Moulsford

Moulsford sits on a gentle bend of the River Thames in South Oxfordshire, strung along the A329 between Wallingford and Streatley at the foot of the Berkshire Downs. It is a small place - a scatter of flint and brick cottages, a Victorian church, a boys' prep school and a couple of well-loved riverside pubs - but its position on the water has given it an outsized presence in the story of the Thames Valley. Long before the parish boundary moved it from Berkshire into Oxfordshire in 1974, Moulsford was known as a crossing point, where a ferry linked the village to South Stoke on the opposite bank until it finally stopped running in 1967.

What draws people here now is largely what drew them a century ago: the river itself. The towpath runs along the Oxfordshire bank, walkers and cyclists pass through on the Thames Path National Trail, and rowers from Oxford and beyond use this stretch for training miles below Wallingford Bridge. Inland, the village backs onto the Berkshire Downs and the chalk uplands that eventually rise into the Chilterns, giving Moulsford a foot in both the river valley and the open downland behind it. It is not a village built for tourism, and that is much of its appeal - a working, lived-in place that happens to sit on one of the loveliest reaches of the whole river.

Top things to do in Moulsford

Moulsford rewards a slow visit more than a long list of sights, but there is plenty within a short walk or drive to fill a day or two.

• Beetle and Wedge Boathouse - a historic riverside inn on Ferry Lane, occupying the site of the old Moulsford ferry crossing; the building dates from before 1860 and takes its name from traditional timber-splitting tools, a beetle mallet and a wedge.
• Moulsford Railway Bridge - known locally as the "Four Arches", this Grade II* listed Brunel bridge of 1839 carries the Great Western main line across the Thames on four low, sharply skewed brick arches; it is one of Brunel's best-preserved Thames crossings and a striking sight from the towpath.
• Thames Path walking - the national trail runs straight through the village, with an easy, level stretch linking Moulsford to Streatley and Goring in one direction and Wallingford in the other.
• Wallingford - a handsome Saxon market town just over two miles upstream, with a Norman castle site, independent shops, a Tuesday market and its own many-arched medieval bridge over the Thames.
• Streatley and Goring - twin riverside villages a short drive or towpath walk south, where the Thames cuts through the Goring Gap between the Chilterns and the Berkshire Downs; good for pubs, boat hire and the start of longer Chiltern walks.
• Wittenham Clumps - a pair of chalk hilltops crowned with beech trees a few miles north near Little Wittenham, giving wide views back across the Thames Valley and popular with walkers of all abilities.
• St John the Baptist Church - Moulsford's parish church, rebuilt in 1846 to a design associated with Gilbert Scott around the surviving west wall and a 13th-century lancet window of the original medieval chapel.

Getting to Moulsford

Moulsford lies on the A329 roughly midway between Wallingford and Streatley, around 10 miles south of Oxford and a similar distance north of Reading, making it an easy run from the M4 (junction 12) or the A34. The nearest mainline station is Goring & Streatley, on the Great Western line between London Paddington and Oxford, from where Moulsford is a short taxi ride or a pleasant riverside walk of a couple of miles along the Thames Path. Reading, with its faster and more frequent Elizabeth line and GWR services, is around 20 minutes away by car and a useful alternative for onward connections.

Best time to visit Moulsford

Late spring through early autumn is the classic season, when the towpath is at its best, riverside pub gardens are in full use and the water meadows around the village are green and full of birdlife. Summer weekends bring rowers, walkers and boaters out onto this stretch of the Thames, while the surrounding chalk downland is at its most colourful with wildflowers from May to July. Autumn brings a quieter village and rich colour along the river and up on Wittenham Clumps, and even in winter the short, flat towpath walks to Wallingford or Streatley make for a bracing outing followed by a fire in one of the local pubs.

Where to stay in Moulsford

Moulsford itself is tiny, so accommodation options are limited within the village, and most visitors base themselves here for the riverside setting rather than a wide choice of beds. Wallingford and Streatley, both a short drive or towpath walk away, offer a wider range of inns, guesthouses and small hotels, many of them also on the river. For those wanting to stay closer to nature, camping and glamping sites in the wider Thames Valley and Chilterns countryside around Moulsford make a good base for exploring the river, the Downs and the market towns nearby.

Food and drink in Moulsford

The village's best-known address is the Beetle and Wedge Boathouse on Ferry Lane, a riverside restaurant and bar built into the old boathouse on the former ferry site, with tables looking straight out over the water. A little further along the A329, the Springs Hotel and its grounds sit beside the Thames on the edge of the village, while Wallingford and Streatley add a wider choice of pubs, cafes and restaurants for anyone happy to travel a mile or two for dinner.