Alresford

Steam trains still chug through this Georgian market town on the Watercress Line, their whistles echoing off honey-coloured cottages that have barely changed since Jane Austen's time. Alresford sits in the Itchen Valley, where crystal-clear chalk streams once powered the watercress beds that made this place famous.

The town's broad streets feel delightfully unhurried. Thursday markets bring proper life to the high street, but midweek you'll have the antique shops and independent cafes largely to yourself. The real joy here is simply wandering - past the old fulling mill, along the mill race, or up to the church that overlooks the whole valley.

Walk in any direction and you'll hit proper Hampshire countryside within minutes. Kilmeston Down and Ovington Down offer cracking views across rolling chalk hills, while the ancient woodlands like Preshaw Wood and Sailor's Wood provide shade on summer days. Lane End Down is a bit of a climb but well worth it for the panoramic sweep of the South Downs.

Getting here couldn't be easier - Winchester is just eight miles north, with regular bus connections, though having a car opens up the surrounding villages and walking routes. The Watercress Line runs heritage steam services from New Alresford station, connecting to Alton.

Staying at one of the nearby holiday parks makes perfect sense for exploring this corner of Hampshire. You're close enough to Winchester for cathedral visits and shopping, yet surrounded by some of the county's loveliest countryside. Several parks like Holden Farm Camping offer rural settings within easy reach of the town, while others provide good bases for tackling the network of footpaths that crisscross the downs and copses around Alresford.