Ten Boxing Day walks near Farnham, from Farnham Park to the Devil's Punch Bowl, with parking and the cafes and pubs open on the day. Updated November 2026.
Farnham has ten Boxing Day walks worth getting out of the house for in 2026, and this guide puts them in one place with distances, parking and which cafes and pubs are open on the day. Most people head for the Devil’s Punch Bowl at Hindhead, where the National Trust cafe opens on Boxing Day, or Frensham Little Pond and its Tern Cafe. From town, Farnham Park is a walk from the front door, and Tilford has the Duke of Cambridge serving food until 6pm. Every cafe and pub was checked against its own site on 11 November 2026.
Boxing Day 2026 is a Saturday, and the bank holiday moves to Monday 28 December. A few things change on the day:
- Light. The sun sets just before 4pm, so start by 1pm for anything over four miles.
- Trains. There are none. South Western Railway runs no trains on Christmas Day or Boxing Day; our Christmas train times page has the rest of the holiday.
- Mud. The sandy heaths around Frensham, Hindhead and Black Down drain well; the clay in Farnham Park and the woodland paths at Alice Holt do not. Wear boots.
- Car parks. On a dry Boxing Day the National Trust car parks at Hindhead and Frensham fill early. Neither has a phone signal, so set up the JustPark app at home.
In and around Farnham
1. Farnham Park
The town’s own walk, and the only one here with no car needed. Waverley Borough Council’s 320-acre medieval deer park starts about 100 metres north of Castle Street, and its park page describes a circular route on tarmac with “a number of steep inclines and descents”, shared with cyclists.
The council warns the paths get muddy “especially in winter and to the north side, where there is clay soil”. Birdies Coffee House in the park has not published Christmas hours, but the Teller’s Arms at the foot of Castle Street opens from 7.30am to 11pm on Boxing Day, according to its Christmas page.
Walk tarmac circuit with steep slopes; as long or short as you like
Open park always open; Teller's Arms Boxing Day 7.30am to 11pm
Parking Graham Thorpe Drive, Folly Hill, free at the time of writing
Call Teller's Arms 01252 951118
Address Farnham Park, Folly Hill, Farnham GU9 0FL
Website waverley.gov.uk/farnhampark
Listing Our listing
Good for walking from town, a pub at the end, dogs on leads near cattle
2. Waverley Abbey and the River Wey
The ruins of the first Cistercian monastery in Britain, founded in 1128 beside the River Wey about two miles south-east of the town. English Heritage says entry is free at “any reasonable time during daylight hours”, so Boxing Day is no different from any other. From the small car park on Waverley Lane the ruins are about 350 metres away through a kissing gate and across a field of uneven turf, which may have cattle in it.
The Greensand Way runs on beside the river towards Moor Park and Mother Ludlam’s Cave, which turns a short visit into a riverside walk.
Open daylight hours, free
Parking small car park on Waverley Lane
Address Waverley Lane, Farnham GU9 8EP
Website english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/waverley-abbey
Good for history, a short walk, the river, dogs on leads
3. Farnham Heath, Bourne Wood and Tilford
The best pub walk on this list. The RSPB’s Farnham Heath reserve on The Reeds Road has three waymarked trails: orange (0.75 miles, mostly level and surfaced), purple (1 mile) and green (2 miles through heath and woodland, with steep slopes and mud).
Forestry England’s Bourne Wood sits next door, on sandy tracks it says can be walked all year, though its trails are not waymarked. Tilford village is a mile east, and the Duke of Cambridge on Tilford Road serves food from 12pm to 6pm on Boxing Day, according to its Christmas page.
The reserve’s main car park belongs to the Rural Life Living Museum and is not open every day, so check before you drive there.
Walk 0.75 to 2 miles on the RSPB trails; longer by joining Bourne Wood
Food Duke of Cambridge Boxing Day 12pm to 6pm
Call Duke of Cambridge 01252 792236
Address Farnham Heath, The Reeds Road, Tilford GU10 2DL
Website rspb.org.uk/days-out/reserves/farnham-heath
Listing Our listing
Good for a pub lunch after, heathland, dogs on paths
Frensham and Alice Holt
4. Frensham Little Pond
The National Trust’s quieter pond, dug in the 13th century to keep the Bishop of Winchester’s table in fish when he stayed at Farnham Castle. The Trust calls many of its paths “smooth and fairly level”, which makes it a good choice for a mixed-age family walk, and the Two Ponds Way links it to the Great Pond over King’s Ridge.
The Trust’s calendar has the countryside open from dawn to dusk every day and the Tern Cafe open from 10am to 4pm on Saturday 26 December; it is shut on Christmas Day. The cafe has outdoor seating only, so wrap up.
