Hindhead’s biggest
Grayshott Playing Fields
Playing field
4.4 ha (11 acres)0.2 km of path
6 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
0.9 mi south-westfrom the centre
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Photo: Charlesdrakew · Public domainBOutdoors Grade
Outdoors in Hindhead · parks, paths & countryside
66% of the land within 5 km of Hindhead is National Park or National Landscape
The Surrey Hills National Landscape and the South Downs National Park both begin about a mile from the town’s edge. 112 km of footpaths run through the town and the kilometre around it, 5.9 for every square kilometre. A park or playing field is within a 5-minute walk for 37% of residents. Hindhead grades B for the outdoors: #40 of 65 in Surrey. A character grade: it isn’t part of the overall grade.
Green space
1.7 ha
per 1,000 residents
Typical UK town 2.1
Near a park
37%
of residents within 400 m
Typical UK town 83%
Footpaths
112 km
5.9 km per km², town + 1 km
Typical UK town 3.0 per km²
Protected landscape
66%
of the land within 5 km
Nearest: Surrey Hills National Landscape
Character
What kind of outdoors town is Hindhead?
Read from the data: what stands out first, good and bad.
Protected countryside66% of the land within 5 km is Surrey Hills National Landscape.A town of footpaths5.9 km of path per km², more than 97% of UK towns. The typical town has 3.0.Less park per person1.7 ha of parks and playing fields per 1,000 residents; the typical UK town has 2.1.
Hindhead’s strongest suit is protected countryside on the doorstep, followed by dense footpaths. Where it falls short is park space per person.
Outdoors grade
Hindhead grades B for the outdoors
Each chart is every UK town of 1,000 or more on one measure: the green bar is Hindhead, the dashed line the typical town. The number is the share of towns it beats; the five are averaged and the average ranked again.
B
Better than 63% of UK towns#40 of 65 in Surrey · 27th of 60 UK towns its size
Public green space1.7 haper 1,000 residents: parks, gardens, playing fields, play spaces
34out of
100
100
A park within a walk37%of residents within 400 m (a 5-minute walk)
8out of
100
100
National Park or National Landscape66%of the land within 5 km
95out of
100
100
Footpaths5.9 kmper km², the town and 1 km around it
97out of
100
100
The sea0%of the area within 5 km · Inland
42out of
100
100
Graded, never part of the overall grade (like History and Civic life). It measures what is mapped: OS Open Greenspace leaves out woodland and open-access land that isn’t a park, and OpenStreetMap’s rural paths are more complete in some places than others.
Towns its size
Hindhead is 27th of 60 UK towns its size for the outdoors
The 60 UK towns and cities of 6,200 to 6,700 people with an Outdoors Grade. Hover a dot for its figures; tap one for its page.
Outdoors score: the share of UK towns each one beats
Footpath, km per km²
Hindhead5.9
Towns its size2.9
Surrey towns4.3
All UK towns3.0
Green space, ha per 1,000 residents
Hindhead1.7
Towns its size2.2
Surrey towns3.1
All UK towns2.1
Residents within 400 m of a park
Hindhead37%
Towns its size84%
Surrey towns75%
All UK towns83%
Against towns its size, Hindhead stands out most for path per km²: only 1 of the other 59 has more. It falls furthest behind on homes near a park, where 59 of the others do better.
