Banstead Woods

Self-guided walks

There are two self-guided walks on this page – the first is from Holly Lane car park. Keep scrolling down the page to get to (or click here to jump) to the second, which starts and ends at the Ramblers Rest pub.

Walk from Holly Lane car park

Here is a Footpath app route for Banstead Woods, starting off at Holly Lane car park. Also on AllTrails. This route takes you through a field at the side of the car park, into the woods, passing a pond and then heading back down the hill to the car park. This route takes in all four of the Narnia trail statues: the children at the lamp post (currently not in situ as it has been removed for refurbishment), the Snow Queen, the wardrobe, and Aslan the lion.

Length: approximately 2.09 miles/3.37km
Terrain: Grassy slopes and slopes through the wood. Nothing too arduous – I have tried every which way into and out of this wood, and this is the least awful!
Stiles/kissing gates? No stiles, one kissing gate

In the Holly Lane car park, stand with the road behind you. You want to exit the car park in the far right rear corner, through a kissing gate next to a green poo bin that takes you into a grassy field.

Follow the path ahead through this field. Banstead woods loom large on your left. Keep going until on your left you come to a vehicle gate with a kissing gate next to it and a poo bin. Go though the kissing gate into the woods.

There is a yellow-lined marker post on the right – ignore this and continue straight ahead, with the path going up the slope. Not far up this, you’ll come to a cross paths from left to right. (It’s probably about halfway between the gate you passed through and the T-junction that you can see at the end of this path). Turn right on this path that continues diagonally up the slope. When you reach the Snow Queen statue (on your right), turn left and head up to a T-junction with a wide path, at which you turn right and will see the wardrobe ahead on the left.

Walk past the wardrobe, ignoring the path immediately after it that rises up to the left.

You’ll pass a group of three benches on the left (how many benches does one need to look into woods?) and it’s the next left that you’re after, which comes a little bit before another yellow-topped marker post ahead. This is a really wide path that heads uphill (it’s steeper than I like but not that bad really). The ground is stony/rocky underfoot. This wide path takes you into the heart of the ancient wood. You’ll be on this a fair way now. The only real reference point I can say to look out for is a large wood/log pile on the left-hand side. You’re looking for a large cross paths junction with a big tree either side of it and a bench on the right next to another large tree. It seems daft saying to look out for large trees in an ancient woodland, but there we are.

At this junction of paths, turn left. You’ll immediately pass a way marker number 12, with an arrow pointing right. Ignore that and keep straight on. Shortly you’ll pass way marker 13 and again carry on. A little further on, there’s a fenced off pond on your left and you’ll see a bench and way marker 14.

Turn left here and follow the path around the edge of the pond and back into the trees. The path snakes a little here before widening out again and looking rather a lot like the wide path you came up a little while ago! Continue ahead on this wide path, looking out for a large tree on the right, which has been carved into by various visitors over the years.

Pass the tree and keep going straight until you come to a wide intersection of paths with some really big trees. Ahead, there is a marker post with a white arrow pointing straight on – ignore this and turn right. Follow this path to the next junction, where there is another large tree and a bench on the opposite side of the intersecting path to the right.

Turn left here and follow this path ahead without diverting from it at all. It will bring you down to Holly Lane car park – and on the way, keep an eye out on the left for Aslan.

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Walk from Ramblers Rest pub

Here is a Footpath app route for Banstead Woods, starting off at the Ramblers Rest pub. Also on AllTrails. This route takes you through the fields of Chipstead Bottom that run alongside the woods, before heading into the trees. You’ll enjoy wide paths between majestic ancient trees, pass a pond, and head down a grassy hill with superb views. This route also takes in three of the four Narnia trail statues: the children at the lamp post (currently not in situ as it has been removed for refurbishment), the Snow Queen, and the wardrobe.