Parking is in the Trust car park off Priory Lane; parking on the lane itself is prohibited.
Open dawn to dusk; Tern Cafe Boxing Day 10am to 4pm, closed Christmas Day
Parking National Trust car park, members free; pay by machine, JustPark or at the cafe; no phone signal
Toilets beside the cafe, open when it is
Address Priory Lane, Frensham GU10 3BT
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/surrey/frensham-little-pond
Good for a cafe on the day, level paths, families, dogs on short leads
5. Frensham Great Pond and Common
Around 1,000 acres of heath and water, owned by the National Trust and managed by Waverley Borough Council. Waverley’s marked routes start at the Information Room by the pond: the Easier Access Loop (450 metres, wheelchair accessible), the Great Pond Circular (about 45 minutes) and the Two Ponds Way (about two and a half hours, out to the Little Pond and back).
There is no cafe at the Great Pond, but the Frensham Pond Hotel stands on its bank, and its festive dining page lists a Boxing Day lunch at £34 for adults and £20 for children. Book ahead.
Walk 450 metres to about 2.5 hours on marked routes
Parking Bacon Lane car park, 8am to 9pm, £1.80 for an hour to £7 all day, National Trust members free
Price Frensham Pond Hotel Boxing Day lunch £34, children £20
Call Frensham Pond Hotel 01252 795161
Address Bacon Lane, Churt GU10 2QB
Website waverley.gov.uk/Services/Parking/Car-parks/Farnham-car-parks/Frensham-Great-Pond
Good for an accessible loop, a hotel lunch after, open views, dogs on paths
6. Alice Holt Forest and the Bluebell
Forestry England’s forest at Bucks Horn Oak, the best choice here for pushchairs. The Easy Access Trail runs 0.7 or 1.5 miles on a wide gravelled surface with no steps; the Lodge Pond Trail goes 2.5 miles on woodland paths that are muddy in winter.
Forestry England’s Alice Holt page lists the car park as open from 8am to 8pm and the cafe and visitor centre from 9am to 4pm daily, with no separate Christmas notice. Two miles south at Batts Corner, the Bluebell opens from 12pm to 6pm on Boxing Day, with the kitchen serving until 3.30pm, according to its Christmas page.
It is closed on Christmas Day.
Walk 0.7 to 2.5 miles on waymarked trails
Open car park 8am to 8pm; cafe 9am to 4pm daily; Bluebell Boxing Day 12pm to 6pm, kitchen to 3.30pm
Parking charged by the hour, free on foot or by bike
Address Bucks Horn Oak, Farnham GU10 4LS
Website forestryengland.uk/alice-holt-forest
Listing Our listing
Good for pushchairs, a cafe, a pub lunch after, dogs
Hindhead and Haslemere
7. The Devil’s Punch Bowl and Gibbet Hill, Hindhead
The busiest Boxing Day walk around Farnham, and the one with the most going on. The National Trust’s calendar has the commons open from dawn to dusk and the cafe open from 9.30am to 4pm on Boxing Day (the kiosk stays shut).
Routes from the car park run from the 1-mile Sailor’s Stroll, mostly on a surfaced road and fine for pushchairs, to the 3.1-mile Hidden Hindhead loop up to Gibbet Hill, the second highest point in Surrey. The same morning, hundreds of people take part in the Hindhead Boxing Day Run, a 3.5-mile route over the commons, Gibbet Hill and the Punch Bowl that runners can also jog or walk.
Hindhead resident Matt Dellar has organised it since 1997, and Holy Cross Hospital in Haslemere says 524 people took part in 2025, raising £5,400 for its patients. Tickets for 2026 were not on sale on 11 November; last year they went on sale in late November.
Expect a full car park.
Walk 1 to 3.1 miles on marked routes; the Boxing Day Run is 3.5 miles
Open dawn to dusk; cafe Boxing Day 9.30am to 4pm, closed Christmas Day
Parking £2 for an hour to £9 all day, National Trust members free; JustPark, no phone signal
Toilets by the cafe, including a Changing Places toilet
Address London Road, Hindhead GU26 6AB
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/surrey/hindhead-commons-and-the-devils-punch-bowl
Good for a cafe on the day, views, the charity run, dogs on short leads
8. Black Down, Haslemere
For a quieter hill. The National Trust’s heath just over the Sussex border is the highest point in the South Downs National Park, with the view over the Weald that Tennyson wrote about.
The Trust says the sandy tracks make it “a great spot for walking at any time of the year”, and a well-used track from the main car park makes a circular tour that pushchairs can manage. It is open from dawn to dusk every day, parking is free, and there are no toilets or cafe, so take a flask.
