Findon

Findon sits in a fold of the South Downs National Park, just off the A24 a few miles north of Worthing, with the chalk grassland of Cissbury Ring rising steeply behind it. It is a small, tightly-knit village of flint and brick cottages, a medieval church and a scatter of pubs, more of a place people pass through on a walk than a destination with a long list of sights, but that is rather the point: Findon is a genuine working Downland village rather than a tourist set piece, and it wears its history lightly.

The village appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 as 'Findune', and its story since has been shaped by the Downs above it. Like many Sussex villages, Findon was hit hard by the Black Death and was largely abandoned before being resettled in the 16th and 17th centuries. By the 1600s it had grown into a substantial farming community, and that agricultural heritage survives most vividly in the Findon Sheep Fair, a market with roots stretching back to 1261 that still draws huge numbers of animals every autumn. Today the village divides loosely into old Findon around the High Street and church, and the more suburban Findon Valley closer to Worthing, but it is the old village, with the Downs rearing up behind it, that gives the place its character.

Top things to do in Findon

Findon rewards walkers and anyone with an interest in ancient landscapes far more than shoppers or sightseers. The main draws are all within a short walk or drive of the village centre.

• Cissbury Ring — An Iron Age hillfort on the down immediately above the village, and the second-largest hillfort in England after Maiden Castle in Dorset. Its ramparts enclose around 60 acres, and the site also contains Neolithic flint mines dug some 5,000 years ago, among the earliest evidence of organised industry in Britain. The climb up from Findon is short but steep, and the views from the top stretch across the Weald to the north and out to the English Channel and the Isle of Wight on a clear day.
• Findon Sheep Fair — Held on Nepcote Green on the second Saturday in September, this is one of the oldest fairs in Sussex, with a market charter dating to 1261. In its heyday it saw tens of thousands of sheep change hands in a single day; it now survives as a smaller country fair with livestock classes, stalls and entertainment, but it remains the village's single biggest event of the year.
• Findon Parish Church (St John the Baptist) — A part-Norman church at the heart of the village, with a squat flint tower and a quiet churchyard that is worth a look on any walk through Findon.
• Walking the South Downs Way and surrounding bridleways — Findon lies close to the South Downs Way National Trail, and a network of footpaths and bridleways radiates out from the village across the Downs towards Chanctonbury Ring and Worthing, making it a popular start or end point for a day's walking.
• Chanctonbury Ring — A short drive or a longer walk north-west of Findon, this beech-crowned hillfort on the Downs is one of the most photographed viewpoints in Sussex, and a natural extension to a walk that starts at Cissbury.
• Findon village centre — The High Street itself, with its flint-and-brick cottages, old coaching inns and small independent businesses, is pleasant simply to wander, particularly combined with a pub stop.

Getting to Findon

Findon lies just off the A24 between Worthing and Horsham, about four miles north of Worthing town centre, making it an easy drive from across Sussex and from London via the A24 corridor. There is no railway station in the village itself; the nearest mainline stations are at Worthing, roughly three and a half miles away, with West Worthing and Goring-by-Sea also within a short drive, all with regular services to Brighton, Chichester and London Victoria. Bus services connect Findon to Worthing and beyond, including routes running towards Crawley and Midhurst, though a car is the most practical way to explore the surrounding Downs at your own pace.

Best time to visit Findon

Late spring through early autumn is the best window for Findon, when the chalk grassland on Cissbury Ring and the wider Downs is at its best for walking, with wildflowers on the slopes in early summer and long views on clear days. Early September is a particularly good time to visit if you want to catch the Findon Sheep Fair on Nepcote Green, still the village's biggest annual event after more than 750 years. Autumn brings golden beech woodland around Chanctonbury Ring, while winter walks up to Cissbury Ring can be bracing but rewarding, with far-reaching views once the leaves are down. As with the rest of the South Downs, footpaths can turn muddy after rain, so sturdy footwear is worth packing whatever the season.

Where to stay in Findon

Findon itself is small, so accommodation options in the village are limited but characterful, ranging from rooms above its historic pubs to a country house hotel. Anyone wanting more choice is well placed for Worthing's wider range of hotels and guest houses just a few miles down the A24, or for camping and glamping sites scattered across the surrounding Downland villages, making Findon a good quiet base with easy access to the coast.

Food and drink in Findon

For a village of its size, Findon punches well above its weight for pubs. The Gun Inn on the High Street has been serving visitors since 1619 and remains a village focal point, while the Village House, also on the High Street, occupies a building dating back to the 16th century. The Snooty Fox forms part of the Findon Manor Hotel, offering a more formal dining option, and John Henry's and the Black Horse add further choice for a village of only around 2,000 people. Between them these pubs cover everything from a quick pint after a walk on Cissbury Ring to a proper sit-down meal, and most make the most of their setting with gardens or terraces looking out towards the Downs.