West Sussex/Hampshire village life - where's nice?

[tapandteacake]

Hi everyone, hoping for some advice on villages in West Sussex and Hampshire.

We're moving from Esher in Surrey and looking for quiet village life where we are in walking distance of some amenities at minimum a shop, a cafe, a primary school but bonuses would be a pharmacy and a pub too. We would love to have countryside walks on the doorstep - would love to be able to walk the dog without getting in the car and have outdoor adventures with the kids. We do want to feel rural or semi-rural rather than suburban.

We need to be able to commute to London once a week on the train but are happy to drive to a train station. Bonus points if we are not too far from the coast.

We have a budget of £830,000 and we would like a three to four bedroom detached house with a good size garden, but crucially all in reasonably good condition because we aren't keen on doing renovations.

We did have our hearts set on Sway in the New Forest but we're starting to think that its just slightly out of budget, plus the commute from West Sussex or Hampshire would be easier and we'd be a bit closer to my family and friends in Surrey.

I'd love any inspiration or suggestions, I find it quite hard to identify which villages have those amenities.

Thank you!

Wickham near Fareham is nice, so is Rowlands Castle

Felpham, Selsey, both lovely!

Westbourne is lovely.

I should have also said, bonus points if its inside the South Downs National Park!

What about Liss? Train station too
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/161520137

all these areas are lovely but not quite rural enough, they all seem quite suburban which we're trying to avoid.

I think you may struggle to find rural that’s also in walking distance of the things you mention, but some villages I know to be gorgeous are Leckford, Chilbolton, Wherwell and Longparish. All commutable via Winchester. Also have a look at Alresford and Stockbridge which are gorgeous market towns nearby. (Stockbridge is more of a large village and is pricey).

Have a look at the larger villages on the Hampshire/West Sussex border - eg. Hambledon, West Meon, South Harting etc. None of them are cheap but you should be able to get a 3 bed detached for your budget.

Although rural is great for you now it will not be so great as your DC become tweens and teens and you become a taxi service for them to do anything.