Show as a table
| Town | Outdoors | Green space | Near a park | Path per km² | Protected | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Netley Hampshire | A+ | 16.3 | 100% | 4.1 | 4% |
| 2 | Stone Kent | A+ | 3.1 | 100% | 6.2 | 0% |
| 3 | Filey North Yorkshire | A | 5.9 | 89% | 2.8 | 0% |
| 4 | Chalford Gloucestershire | A | 1.6 | 96% | 4.7 | 94% |
| 5 | Wingerworth Derbyshire | A | 9 | 86% | 4 | 0% |
| 6 | Shotton Clwyd | A | 4.5 | 100% | 4.7 | 0% |
| 7 | Bedwas Gwent | A | 4.4 | 100% | 4 | 0% |
| 8 | Broad Blunsdon Wiltshire | A− | 5.2 | 93% | 4.4 | 0% |
| 9 | Barnton Cheshire | A− | 10 | 94% | 3.8 | 0% |
| 10 | St Blazey Cornwall | A− | 2.4 | 78% | 2.8 | 17% |
| 11 | Marston Moretaine Bedfordshire | A− | 17.4 | 88% | 4.2 | 0% |
| 12 | Olney Buckinghamshire | A− | 6.3 | 100% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 13 | Alcester Warwickshire | A− | 4.1 | 100% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 14 | Ackworth Moor Top West Yorkshire | A− | 4.6 | 91% | 4.6 | 0% |
| 15 | Whitfield Kent | A− | 2.3 | 79% | 2.5 | 32% |
| 16 | Paulton Somerset | A− | 2.1 | 96% | 4.1 | 0% |
| 17 | Burghfield Common Berkshire | A− | 2.1 | 100% | 2.9 | 8% |
| 18 | Broadbridge Heath West Sussex | B+ | 1.6 | 95% | 4.3 | 3% |
| 19 | Lightwater Surrey | B+ | 9.2 | 72% | 5.6 | 0% |
| 20 | Milford and Witley Surrey | B+ | 2.6 | 54% | 3.7 | 78% |
| 21 | Cawston Warwickshire | B+ | 3.6 | 98% | 3 | 0% |
| 22 | North Anston South Yorkshire | B+ | 2.6 | 100% | 3.3 | 0% |
| 23 | Cleator Moor Cumbria | B+ | 3.5 | 91% | 1.9 | 11% |
| 24 | Little Chalfont Buckinghamshire | B+ | 1.5 | 83% | 3.6 | 45% |
| 25 | Groby Leicestershire | B+ | 2.1 | 96% | 4.5 | 0% |
| 26 | Peasedown St John Somerset | B+ | 1.5 | 88% | 4 | 9% |
| 27 | Hindhead Surrey | B | 1.7 | 37% | 5.9 | 66% |
| 28 | Braunton Devon | B | 1.6 | 78% | 2.1 | 24% |
| 29 | Galleywood Essex | B | 10.3 | 61% | 4.2 | 0% |
| 30 | Throckley Tyne and Wear | B | 3.1 | 89% | 3.2 | 0% |
| 31 | Oundle Northamptonshire | B− | 2.4 | 100% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 32 | Bovey Tracey Devon | B− | 2.2 | 66% | 2.5 | 55% |
| 33 | Rishton Lancashire | B− | 2.2 | 94% | 3 | 0% |
| 34 | Yapton West Sussex | B− | 1.8 | 63% | 2 | 15% |
| 35 | Upton West Yorkshire | B− | 2.2 | 100% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 36 | Crigglestone and Durkar West Yorkshire | B− | 4.4 | 45% | 3.9 | 0% |
| 37 | Ushaw Moor and Bearpark County Durham | C+ | 1.6 | 82% | 4.6 | 0% |
| 38 | South Molton Devon | C+ | 2.2 | 96% | 1.3 | 0% |
| 39 | Chiswell Green Hertfordshire | C+ | 4 | 54% | 3.5 | 0% |
| 40 | Denmead Hampshire | C+ | 1.4 | 72% | 2.8 | 35% |
| 41 | Waltham Lincolnshire | C+ | 2.2 | 84% | 1.3 | 19% |
| 42 | Tetbury Gloucestershire | C+ | 1.2 | 66% | 2.6 | 88% |
| 43 | Malton North Yorkshire | C+ | 2.3 | 43% | 2.4 | 24% |
| 44 | Brampton Cambridgeshire | C | 3.2 | 61% | 2.9 | 0% |
| 45 | Market Deeping Lincolnshire | C | 1.5 | 96% | 2.4 | 0% |
| 46 | Cross Hands and Pen-y-groes Dyfed | C | 9.7 | 70% | 1.4 | 0% |
| 47 | Lydiate Merseyside | C− | 1.5 | 90% | 2 | 0% |
| 48 | Gildersome West Yorkshire | C− | 1.2 | 81% | 2.9 | 0% |
| 49 | Ashingdon Essex | C− | 1.3 | 61% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 50 | Weaverham Cheshire | C− | 0.7 | 81% | 3 | 0% |
| 51 | Boston Spa West Yorkshire | C− | 1.2 | 86% | 1.9 | 0% |
| 52 | Washingborough and Heighington Lincolnshire | D | 1.8 | 66% | 2.2 | 0% |
| 53 | Wem Shropshire | D | 1.2 | 77% | 1.5 | 0% |
| 54 | Aintree Merseyside | D | 1.3 | 43% | 2.5 | 0% |
| 55 | Holmes Chapel Cheshire | D | 0.8 | 72% | 2 | 0% |
| 56 | Pontarddulais West Glamorgan | D | 1.9 | 67% | 0.5 | 0% |
| 57 | Selston Nottinghamshire | D | 0.9 | 61% | 2.3 | 0% |
| 58 | Broughton Clwyd | D− | 0.8 | 80% | 1 | 0% |
| 59 | Abercynon Mid Glamorgan | D− | 1.1 | 55% | 1.6 | 0% |
| 60 | Tadcaster North Yorkshire | D− | 0.6 | 58% | 1.7 | 0% |
The map
Parks, footpaths & countryside
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it. The dashed line is Hindhead’s built-up area.