Open dawn to dusk
Parking three free National Trust car parks on Tennyson's Lane
Address Tennyson's Lane, Haslemere GU27 3AF
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/sussex/black-down
Good for free parking, views, quiet paths, dogs on leads near cattle
Godalming and the Hog’s Back
9. Winkworth Arboretum and the White Horse, Hascombe
The one garden near Farnham open on Boxing Day. The National Trust’s calendar has Winkworth’s arboretum open from 10am to 4pm on Saturday 26 December, with the car park from 9.30am and the cafe from 9.30am to 3.30pm; it is closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Admission is £15 for adults, and members go free. Paths drop steeply through the trees to the lakes, Rowe’s Flashe among them.
Our Winkworth winter guide has more. Hascombe is a mile and a half south, and the White Horse there opens from 11am to 11pm on Boxing Day, according to Young’s.
Open Boxing Day 10am to 4pm, last entry 3.30pm; closed 24 and 25 December
Price adults £15, members free; parking £1.50 for an hour to £5 all day
Food cafe 9.30am to 3.30pm; White Horse Boxing Day 11am to 11pm
Call White Horse 01483 208258
Address Hascombe Road, Godalming GU8 4AD
Website nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/surrey/winkworth-arboretum
Listing Our listing
Good for a cafe on the day, lakes and trees, a pub nearby
10. Puttenham Common and the North Downs Way
Surrey County Council’s common below the Hog’s Back, with three colour-coded trails on its visitor page: Woodlark (3.5 miles, about two and a half hours), Bell Heather (1.5 miles, up to the Hillbury hill fort with no gates or stiles) and Butterfly (1 mile). All five car parks are free, with a 1.9-metre height barrier.
The council’s Puttenham Circular takes in the village and a stretch of the North Downs Way, the 153-mile National Trail that starts in Farnham. There are no toilets on the common, and neither of Puttenham’s pubs had published Boxing Day hours on 11 November, so ring before planning lunch around one.
Walk 1 to 3.5 miles on marked trails
Parking five free car parks, 1.9m height barrier
Address Suffield Lane, Puttenham GU3 1BG
Website surreycc.gov.uk/culture-and-leisure/countryside/sites/visitor-information/puttenham-common
Good for free parking, the North Downs Way, a hill fort, dogs under close control
Group walks on Boxing Day
Farnham & District Ramblers have led a Boxing Day walk before: a three-mile leisurely circuit of the Ash Ranges from the Ash Hill Road car park in 2023. Nothing was listed for 26 December 2026 on 11 November. We will add it here when it appears on the Ramblers’ group walks listings.
How we chose
Every route is published by whoever looks after the land: the National Trust, Waverley Borough Council, Surrey County Council, Forestry England, the RSPB and English Heritage. Distances and gradings are theirs. Boxing Day hours come from the National Trust’s own opening calendar and from each pub’s Christmas page; where a place has not published any, the entry says so. For more routes, see our full guide to walks near Farnham, and for the rest of the holiday, pubs open on Christmas Day, Christmas dinner in Farnham, Christmas light trails near Farnham, Farnham pubs, things to do in Farnham and what’s on this month. Local businesses are in our Farnham business directory.
Run a place that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@farnhamtoday.co.uk. Taken a good photograph of any of these places? Email it to newsdesk@farnhamtoday.co.uk and we will add it with your name as the credit.
Frequently asked questions
Which cafes are open on Boxing Day near Farnham’s walks?
The National Trust’s cafe at the Devil’s Punch Bowl in Hindhead opens 9.30am to 4pm on Saturday 26 December 2026, the Tern Cafe at Frensham Little Pond 10am to 4pm, and the cafe at Winkworth Arboretum 9.30am to 3.30pm. All three are closed on Christmas Day. Forestry England lists the Alice Holt cafe as open daily from 9am to 4pm.
Which pubs near Farnham are open on Boxing Day 2026?
The Teller’s Arms on Castle Street opens 7.30am to 11pm, the Duke of Cambridge at Tilford serves food from 12pm to 6pm, the Bluebell at Dockenfield opens 12pm to 6pm with food to 3.30pm, and the White Horse at Hascombe opens 11am to 11pm. The Frensham Pond Hotel serves a Boxing Day lunch at £34.
Are there trains from Farnham on Boxing Day?
No. South Western Railway runs no trains at all on Christmas Day or Boxing Day, so the walks here are for the car, a bike or your own front door. Farnham Park and Waverley Abbey can both be reached on foot from the town centre.
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