Woking or Guildford

[Siyenne]

Woking is regenerating, Guildford appears have everything.
We are looking for an easy commute, but more importantly for us a place for the family to grow. (We've checked schools). Just stuck on which of the two, will suit us. I'm an ex-media/London girl and want an area that my family and I will thrive in.

Disclaimer: Guildford resident, so possibly a little biased!

Woking has been regenerating for about 20 years, the main thrust of the regeneration scheme seems to be to build as many tall block of apartments as possible.

The commute from Woking in to Waterloo saves 10mins compared to Guildford, and there are a couple more trains each hour to choose from.

Guildford feels a much older town than Woking and has a large number of people who moved from SW London once the family started growing. Every other person I meet has come from: Clapham; Balham; Wimbledon; Earslfield; Wandsworth; Battersea.

More expensive to buy in Guildford.

Thanks for that. Guildford does seem like a mini London.

Prices aren't too far off I'm afraid!

Lots more fast trains from Woking! As an example, just did a quick count and there are 11 trains leaving Woking after 8 a.m. in the morning which will get you to Waterloo before 9 a.m. - 7 of them are fast so taking less than 30 mins. In the same timeframe, leaving Guildford are 4 trains which take from 36 to 54 mins to Waterloo.We no longer live in Woking but when we did and I travelled in to London for meetings I never bothered to check the trains times from the station as i knew there would always be a train in a few minutes.

Guildford is much nicer in terms of restaurants, shopping, etc

Housing in both places is expensive. I think you need to go for wherever has the best schooling options for your children and then base it on how important your commute is. DH works in banking so has long days and we wouldn't countenance a longer commute than Woking, although lots do. Also depends on whether you are trying to get back for nursery, childminder pick up as well.

unfortuateevents - great stuff.
My other half will be commuting, there seems to be alot of local job opportunities for media in Surrey.
Primary and High School, we've pencilled some out. It's now to consider the trains, however admittedly at the weekends to have everything central such as Guildford restaurants, sports centre does sound appealing. Thank you.

Don't underestimate the value of frequency of trains. It makes a huge difference to quality of life especially if your DH will also be doing pickups. Being walking distance from the station also has huge value and makes the journey more sustainable long term.

That said, apart from the trains, Guildford's got a lot more going for it. It's also pretty accessible on the train from Woking at weekends, if you're near enough to the station for the kids to walk it. I never liked driving in Guildford for some reason.

It’s really important in the SE to be able to walk to the station. Parking at the station is impossible/ expensive, there’s no commuter parking in the side streets, and the last thing you feel like at the end of the day is catching a bus.

Woking resident here:

1. Guildford has nicer countryside around it (surrey hills) but the nicer parts i.e south of A3 are quite expensive.
2. Woking isnt too bad either and walks along Basingstoke canal are nice and easy.
3. I think rush hour traffic (and the general town center traffic) in Guildford is worse than Woking.
4. Guildford town center may be prettier but not many big stores there, where as Woking has better shopping and is getting a new big M&S.
5. The main largish hospital in the area is in G’ford.
6. There is an Aldi in G’ford but none in Woking!
7. Better trains from Woking.
8. I donno much abt G’ford but i am quite happy with my kids schools in Woking.

Having said all of above both towns are next to each other. It takes me only 15 mins to get to Guildford. So i would include both in my search area.

Good Luck!

guildford is nicer nice shops/high street,lovely countryside near,i love the parks and the local spectrum.Only thing is avoid housing behind the hospital, part from that its lovely

i'd go Woking.
Better connection to London.

A borough council that has a vision for improving the place
Flat to walk around

Having lived in and around Guildford for years I would choose Guildford ( or actually Godalming!) every time!
Come and see.

We are in a village betwix the two. I never go to Woking, dislike it intensely, lacks any soul. Guildford, Godalming, Farnham, all lovely, but I am more of a country girl. Woking just feels too "city" to me.

DH works mainly from home, but does commute to London a couple of times a week, in which case, and perhaps pertinent to this discussion, he drives to Woking to catch the train. Several of our friends do the same, because the drive into Gford is a pain, and there are more trains from Woking. Would I live there though...... no way.

With respect I really can’t stand it when folk say Woking lacks soul. It’s not as pretty as Guildford and it’s regenerating but I really like it.

IME Woking is going places and it’s really expanding, it’s a bit like Milton Keynes but with a tangible centre and less “stiff planning”.

Plus it’s easy as pie to get into London.

I am biased, I don’t like Guildford, I know incomers have found it a bit chilly and cliquey. My DH is also from Guildford and personally couldn’t wait to leave but it is pretty and it is “naice”.

