Places Of Interest / Leisure
Guildford provides a stimulating environment in which to live and work with a wide variety of cultural, sport and recreational activities to pursue. Surrey Sports Park and the Spectrum Leisure Centre, which is home to the Guildford Flames ice hockey team, are popular destinations for all ages.
Loseley Park
The house at Loseley Park, near Guildford, replaced the earlier medieval one that Queen Elizabeth I declared inadequate for her visit. To build the mansion, stone from the nearby Cistercian Waverley Abbey was used.
Watts Gallery
George Frederic Watts OM, RA (1817 – 1904) was widely considered to be the greatest painter of the Victorian era. Today Watts Gallery is an international centre for engaging with mid-19th to early 20th century art, social history, craft, design and architecture.
Pewley Down
This 23 acre nature reserve sits high above Guildford town and is a wonderful place to explore and let children run free. It is a beautiful spot to discover if you are new to the area.
Guildford Cathedral
Meticulously maintained, Guildford Cathedral keeps watch over the county town. Open daily to tourists and for community events, the Cathedral is still very much alive and relevant to modern life and is available for private hire as well as art exhibitions and religious ceremonies.
Newlands Corner
A popular viewpoint from which to look south over the beautiful Surrey Hills, Newlands Corner is served by a cafe and is a popular local beauty spot from which to walk and explore.
Clandon House
This stunning 18th century Grade I Listed Palladian mansion in West Clandon which sits in 540 acres of landscaped grounds, was decimated by a fire in 2015 and is undergoing a £30m rebuild by the National Trust. Once complete Clandon House, will reopen to the public.
Guildford Spectrum
Home to the Guildford Flames ice hockey team, Guildford Spectrum offers community leisure and entertainment for all the family. Facilities include a leisure pool with slides, a teaching pool, diving board, as well as an ice rink, soft play, bowling and many more gym and exercise classes. As a result of the facilities it offers, it is a destination for sports enthusiasts around the county.
University of Surrey
As the leading educational facility in the county, this public research university specialises in science, medicine and business. The University of Surrey is famous for the Surrey Space Centre, a world-leading centre for space research and engineering. In 2010 Surrey Sports Park opened close to the main campus housing a 50-metre Olympic-size swimming pool, three multi-sports halls, a squash centre, 700 square metres of fitness facilities, two artificial floodlit pitches, outdoor and indoor tennis courts, four real tennis courts and a climbing centre.
Wisley
From winter walks to the butterflies in the glasshouse and of course, the annual flower show, the RHS flagship garden centre at Wisley is close to everyone’s hearts. A destination for everyone who loves gardening and those who want to learn more about the environment it is popular with families and school trips. In the summer it holds outdoor cinema screenings of popular films in the grounds.
Guildford Castle
Visitors can head straight to the top of Guildford Castle to enjoy stunning 360 degree view over Guildford and beyond and enjoy walking through the stunning gardens, close to the town centre. The remains are thought to date back to just after 1066 and the invasion of William the Conqueror.
Transport Links
Rail links in the Borough of Guildford are superb. The town of Guildford is on the main line between London and Portsmouth, with four trains an hour leaving for London Waterloo.
Several smaller rail lines terminate in Guildford serving the Surrey Hills villages en-route to Dorking, as well as connecting to Farnham to the west and the villages of the Horsleys in the east. These connections mean the Borough of Guildford is a popular destination for buyers looking to move out of London but still enjoy easy access into it.
Major road routes through the Borough of Guildford include the A3, which feeds journeys from the south coast and travels all the way to the northern reaches of the Borough to Wisley where it connects to the M25. The A31 is another major trunk road that connects Guildford to Farnham and the villages inbetween.
Guildford enjoys a fast and frequent park and ride service into the town, with collection points to both the north and south of the town.