Home > Articles > Hampshire and the New Forest > The New Forest – an historic oasis

The New Forest – an historic oasis

07th April 2008

The New Forest is located in Hampshire, a county offering rolling green hills and chocolate box villages.  Created in 1079 as a special place by William the Conqueror, the New Forest of today consists of several small towns and villages and is a wonderful place to relax, unwind and take a break from the hurly burley of modern life.

Made up of 150 square miles of land, only half of which is wooded, the New Forest became a National Park in 2005 and is managed by the New Forest National Park Authority .  There are 3000 ponies roaming freely in the Forest together with 6,500-7000 grazing animals belonging to the Commoners. Commoners are residents who own houses, small holdings and farms within the New Forest who have the right, dating back to William the Conqueror’s time to graze their animals on Forest land. There are between 500 and 600 active Commoners in the New Forest today. 

The New Forest is easily accessible and not only is there a lot to explore within the boundaries of the Forest, it lends itself perfectly to touring around the South West with the cathedral cities of Salisbury, Winchester, Southampton and Portsmouth, the seaside resort of Bournemouth and the mythical Stonehenge all less than an hour away.

Some of the places worthy of a visit in the New Forest are Beaulieu (pronounced Bewley), home to the National Motor Museum and the ancestral home of the Montagu Family, Lymington, a thriving fishing port with a lively yachting marina and Lyndhurst formerly the ‘capital’ of the New Forest during William the Conqueror’s time where Kings and Queens would stay at the royal manor.

The New Forest provides the perfect backdrop for a romantic getaway, conference or team building event.  There is a good selection of 3 and 4 star hotels that offer lots of outdoor space for team building activities, a broad range of conference and meeting rooms for hire and an extensive range of leisure and spa facilities.  If you are looking for an interesting venue for a gala dinner or evening out, a themed dinner at the Montagu Arms is always a good choice and The New Forest also has a growing reputation for its food as several of its restaurants are award winning, including Le Poussin in Lyndhurst which was awarded a Michelin star