Green space: parks, gardens, playing fields and play spaces, named or not.© OpenStreetMap contributors · Contains OS data © Crown copyright · Natural England / NRW
Places to walk
Parks to walk in, in and around Hindhead
The biggest is Grayshott Playing Fields, 4.4 ha (11 acres). Directions go to the park’s nearest public entrance where Ordnance Survey maps one.
Hindhead Playing Field
Playing field
3.1 ha (8 acres)0.3 km of path
4 pitchesfootball pitches would fit
Centralin the middle of Hindhead
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Grovers Gardens
Park or garden
0.6 ha (2 acres)
Centralin the middle of Hindhead
Directionsto the nearest entrance
Close to home
4 in 10 Hindhead residents live within a 5-minute walk of a park
Each square is 1 in 100 residents: green lives within 400 m of a public park, garden or playing field (Census 2021 output areas against OS Open Greenspace).
Within 400 m (37%)Further (63%)
Hindhead37%
Towns its size84%
Surrey towns75%
All UK towns83%
About 4,100 people live further than that. Playing fields count, so a park within reach isn’t always one with paths or trees; 13 playgrounds are mapped in and around the town, about one for every 496 residents.
National Parks & National Landscapes
National Parks and National Landscapes around Hindhead
Protected landscapes within 30 km, by direction and distance from the edge of the built-up area; circle size shows each one’s area. National Landscapes were called Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty until 2023.
National ParkNational LandscapeThe 5 km the grade counts
National Landscape
Surrey Hills
At the edge south-west422 km²since 195851% of the land within 5 km
Official site66% of the land within 5 km of Hindhead is National Park or National Landscape, more than 95% of UK towns. South Downs National Park covers 1,653 km² and has been a National Park since 2010.
Footpaths & waymarked walks
10 waymarked walks pass through or near Hindhead
112 km of footpaths, bridleways and rights of way are mapped in Hindhead and the kilometre around it, 5.9 km for every square kilometre (the typical UK town has 3.0). Bars show each route’s kilometres within 2 km of the town.
RegionalLocal
Roam 639 Walk at Hindhead Commons and the Devil's Punch Bowl, Hindhead10.7 km
Greensand Way6.9 km
Highcombe Hike, Hindhead5.7 km
Hidden Hindhead Walking Trail, Hindhead5.5 km
Golden Valley Woodland Walk, Hindhead2.9 km
Old A3 Trail, Hindhead2.8 km
Miss James Walk at Hindhead2.5 km
Sailor's Stroll Walk at Hindhead Commons2.3 km
Shottermill to Marley Common and Cognor Wood walk, Black Down1.4 km
Sensory Trail, Hindhead0.7 km
Close to home, the Roam 639 Walk at Hindhead Commons and the Devil's Punch Bowl, Hindhead has 11 km of local walk within 2 km of the town. The regional route here is the Greensand Way.
Waymarked walks are OpenStreetMap walking routes. Public rights of way are only as complete as the map in each area.
When to get out
The best walking months in Hindhead: May to September
The town’s 1991–2020 averages (Met Office HadUK-Grid) and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have 12½+ hours of daylight, highs of 15 °C or more and little rain for the town.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 8.4 | 9.9 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 15.5 | 16.5 | 16.1 | 14.6 | 12.5 | 10.6 | 8.8 | 7.9 |
| High (°C) | 7 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 18 | 21 | 23 | 22 | 19 | 15 | 11 | 8 |
| Rain (mm) | 108 | 72 | 58 | 58 | 50 | 55 | 49 | 62 | 65 | 97 | 104 | 100 |
July is the driest month (49 mm) and the warmest (highs of 23 °C). Winter days are short, about 8 hours of daylight in December, and 108 mm of rain falls in January, the wettest month. Frost comes on about 61 nights a year. The climate in Hindhead →
Things to do
14 viewpoints, 13 playgrounds and the nearest beaches
Mapped within 2 km of the town in OpenStreetMap, against the typical UK town its size per resident. Named places are listed with directions; unnamed ones are only counted.
