Where to buy for beautiful rolling english countryside and lots of dog walking options

[PoodlenotDoodle]

Hello this is my first post on Mumsnet! We are recent empty nesters and starting to thinking about our next and final house move. Here is a basic list of our requirements. I am hoping for some advice on areas and villages that we should consider and any thoughts are most welcome:

1. Around a 2 hour or less train commute to London
2. Beautiful rolling english countryside
3. Away from large towns
4. Away from major airport/flight path
5. Areas with pretty villages and nice housing stock
6. Great dog walking options in local vicinity is a key
7. Budget around £2m (or less!)

I expect you will all say "The Cotswolds" and we do love the Cotswolds but we also want to consider other areas that might be less on the tourist trail and still come with a similar offer. I have read that the "Notswolds" (Northamptionshire/Rutland etc) area is worth a look but have not actually been to this area (we know the Gloucestershire/Somerset area well) so any thoughts most welcome on this area as well as any others we should consider. Thanks in advance.

Agree.

Wadhurst especially the Tidebrook end ie in the lanes behind the village
Rotherfield
Frant
Crowborough (where Cate Blanchett lives)
Mayfield (already mentioned but a great community, pubs, tennis club etc)
Etchingham
Robertsbridge
Tunbridge Wells itself even though it's a town you can find lovely houses on the south side which give you access to shops and the Pantiles and station as well as easy access out to Sussex.

Basically anywhere on the Hastings line into London Bridge/Cannon St/ Charing X >>> which is a bonus in itself having direct access to three London stations all v well connected.

Can’t beat the Peak District for rolling hills and great walks.
Buxton, Bakewell, Belper, all lovely towns.

@PoodlenotDoodle these are 3 beauties near us at the moment - all big private gardens and virtually straight out into countryside - but with good facilities very close too - I think Dominic west would be your close neighbour at one of them
https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/162534008#/?channel=RES_BUY

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/160174310#/?channel=RES_BUY

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/162677174#/?channel=RES_BUY

Another vote for Rutland. Exton has a lot of walks or Hambleton as your right on Rutland Water. The only thing we don't have is the sea which I suppose you could say Rutland Water as it's beautiful but it's not quite the same. Peterborough is about 25/30 mins on the a1 and an hour train into London.

Rural Leicestershire

Is the Rutland area "rolling hills" or is it quite flat? It does look worthy of a visit!

I live in this area, fabulous countryside and some truly beautiful villages, and only a hour to Paddington (from Pewsey station) but be aware that Salisbury Plain is a major training ground for the army. Frequent live firing and quite a bit of air traffic. I enjoy seeing Apache and Chinook helicopters flying over but it isn’t everyone’s cup of tea!

Pulborough/storrington - beautiful scenery with waterfalls and walks galore. Close to Brighton/lewes/chichester but village life and nice properties.

It's 10 minutes to Stonegate station. Yep downside of rural living if it snows the lanes are tricky unless you have a 4WD.

Lots of lovely villages

Elmley Castle
The set of ‘Piddles’
Clent (lovely Clent Hills)
Belbroughton
Barnt Green (large village)

How is Kent out on a limb? It’s right next to London with lots and lots of links to London and the coast to France. It’s the most well connected rural county in the country!

Depends what type of property you’re looking for, but Wiltshire has this type for £2 million or less.

Reasonable travel to Salisbury, Bath. Main line to Paddington at Chippenham or Pewsey both just over an hour. Can travel to London by car on A303 or M4. Cotswolds close by.

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/154161239

Only problem then is floodplains.

Wye in Kent is a large village with lots
of shops, post office, train station and it’s on the North downs .Big stock of period houses 30s, Victorian, Georgian. Fastest way to get there is HS1 from St Pancras to Canterbury (1 hour) then change onto local train (3 stops).

You say you’re familiar with Somerset - sis that the north of the county or the whole thing? As many places would meet your needs, as would parts of Devon on the border with Somerset & Dorset.

Do you know how high is the risk of flooding here please? Thank you.

i grant it’s close to London and easy for France but I am talking about access to the rest of the country. It’s like Cornwall and perhaps Norfolk. I woukd buy in Wiltshire or the midlands. In Wiltshire you are boardering or near to counties such as Berkshire, Hampshire, Dorset, Somerset, the Gloucestershire and Oxfordshire.

@Advocodo I would buy in Wiltshire too , which is why I posted the lovely ones I did in Corsham a bit back , only 1 hr 10 to London from Chippenham too - easy for Bath, Dorset or Cotswolds etc or going a bit further east would as others said look around Pewsey or Salisbury - you get a fair bit for your money in all these areas too - we don’t of course know where OP lives now - I don’t think she said -

With a budget of 2m, pretty much anywhere is open to you. Leafy parts of Surrey, Sussex and Buckinghamshire. You don’t need to live so far away from London if proximity is important to you. It depends what sort of house you want-you didn’t really specify if you wanted something grand or more modest.

You want to look at the New Forest. Depending which part, it's about a 2 hour drive from London or an hour train journey to Waterloo from Southampton Parkway station.

What I would say is we have found that the ideal commute time to be from parents is just over an hour. Once it gets more than an hour and a half it will invariably be a staying over situation and you won't be close enough to do occasional drops in an out.

It varies, the hilliest parts are the bits that overlap with Leicestershire- the bit around Knossington/Somerby is known as High Leicestershire for a reason.
The parts of Rutland that are closer to Lincs are slightly flatter.

If you are sure you love the Cotswolds that much but want to avoid tourists, the Stroud area sounds perfect.
Delightful countryside but very few tourists here.

Sorry I missed this @DownAndOut25 - I'm in north west Wilts but moving slightly south. Village wise there are too many to mention - there are lots of lovely places around here. Villages and small towns such as Seend, Box, Corsham, Bremhill, Rowde, . Then you have the Somerset borders around Frome for example which has the Chew valley - gorgeous.

Basically stay away from Bristol and Bath centre and you can't go wrong.

What's your budget?

Oh sorry you said budget! Have a look at villages surrounding Leighton Buzzard which is half an hour from Euston and has underrated countryside! Also sailing near Milton Keynes