Length: approximately 2.7 miles/4.1km
Terrain: Grassy slopes and slopes through the wood. Nothing too arduous – I have tried every which way into and out of this wood, and this is the least awful!
Stiles/kissing gates? No stiles, six kissing gates but all easily passable

Go through the gate at the back-right-hand side of the Ramblers Rest pub’s rear car park and turn right to walk into the fields. There’s a poo bin on your right at the field corner. The path forks immediately and it doesn’t actually matter which you take – the one to the left heads up a gentle slope, the one to the right goes along the field edge and is close to the road. If your dog is off-lead, I’d take the left one. Both paths head through a hedge boundary into another field and they come together at the end of this second field, where you pass through the first of the six kissing gates along this route.

Continue straight ahead on this flat but not hugely wide stretch of grass. The road is still on your right. After a little way, the path will fork, with the fork on the left heading up a hill and the right-hand fork continuing straight ahead. Sorry, but you want to head up the slope on the left-hand one. As you reach the brow of the hill, you’ll see a kissing gate ahead. Go through this and you’ll find yourself on a path that heads uphill from the Holly Lane car park (which is down to the right).

You’ll also be next to a sign post with a wooden “Badger” sign underneath it. On the opposite side of this path, you’ll see another kissing gate. Go through this. Immediately to the right now there is a large tree stump, which is usually home to the lamp post Narnia trail statue, but at the time of writing this (Jan 2022), it’s been removed and taken away for refurbishment.

Pass the tree stump and walk along the edge of the wood, which is fenced off to your left. Follow the fence line and you’ll eventually come to a locked vehicle gate with a kissing gate right next to it. There is also a poo bin here. Turn left and go though the kissing gate into the woods.

There is a yellow-lined marker post on the right – ignore this and continue straight ahead, with the path going up the slope. Not far up this, you’ll come to a cross paths from left to right. (It’s probably about halfway between the gate you passed through and the T-junction that you can see at the end of this path). Turn right on this path that continues diagonally up the slope. When you reach the Snow Queen statue (on your right), turn left and head up to a T-junction with a wide path, at which you turn right and will see the wardrobe ahead on the left.

Walk past the wardrobe, ignoring the path immediately after it that rises up to the left.

You’ll pass a group of three benches on the left (how many benches does one need to look into woods?) and it’s the next left that you’re after, which comes a little bit before another yellow-topped marker post ahead. This is a really wide path that heads uphill (it’s steeper than I like but not that bad really). The ground is stony/rocky underfoot. This wide path takes you into the heart of the ancient wood. You’ll be on this a fair way now. The only real reference point I can say to look out for is a large wood/log pile on the left-hand side. You’re looking for a large cross paths junction with a big tree either side of it and a bench on the right next to another large tree. It seems daft saying to look out for large trees in an ancient woodland, but there we are.

At this junction of paths, turn left. You’ll immediately pass a way marker number 12, with an arrow pointing right. Ignore that and keep straight on. Shortly you’ll pass way marker 13 and again carry on. A little further on, there’s a fenced off pond on your left and you’ll see a bench and way marker 14.

Turn left here and follow the path around the edge of the pond and back into the trees. The path snakes a little here before widening out again and looking rather a lot like the wide path you came up a little while ago! Continue ahead on this wide path, looking out for a large tree on the right, which has been carved into by various visitors over the years.

Pass the tree and keep going straight until you come to a wide intersection of paths with some really big trees. Ahead, there is a marker post with a white arrow pointing straight on – ignore this and turn right. Follow this path to the next junction, where there is another large tree.

Cross the path and keep going straight ahead, passing a bench on your right (pictured behind the tree in the photo above). The woods change here, thinning right out into scrubland. It can be quite muddy here.

Anyway, keep straight and you’ll start to go down hill ever so slightly, coming out of the woodland entirely into an open field which sweeps away below you down to a vehicle gate with a kissing gate next to it.

Head down the hill and through that kissing gate into another really wide grassy field/meadow-type area. The path curves around to the left here, the slope steepens and you’ll pass a bench on the left. It brings you down to another kissing gate – pass through that and you’re back in the first field behind the pub. Turn right and follow the path down the hill to the rear of the car park.