New forest?

[wavingfuriously]

Short budget break coming up, where to stay in the new forest that's fairly cheap please ?😊🌿☘️ accessible by public transport as not driving, thank you 🙏

Public transport in the few forest?? I think you need somewhere with a train station.....say Brokenhurst and stay in the town. there are so few buses/routes that you are going to spend the whole day waiting at bustops otherwise for the daily bus. alternatively i think there is a hop on/hop off bus that stops in ringwood. you could stay there and catch that to explore. national express drop off their. but its not in NF

Any budget or not too expensive hotels in new forest anyone could recommend please?😊

The new forest doesn’t really do budget hotels….have you looked at Airbnb?

If you don't mind a bed and breakfast, then Kingswood Cottage is a lovely place within easy walk of Ashurst station. Very reasonable room rates.

Thanku so far 😊👍 anyone ever stayed in Lymington pls? any tips..

Lymington would be a good base as it's quite big (well in terms of NF) and easy transport links.

Attractive High Street, quayside, variety of pubs and restaurants etc.

But you need to be careful in terms of accommodation as many places suggest they are in Lymington but actually are not. Definitely look on google maps to see the location. For instance the Premier Inn that is listed as Lymington is in fact in Hordle.

The only thing is cheap and NF don't really go together in terms of accommodation. What type of budget are you thinking of? Also lots of accommodation has a premium charge for weekends with a minimum of either 2 or three nights booking requirement.

@friendlycat thanks so much! Do you know about Lyndhurst too pls? 🙏 apparently lot of traffic there..

Lyndhurst is rammed full of tourists. The high street is smallish and packed. It’s viewed as the centre of the NF. You have more options from Lymington in terms of buses to other places and train to Brockenhurst. Relying on public transport is going to limit your options.

Have you actually looked at accommodation and prices as you mention a budget break?

@friendlycat thanks again! u seem to know area well. Yes just been looking at prices this evening..haven't found the best one yet...premierinn right over in Ringwood...maybe. hoping to use the tourist buses..

Also looked at the YHA but it seems to be in middle of nowhere..near Burley?

Have you looked at the star in ringwood (its a pub)? that is more central than the premier inn and n ot far from the tourist bus stop. i dont know what the rooms are like, but its in a good position and the food downstairs is nice is you like oriental. Ringwood is a nice market town just outside the NF

Thanku you've stayed there obvi, comfy ?

No, as per my post not stayed in the rooms, but i've a friend who lives locally and been in the pub to eat. its definately a more convenient location than premier inn if you dont have a car

Be careful with the 'tourist ' bus. If you mean the 'tour' bus it stops on 15th September www.google.com/search?q=new+forest+tour+bus+timetable&oq=new+forest+tourist+bus&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqCAgCEAAYFhgeMgkIABBFGDkYgAQyCAgBEAAYFhgeMggIAhAAGBYYHjIICAMQABgWGB4yCAgEEAAYFhgeMggIBRAAGBYYHjIICAYQABgWGB4yCAgHEAAYFhgeMggICBAAGBYYHjIICAkQABgWGB4yCAgKEAAYFhgeMggICxAAGBYYHjIICAwQABgWGB4yCAgNEAAYFhgeMggIDhAAGBYYHtIBCTE4MzQxajBqN6gCDrACAQ&client=ms-android-samsung-ss&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8&chrome_dse_attribution=1#vhid=zephyr:0&vssid=atritem-www.morebus.co.uk/About-NFT

Hollands Wood Camp site in Brockenhurst is a lovely campsite if you are looking for more budget friendly options. Hotels and B&B's tend to be quite expensive.

So to access by public transport you are limited to Brock or Lymington by train or Ringwood on National Express. The only budget accommodation I can think of is the Ringwood Premier Inn, which is about a 15 min walk from the main hub on about industrial park.

Brock is probably the best location if you want to see ponies/proper Forest or Burley (would need a taxi from Ringwood or Brock) but none of these have budget accommodation though the White Buck in Burley is a very cute pub with rooms. You could walk/bike hire really easily from Burley but it's tiny in terms of shops/pubs/cafes.

For things to do you will really struggle without a car-the tourist bus routes stop soon and there really isn't much bus service the rest of the year. Lymington is probably the town with the most to do, can get a train from there to Brock for forest walks/bike hire/ponies. Ringwood has nice cafes/shops but you won't fill more than half a day and it's the hardest one to access the "real" forest from and cheapest accommodation. Anything in Brock costs a bomb. Lyndhurst is often heaving although really small and again, you'd need a taxi to get there or do anything from there,

It's hard to think of anything that fits your criteria well- it's the kind of place where everyone gets a car and driving lessons for your 17th birthday because everyone can afford it and the parents are sick of being taxi as there is absolutely no public transport.

I think the closest you will get is choosing a pub/B&B in Lymington and spending your time mooching in the town, doing things like walking the sea wall/nature reserve and getting the train to Brock to either hire bikes or walking in the centre of the forest.

@user1471548941 and everyone else, thanks so much😊 I opted for the yha near Burley village because of the good reviews. booked for next week so can benefit from last week of tourist bus phew!🤣

Hope you enjoy it. Its a lovely area. I think that might be near the pub that specialises in gin.

Lovely walks at Mill Lawn and Woods Corner

Thank you 😊

But take wellies, yesterday was a deluge.