The nearest beaches
Hindhead is inland. These are the nearest named beaches, measured from the edge of the town.
Penguin Beach5.2 mi from Hindhead’s edge
DirectionsPrinsted Beach19 mi from Hindhead’s edge
DirectionsBosham Foreshore20 mi from Hindhead’s edge
DirectionsAmity Beach22 mi from Hindhead’s edge
DirectionsLittlehampton East Beach22 mi from Hindhead’s edge
DirectionsGood to know
Check the water before you swim. The Environment Agency tests designated bathing waters from May to September and publishes a rating for each beach.
Every named place, with directions
Viewpoints 14
Devil's Punch Bowl0.0 mi from town
DirectionsGibbet Hill0.5 mi from town
DirectionsTemple of the Four Winds0.9 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 11 viewpoints without a name on the map.
Hills and peaks 4
Beacon Hill0.0 mi from town
DirectionsGibbet Hill0.5 mi from town
DirectionsHurt Hill0.9 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 1 peak without a name on the map.
Picnic sites 2
Plus 2 picnic sites without a name on the map.
Playgrounds 13
Lower Hanger Adventure Play Area0.6 mi from town
DirectionsHatchetts Drive Play Area0.6 mi from town
DirectionsCamelsdale Play Park1.1 mi from town
DirectionsSicklemill Playground1.1 mi from town
DirectionsPlus 9 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Next door
The outdoors in nearby towns
The nearest towns of 1,000+ within 12 miles. Tap a town for its outdoors page.
Headley Down and HeadleyHaslemereLiphookLindfordElsteadBordonHindhead
ABCDOutdoors Grade
Lindford, 4.3 miles away, grades A+, the best next door: every resident lives within 400 m of a park. Lindford and Bordon have at least twice Hindhead’s green space per resident.
Questions about the outdoors in Hindhead
What is the biggest park in Hindhead?
Grayshott Playing Fields, 4.4 ha (11 acres). Hindhead Playing Field (3.1 ha) is second. 3 named parks, gardens and playing fields are in the town or within 400 m of it.
Is Hindhead near a National Park?
Yes. South Downs National Park begins 0.9 mi south of the town’s edge. It covers 1,653 km² and has been a National Park since 2010. The nearest protected landscape of any kind is the Surrey Hills National Landscape, at the edge of the town.
What are the best walks near Hindhead?
10 waymarked walking routes pass within 2 km of the town, including the Roam 639 Walk at Hindhead Commons and the Devil's Punch Bowl, Hindhead, Greensand Way and Highcombe Hike, Hindhead.
What is the nearest beach to Hindhead?
Penguin Beach, 5.2 mi from the edge of the town, then Prinsted Beach (19 mi). Hindhead itself is inland.
How many people in Hindhead live near a park?
37% of residents live within 400 m, about a 5-minute walk, of a public park, garden or playing field (Census 2021 output areas against OS Open Greenspace). The typical UK town is 83%.
When is the best time of year for walking in Hindhead?
May to September: the longest days, the warmest afternoons and the least rain of the year, from the Met Office 1991–2020 averages.
Is Hindhead good for walking?
For paths, yes: 5.9 km of footpath and right of way per square kilometre, more than 97% of UK towns. For park space per person it beats 34% (1.7 ha per 1,000 residents).
How is the Outdoors Grade worked out?
From five measures, each placed among UK towns of 1,000 or more: public green space per resident, the share living near a park, National Park or National Landscape within 5 km, footpaths per square kilometre, and the sea within 5 km. It is a character grade and isn’t part of Hindhead’s overall grade.
Sources
Where Hindhead’s outdoors figures come from
- Parks and green space: Ordnance Survey OS Open Greenspace (parks and gardens, playing fields, play spaces, and their access points). Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- National Parks and National Landscapes: Natural England and Natural Resources Wales boundaries, areas and designation dates, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Footpaths, walking routes, beaches and things to do: © OpenStreetMap contributors, Open Database License (ODbL), via Geofabrik, 16 October 2026.
- Historic parks, listed buildings and monuments: Historic England, National Heritage List for England, Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Rain and temperature: Met Office HadUK-Grid 1991–2020 averages for the town; daylight calculated from its latitude.
- The sea: ONS Countries (December 2024) boundaries clipped to mean high water. Residents near a park: ONS Census 2021 output areas.
- Grade: TownRatings’ Outdoors Grade, ranked against UK towns only.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.