I think if you want to “invest” plus also move somewhere that seems to be regenerating for the better with a decent metropolitan feel (for Surrey) i’d pick Woking.

It seems to be where the Meedja/City folk go when you want to have a family x

I’ve lived in both - Guildford then Woking and back to Guildford! We didn’t have schools to consider at the time though.

I think a lot depends on where you can be for your budget, the type of housing you want etc. Do you need off road parking?

Walking to the station is definitely preferable for a regular commute as both driving and parking can be tricky. Guildford traffic is much worse but I believe they are regenerating the station at some point.

Both have reasonable shops, but I have to say whenever I was in Guildford I always thought how lovely it was. Never really got that feeling about Woking - perfectly fine but no real soul to it. If I could choose (no budget constraints) I’d live in Guildford.

I would choose Woking because its flater to walk around, relatively better traffic, better train connections, good schools, expanding Town center with more shops. Closer to Heathrow.

The lack of soul is easily circumpassed by a short drive to Guildford town center or straight into Surrey Hills (avoiding the G’ford Town Center).

I live in Woking but work in Guildford. I have lived in Guildford as well but once we settled down and had children Woking suited us better. If you have a tight budget Woking has larger nicer houses within walking distance to the station. Guildford is much more expensive unless you live in one of the more deprived areas of Guildford, and even those prices are higher than Woking. My experience of schools (i used to teach pre dc) is that Woking has more good schools. Guildford schools tend to be excellent or not great, and getting into the excellent schools is challenging unless you have the money to live in those areas.

We live very close to Woking Park and the leisure centre which is great with a very short walk to the station. I do think Guildford is prettier but in terms of day to day life Woking has more useful shops as it were. When I lived in Guildford I sometimes had to come to shops in Woking for various things whereas I would never just go to Guildford for the shops.

It depends what's important to you, we don't feel we miss out by living in Woking as everything is so close, and there are some lovely spots in Woking such as Horsell Common.

Thank you...
Yes Horsell Common is an area I have pencilled. Primary and now Secondary are what I am considering.
Erm my budget is 650k so it's just about okay for both areas I think, not sure which direction to go in...
A Woking for great transport links or Guildford which appears to be beautiful... hmm

Consider north east Guildford (Burpham/merrow) which is towards Woking but still in I Guildford - then you could use Woking station but live in Guildford

Isn't there Park and Ride (Guildford area)?

Woking is still a bit of a dump compared to Guildford when you look at the town. Merrow is nice but London prices.

Have you considered West Byfleet or Pyrford?

According to DH there are more trains from Woking but no seats during rush hour, but he always gets a seat from WB, although the trains are slower, he prefers it because the trains are less crowded.

I live in Pyrford. Used to live on outskirts of Woking near Worplesdon station. Love Pyrford - and short walk to West Byfleet Station. No traffic!

Ripley in Woking is beautiful. Short drive to train stations, either West Byfleet or Woking or park and ride Guildford.
Ripley has a big village green, a number of listed buildings, beautiful walks being at the foot of the Surrey Hills. Coffee shops, pubs, Michelin star restaurants. Fantastic community. Excellent schools nearby. Short drive to Guildford and Cobham quickest links to the A3 and M25.

So love this site. Some great feedback. Looking around Cranley Road etc. upped budget. Haha am going to invest in a Brompton bike for commuting. Thanks y'all for such brilliant feedback.
I did look at West Byfleet, Woking but feel Guildford has everything I need without going into London for a date night. ;)

Hi all,

I’m just re-opening this thread as the DH and I are looking to move to West Byfleet or Pyrford. We would love to get the input of all you lovely people! We really like WB but it seem does seem that much more expensive compared to Pyrford. Pyrford looks nice but my concern is that there might be a lot of traffic on the way to Woking or west byfleet station. We also plan to start a family soon and want to make sure there are good state schools within catchment for Pyrford. For example, we have seen some houses online in Pine Tree Hill and wondered about the above. Is this a nice street? How does this compare to West Byfleet?

We would love to get your views on how these places compare in terms of feel, state schooling, traffic and shops/amenities.

Wishing you all a great weekend in advance!

Pine Tree Hill is not really the centre of Pyrford, not in walking distance. Is it even classed as Pyrford? It’s more Woking hence probably cheaper. I’m not sure if it will be in the catchment for pyrford school.
Try looking a little bit closer to the village of pyrford. It’s a lovely village and the roads close to the village wouldn’t be busy. The road Pine Tree hill is on is a main road and is busy.
West B is great, lots of amenities and station, great park and again the schools are outstanding. Pyrford is more of a village then a town. If you move you could get a house on the fringes of both, so you get the best of both worlds.