Following our Chiltern Valley wine tasting and walking of the previous day, Chris and I drove for about 7 miles to Henley-on-Thames, a moderately sized town on the banks of the River Thames in Oxfordshire.
Located at the south of the Chilterns and together with the river and relatively close proximity to London, Henley-on-Thames can be considered one of England’s most desirable places to live. This is reflected in the cost of property in the area where the average house price is £800,000.
Henley Royal Regatta is one of the most prestigious rowing events in the world and takes place in July each year. Henley Regatta began in 1839 and, with the exception of the two world wars and covid, has taken place each year. Sometimes, members of the royal family attend which is why its called ‘Royal’ regatta.
Located on the banks of the Thames, you can visit the River & Rowing Museum to find out much more about the history of rowing, the Regatta and this part of the river.
The name of the River Thames originates from the Celtic word ‘tamesis’ which means ‘dark river’. The current Henley Bridge (above) was built in 1786 for a cost of £10,000.
We crossed Henley Bridge and were surprised by the width of the river which did seem particularly high with some of the adjacent paths being flooded.
Situated next to the banks of the River Thames, St Mary’s Church was built nearly 1000 years ago.
Henley has an abundance of coffee shops and art galleries and we visited one which combined both! We had coffee in ‘The Chocolate Cafe’ which had several displays of local paintings, pottery and crafts for sale. We would highly recommend one of their homemade cakes, we shared a delicious slice of granola.
We walked along the river banks for a short time, but the many of the pathways were flooded. It is possible to walk the entire Thames Path, a long distance walking path which follows the river for 185 miles from its source in Kemble, Gloucestershire and ending at the Thames Flood Barrier in Woolwich in London.
Parking
We parked in Southfields car park which was £3.20 for up to 5 hours on a Sunday and I was able to pay by card.
Summary
A short post for a short visit to Henley-on-Thames. While we were only there for a couple of hours we would recommend attractive Henley to be a lovely place to stop by and visit if you have the opportunity.
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