7-day South Downs Way itinerary

1. Day 1

   Winchester to East Meon

   7–8 h 17.6 mi (28.4 km) ↑ 520 m (1,700 ft) ↓ 420 m (1,400 ft)

   Cheesefoot Head looks toward the Solent, and you may hear the ranges at Chilcomb. Beacon Hill drops steeply into the Meon, and Exton is a flint village you walk through. The usual first walk stops there. This one does not. Old Winchester Hill is the fort, and the night is a campsite at East Meon, below the ridge. It is a long first day. Butser Hill is tomorrow, inside the walk to Cocking, so do not push on. Book the campsite.

   Example stay Duncombe Farm (opens in a new tab)

2. Day 2 Longest

   East Meon to Cocking

   8–9 h 18.4 mi (29.7 km) ↑ 660 m (2,150 ft) ↓ 680 m (2,250 ft)

   This is the longest day, because two Hampshire walks are joined. You climb back to the ridge and Butser Hill, the highest point on the Way, sits in the middle, not at the end. The Queen Elizabeth Country Park is the long grassy descent. Buriton, below the chalk pits, is lunch, not the night. Harting Down and the Devil's Jumps follow, then the drop to Cocking. Beds there are few. Book it. When Cocking is full, the night may be a taxi to Midhurst. Carry food.

   Example stay Manor Farm Campsite and B&B (opens in a new tab)

3. Day 3

   Cocking to Amberley

   5–6 h 12.3 mi (19.8 km) ↑ 380 m (1,250 ft) ↓ 440 m (1,450 ft)

   The wooded day, and the first easier one after two long walks. A climb leads into Charlton Forest and over Bignor Hill, where a Roman road still shows. Bignor Roman Villa is a detour, not the line. You drop to the River Arun. Amberley is the halfway point, with a train to London, and on this plan it is the night. Do not walk through toward Steyning. Tomorrow is the breather. The day after that joins Devil's Dyke and Ditchling Beacon. Stop, and eat in the village.

   Example stay Amberley Castle (opens in a new tab)

4. Day 4

   Amberley to Steyning

   4–5 h 8.9 mi (14.3 km) ↑ 340 m (1,100 ft) ↓ 200 m (650 ft)

   The breather, and it still starts with the steep climb to Amberley Mount. The path then opens into chalk grassland. Washington has a pub and a shop. Walk through. Chanctonbury Ring is a circle of beeches on an old fort, above the hills. Steyning is the night, not the other villages in the same valley. Tomorrow joins Devil's Dyke and Ditchling Beacon, then drops to Lewes, so eat here and do not wander on to the Adur.

   Example stay Hill View Bed & Breakfast (opens in a new tab)

5. Day 5

   Steyning to Lewes

   8–9 h 17.7 mi (28.4 km) ↑ 590 m (1,950 ft) ↓ 690 m (2,250 ft)

   Still a long day, even though the walk to Cocking was a little further. You rejoin the ridge, cross Devil's Dyke, pass the Jack and Jill windmills, and climb to Ditchling Beacon, the highest point on the Sussex Downs. A slower plan stops at Pyecombe and splits this. Seven days does not. Lewes is about 3 miles (5 km) off the path, so the walk down is part of the day. Carry food and water. Book the town.

   Example stay Premier Inn Lewes (opens in a new tab)

6. Day 6

   Lewes to Alfriston

   6–7 h 14.3 mi (23.1 km) ↑ 510 m (1,650 ft) ↓ 510 m (1,650 ft)

   Alfriston is a night so the cliffs stay on their own day, even on this faster week. You climb back from Lewes to the ridge, cross the Greenwich Meridian, and drop to the Ouse. Look for seals before Itford Hill. From there to Alfriston there is barely a tree, and Firle Beacon is a launch for paragliders. Do not push on to Eastbourne. The Seven Sisters are tomorrow. Eat in Alfriston. The cliff edge will ask for fresh legs.

   Example stay The Alfriston Hotel (opens in a new tab)

7. Day 7

   Alfriston to Eastbourne

   5–6 h 11.4 mi (18.3 km) ↑ 580 m (1,900 ft) ↓ 620 m (2,050 ft)

   The cliffs are still their own day, which this fast week keeps. Walkers take the footpath by the Cuckmere and over the Seven Sisters, not the bridleway through Jevington. Between Cuckmere Haven and Beachy Head the edge is unprotected and undercut. Stay off it. Birling Gap has a cafe. Beachy Head, Britain's highest chalk cliff, is the last climb, then the promenade at Eastbourne. Folding the cliffs into the walk from Alfriston would make the finish the hard one. This plan does not.

   Finish South Downs Way Finish

Cross-check: National Trails . Most people take 8 or 9 days to walk the 100 miles (160 km). Distances on the cards are measured on the imported line. The climb printed for cyclists is not the walk.

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