking
    • Flat
    • Step-free: check route

    Best in SpringSummerFall

  • The Tower of London from the river bank

    The City & Tower

    The City and Roman London

    Roman wall, amphitheater and temple in the Square Mile, ending at St Paul's.

    • 3.4 km · 2.1 miles
    • 45 min walking
    • Flat
    • Optional steps
    • Step-free: check route

    Best in All year

  • A large street-art hedgehog on a brick wall in Shoreditch

    Shoreditch & Spitalfields

    Shoreditch Street Art and Brick Lane

    Murals, a flower market, Brick Lane bagels and Spitalfields.

    • 4.6 km · 2.9 miles
    • 1 h walking
    • Flat
    • Step-free: check route

    Best in All year

  • The Palm House and flower beds at Kew Gardens

    Kew & Richmond

    Kew to Richmond along the Thames

    Kew Green and Kew Bridge, then the riverside towpath through Old Deer Park to Richmond.

    • 8.5 km · 5.3 miles
    • 1 h 55 min walking
    • Flat
    • Step-free: check route

    Best in SpringSummer

  • The Great Court of the British Museum

    Bloomsbury & Fitzrovia

    Bloomsbury Literary Walk

    Dickens's house, garden squares and the British Museum.

    • 3.9 km · 2.4 miles
    • 50 min walking
    • Flat
    • Step-free: check route

    Best in All year

  • Open grass and trees in Hyde Park

    Hyde Park & Kensington Gardens

    Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens

    Speakers' Corner, the Serpentine, Kensington Palace and the Albert Memorial.

    • 5.4 km · 3.4 miles
    • 1 h 15 min walking
    • Flat
    • Step-free: check route

    Best in SpringSummerFall

  • Battersea Power Station and its four chimneys beside the Thames at dusk

    Battersea & Nine Elms

    Battersea Park and the Power Station

    Chelsea Pensioners, a Thames bridge, a peace pagoda and Battersea Power Station.

    • 5.4 km · 3.4 miles
    • 1 h 15 min walking
    • Flat
    • Step-free: check route

    Best in SpringSummerFall

Cornwall

  • Linear (one way)

    Camel Trail: Wadebridge to Padstow

    A surfaced, virtually level former railway beside the Camel estuary, shared with cyclists.

    • 5.5 miles (8.8 km)
    • Moderate

  • Linear (one way)

    Penzance to Marazion

    A wide, level coast path along Mount's Bay with St Michael's Mount ahead.

    • 2.8 miles (4.5 km)
    • Easy

  • Linear (one way)

    Hayle to St Ives by the coast path

    A one-way South West Coast Path walk round St Ives Bay by Carbis Bay, with a train back option.

    • 6.9 miles (11.1 km)
    • Moderate

Edinburgh

  • Linear (one way)

    Water of Leith Walkway

    Thirteen miles along the river from Balerno to Leith, easiest taken in sections.

    • 13 miles (20.9 km)
    • Hard
    • About 2 hours from Balerno to Slateford and about 3 hours from Slateford to Leith (rough guides)

  • Linear (one way)

    Union Canal: Lochrin Basin to Slateford

    A level towpath section from the canal's Edinburgh terminus, part of the Forth & Clyde/Union route.

    • 2.2 miles (3.5 km)
    • Easy

Glasgow

Liverpool

  • Linear (one way)

    Crosby promenade and Another Place

    A flat promenade walk beside Antony Gormley's 100 iron figures, with tide and soft-sand rules.

    • 1.6 miles (2.6 km)
    • Easy

Manchester

Northern Ireland

  • Linear (one way)

    Causeway Coast Way: Ballintoy to Portballintrae

    A long, demanding coastal section past Dunseverick and the Giant's Causeway.

    • 11 miles (17.7 km)
    • Hard

  • Linear (one way)

    Cuilcagh Boardwalk Trail

    A one-way trail from the Marlbank Road in Fermanagh up to a viewing platform on Cuilcagh.

    • 4 miles (6.5 km)
    • Hard
    • The page says 3 hours round trip, but also warns it can take 8 to 10 hours on a busy day

Oxford

The Cotswolds

The Jurassic Coast

The Lake District

  • Circular

    Tarn Hows circular

    A level-ish loop round a landscaped tarn above Coniston, with a Miles Without Stiles route description.

    • 2.1 miles (3.3 km)
    • Easy
    • 1.5 hours

  • Linear (one way)

    West Windermere Way

    Newby Bridge to Lakeside YMCA through woods above the western shore of the south basin.

    • 3.5 miles (5.6 km)
    • Moderate
    • 2.5 hours

  • Circular

    Dodd Summit trail

    A steep waymarked climb through forest to the open top of Dodd above Bassenthwaite Lake.

    • 3.5 miles (5.7 km)
    • Hard

  • Circular

    Carron Crag trail, Grizedale

    A strenuous forest loop from the Grizedale visitor center to the highest point in the forest.

    • 4.8 miles (7.8 km)
    • Hard

The Scottish Highlands

Wales

More outdoors: beaches and parks and gardens.

How these routes are made

Each stop is a real place with coordinates checked against OpenStreetMap or our place data. The line on the map is a real pedestrian route between stops, worked out once from OpenStreetMap data and saved with the site. Times use a walking speed of 2.8 miles (4.5 km)/h and do not include time at stops, so allow longer. Step-free access has not been checked along these routes: use the link on each walk to check before you go. Opening times change, so check before you visit.

Route and map data: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), routing by the FOSSGIS OSRM service. Spotted a mistake on the map? Fix the map. Photos are credited on the photo credits page.