Salisbury Walking and Cycling Guide
Stroll past striking cathedral skylines, inspiring scenes and historic sites
Exploring Salisbury on foot is the best way to get to know this historic city, giving you time to take in all of the details. From the fine architecture of the cathedral to the sweeping mounds of iron age sites every walk is accompanied by a unique view. Short walks will take you through the city passing black and white timbered buildings and out to the water meadows. Follow the riverside path out to Old Sarum where Salisbury began and spot the cathedral spire in the distance. If you’re looking for a longer walk, Salisbury is the starting point of the 34-mile Avon Valley Path and the 24-mile Clarendon Way passes through. Using these as starting points you can begin to discover the surrounding area or head towards the Salisbury Plains stopping off at a country pub along the way.
Suggested Salisbury Walks
Visit Old Sarum, stroll riverside and begin your journey along the Avon Valley Walk as you explore Salisbury and beyond.
You’ll want to head to the cathedral as soon as you arrive, so why not follow the National Trust’s walk around the cathedral close. Starting from Mompesson House, an 18th century townhouse that featured in Sense and Sensibility, you head anti-clockwise around the close. Make sure you take your camera to get snaps of the cathedral from every angle! Follow the little back and forth detour to the close wall which was built using stone from Old Sarum before heading back to Mompesson House for tea and cake in the café. This route is easy to follow and has flat, even surfaces.
You can walk out to Old Sarum to see where Salisbury began by following the River Avon path out of the city. You can pick up the path by the Five Rivers leisure centre, begin with the river on your right. There are a couple of options with this circular walk, you can turn off and head over the Mill Lane footbridge to pass through Stratford sub Castle up to the Old Sarum site, or you can continue on. If you follow the path you will pass skirt around a farm estate before joining a country lane taking you past Camp Down where at the crossroads you head right towards Little Durnford following the footpath sign. Follow through onto The Avenue and then turning right to head down to Old Sarum. You can see a lengthened route for this walk here which also takes you up to Great Durnford. A detour takes you down to The Wheatsheaf, perfect for a mid-walk drink or lunch!
For a full day of walking, pick up the Avon Valley Walk heading south for a there and back route, or get public transport back into Salisbury. Following this long-distance path you pass through towns and villages, follow some riverside sections and viewpoints and there’s a great choice of places to stop off to refuel along the way.
The Wiltshire Walks app is a fantastic resource for self-guided walks but if you’d like to learn more about the city along your way, book a walking tour with Salisbury City Guides. The Visit Wiltshire website is also a great way to find other walking routes around the area.
Salisbury Cycling Routes
If you’re a cider drinker, these cycling routes around the Herefordshire countryside are for you!
This is a great region for cycling and there are lots of fairly flat routes to follow. National Cycle Routes 24 and 45 pass through Salisbury, and you can easily cycle from Salisbury to Stonehenge. Follow route 45 out of the city following the path of the River Avon up to Amesbury. From here it’s worth crossing over the Amesbury Bypass to go and see Woodhenge before heading off to Stonehenge.
Just outside Salisbury is the Cranborne Chase National Landscape. This diverse area covers ancient woodlands and chalk hills which have been used to create the Fovant Badges, a cluster of military badges which have been cut into the chalk. There is a great range of cycle routes available here handily put together by the Cranborne Chase team which you can view here.