West Sussex travel guide: Best towns, vineyards, beaches and hidden gems

When poet and painter William Blake penned the words ‘England’s green and pleasant land’, he was referring to West Sussex, living in the little village of Felpham at the time. Sitting on England’s southeastern coastline and bounded by Hampshire, Surrey and its sister county East Sussex, the glorious, undulating countryside of West Sussex’s South Downs typifies rural England.

As well as this charming landscape, punctuated by historic market towns, chocolate-box villages and numerous elegant stately homes and mighty castles, West Sussex is also home to some of the prettiest villages in England as well as a unique 50-mile stretch of sand-and-shingle coastline.

Merging from verdant meadows onto beautiful beaches, pretty villages and stylish sailing waters, as the county’s unofficial anthem by William Ward-Higgs rightly exclaims, ‘Good Old Sussex by the Sea!’.

Charming towns and villages in West Sussex

The historic market town of Petworth is a microcosm of West Sussex in itself. Crowned by the magnificent, baroque Petworth House, with 700 acres of Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown-designed parkland, Petworth is a cobblestone haven of antiques emporiums and cosy pubs, plus a packed events calendar that includes its own arts festival and regular farmers’ markets selling Sussex produce.

For picture-postcard thatched cottages, stunning views and tea and cake at a spectacular castle, head to the tiny village of Amberley in the heart of the South Downs National Park. Just a few miles down the road is the lovely town of Arundel, famed for its enormous Norman castle, seat of the Duke of Norfolk for 850 years and packed with galleries, independent shops, cafés and restaurants.

Heading to the coast via the county’s pretty capital, Chichester, a Roman city brimming with history, arrive at quaint Bosham, set in the inlets of Chichester Harbour. This ancient village, now home to some of West Sussex’s most stylish seaside homes, is allegedly where King Canute commanded the tide to recede in the 11th century, and is dotted with galleries and fashionable local shops.

Continuing the seaside theme, West Wittering village is home to West Sussex’s most famous beach. Walk along to East Head to find sailing boats bobbing in shallow, blue waters and velvety, undisturbed sand dunes.

Where to shop: Interiors and homeware boutiques in West Sussex

While hopping between these charming towns and villages, make time to pick up a little piece of Sussex to bring home. Petworth exudes style and has an abundance of chic interiors shops. Tallulah Fox on Lombard Street sells particularly pretty glassware and handmade ceramics, while just round the corner the beautiful Bone Interiors specialises in contemporary furniture and unique home accessories.

Pick up colourful ceramics and kitchenware at Winter’s Moon in Chichester, while lovely Midhurst is home to more independent shops than any other Sussex town - the eclectic Olive Interiors is well worth perusing. The charmingly rustic Amberley Village Pottery is a working artists’ studio that has an open shop selling cookware, dinnerware and decorative items, and also takes commissions.

Antique shopping in Petworth and Arundel

Petworth is known as the antiques capital of the South with more than 30 antique shops in a half-mile radius. Find luxury furniture, textiles, artwork and statement homeware at Augustus Brandt Antiques, and get lost in the warren of rooms at Petworth Antiques Market.

Discover yet more antiques in Arundel - Spencer Swaffer on the High Street is particularly stylish, with two floors of vintage furniture and artwork.

Sussex vineyards: Wine tasting in West Sussex

Thanks to West Sussex’s chalky soil, warm climate and unique terroir, the wine produced here is considered the best in England.

Nyetimber is now a household name for wine making and visitors can visit the beautiful vineyard, with views out to the Downs, to taste its award-winning sparkling wine. Emerging from the shadows of this wine-giant, are more than 20 vineyards making their names with eminently quaffable wines. Some of the best include Wiston, Tinwood and Bolney, which are all open for tours and tastings.

Just metres from Nyetimber, and grown using the same grapes, Nutbourne Vineyards is a single-estate vineyard run by the Gladwin Brothers, restaurateurs with six London restaurants serving Sussex produce under the umbrella group Local & Wild. This concept translates back into their range of still and sparkling wines, with every aspect of the wine making taking place on site. Visit for wine tastings and delicious food made with local produce.

Discover more of the best vineyards to visit in England.

West Sussex restaurants and pubs: Field to fork dining

What to pair with all this delicious West Sussex wine? Well, the county certainly is not short of excellent food served in beautiful settings. The elegant Chalk Restaurant at Wiston Estate combines ingredients foraged from the estate with local seafood, and expertly guided wine pairings from grapes grown just metres away.

For a candlelit evening meal, The Parsons Table is a cosy little restaurant on Arundel’s Tarrant Street, serving a French-influenced British menu using some of the very best locally grown and seasonal produce.

Of course, West Sussex boasts a large number of excellent pubs, brimming with history and serving local Sussex ales, wines and hearty pub fare. The idyllic village of Amberley is home to the stylish Black Horse pub, while Arundel has a number of cosy inns serving food, including The Black Rabbit, which occupies a perfect spot on the River Arun, and Petworth is home to The Angel Inn, a pub with rooms and just the right amount of contemporary flair.

Gardens to visit in West Sussex

Being officially the sunniest county in the British Isles, it is no surprise that West Sussex is home to some glorious gardens. West Dean boasts 90 beautiful acres that include a walled kitchen garden, a collection of beautiful Victorian glasshouses and a 300ft Edwardian pergola that, in springtime, is dripping in magnolias, roses and honeysuckle.

The wild botanical garden at Wakehurst, managed by Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, is a whimsical, quintessentially English country dream, while Leonardslee near Horsham is home to what has been described as the finest woodland garden in England.

Denmans near Arundel is a contemporary garden unique for its curvilinear layout, gravel gardens and faux dry riverbeds.

Discover more of the best gardens to visit in the UK.

Historic houses and castles of West Sussex

Although Arundel Castle and Petworth House are West Sussex’s best-known historic estates - and both are well worth a visit - there are many other less well-known gems hidden within the sweeping valleys of the Downs.

At the foot of the Downs, on the outskirts of Pulborough, Parham House is a beautiful Elizabethan property that was supposedly redesigned to be in the shape of an ‘E’ for Queen Elizabeth I’s visit in the 1590s. Still a much-loved family home, but open to the public between April and October, Parham House contains a remarkable collection of historic paintings, furniture, textiles and clocks. Head outside to discover pleasure grounds, a walled garden, an extraordinary greenhouse, an orchard and a 1920s Wendy house.

Although most people visit for the yearly horse-racing and motorsport events, the Goodwood Estate started life as the home of the Dukes of Richmond, and 17th-century Goodwood House is wonderfully glamorous. It has some of the most significant privately owned art in the country, and visitors can book guided tours, on which they can admire works by Canaletto and George Stubbs before enjoying afternoon tea in the ballroom.

The Cowdray Estate in Midhurst is home to the annual British Gold Cup polo championships, and also boasts the atmospheric medieval ruins of a Tudor house once visited by Henry VIII and Queen Elizabeth I. Book ahead for one of its heritage events and tours, heading to the lovely Cowdray Farm Shop for lunch afterwards.