Staplefield

Staplefield has no hotels of its own, so anyone wanting a proper bed for the night is better placed a short drive away in Haywards Heath, Cuckfield or Handcross, all within about ten minutes, or in Horsham or Crawley for a wider range of options and easy access to Gatwick Airport. What the area offers instead of big hotels is a strong showing of country pubs with rooms and small independent B&Bs scattered through the Weald, many of them set in old farmhouses or former coaching inns, which suit the gently rolling, wooded landscape far better than anything larger would. Staying in this part of Mid Sussex puts you within easy reach of Nymans and Wakehurst, the Ardingly Reservoir, and the historic streets of Cuckfield, while keeping Gatwick and the Brighton mainline close enough for a practical stopover as well as a leisure break. Booking.com and similar sites list the available options around Haywards Heath, Cuckfield and Handcross, where you will find everything from simple guesthouses to smarter country-house style hotels, generally at more reasonable rates than properties closer to Brighton or central Crawley. Because Staplefield is so small, choosing where to stay really means choosing which neighbouring town or village suits your plans - Haywards Heath for the train station and everyday amenities, Cuckfield for its more characterful high street and pubs, or Handcross for quickest access to Nymans and the A23. Wherever you base yourself, the village green and its two pubs are close enough for an evening visit, and the wider High Weald countryside rewards anyone willing to explore a little beyond the main roads.

Staplefield itself is compact, but it sits within easy reach of some of the best gardens and countryside in the Sussex Weald.

• Staplefield village green - a well-kept triangular green that has been the setting for cricket matches for well over a century, flanked by the Victory Inn and the Jolly Tanners; a good spot to get the measure of the village.
• St Mark's Church - the parish church, built in 1847, with Victorian decorative work linked to the designer Charles Eamer Kempe; a modest but characterful village church.
• Nymans - a National Trust garden and romantic ruined house less than a mile from Staplefield, created by the Messel family from the 1890s onwards and known for its rare shrubs, walled garden and woodland.
• Wakehurst - Kew's country estate near Ardingly, a few miles east, with extensive gardens, a working seed bank (the Millennium Seed Bank) and woodland walks across a large Wealden landscape.
• Ardingly Reservoir - a large stretch of water near Ardingly popular for walking, birdwatching and sailing, linked to Staplefield by several circular countryside routes.
• Cuckfield - a handsome small town a few miles south with a historic high street of timber-framed and Georgian buildings, independent shops and pubs.
• High Weald walking country - the fields, shaws and ghylls around Staplefield are threaded with public footpaths and bridleways, including longer circular routes that take in Balcombe, Ardingly Reservoir and Wakehurst.

The village punches above its weight for such a small place, with two pubs facing each other across the green: the Victory Inn on Warninglid Road, known for Harveys Sussex Best and a changing guest ale alongside a pub food menu, and the Jolly Tanners, the other long-standing village local. Both make the most of their position overlooking the cricket pitch, particularly for outdoor seating in summer. For a wider choice of cafes, restaurants and shops, Cuckfield and Haywards Heath are both a short drive away.

There is no official campsite in Staplefield itself, but the High Weald countryside around it is well suited to a short camping or glamping break, with sites dotted through the surrounding villages of Handcross, Cuckfield, Ardingly and Horsham. As with the rest of England, wild camping without the landowner's permission is not legal here, so pitching up on the green, in a field, or in Nymans' or Wakehurst's woodland is not an option - any camping needs to be on a recognised, permission-based site. The terrain itself is classic Weald: small irregular fields bounded by thick hedges and shaws, sunken lanes, and patches of ancient woodland on heavy clay soils, which means many local sites are seasonal and can get soft underfoot after wet weather. The most reliable camping window runs from late spring through to early autumn, broadly May to September, when the ground has firmed up, days are longer, and the woodland gardens nearby are at their most rewarding to explore on foot or by bike. Given the clay-heavy ground and the region's unpredictable rainfall, glamping - in a shepherd's hut, bell tent or safari-style unit with a proper floor and some weatherproofing - is a popular way to enjoy the area without worrying about a wet pitch, and several small sites in the Handcross and Cuckfield area offer exactly this kind of set-up. Camping here suits anyone who wants a simple, unhurried base for walking between Nymans, Wakehurst and Ardingly Reservoir, for watching cricket on Staplefield's green, or for using the Gatwick-Brighton corridor as a jumping-off point for the wider Sussex countryside, rather than those looking for a large, facility-heavy holiday park.