Discover Chelwood Gate

When looking for a hotel in Chelwood Gate, it is worth planning your stay around specific interests. These include the history of Chelwood Gate Church, its regular worship service, horse rides in Ashdown Forest, bowls, and topics related to cats and nature. A market selling local produce and the Village Hall add village life and community history to these points of interest. This will help you decide which side of the village best suits your trip.

Church and worship

Chelwood Gate Church was built as a Chapel of Ease so that residents of Chelwood Gate would not have to make the longer walk to the parish church in Danehill. Its historical connection with Danehill is therefore directly linked to the church building’s purpose. Chelwood Gate Church also stands on the edge of Ashdown Forest. If you are interested in local history, the church thus brings together its former role in serving the community and a specific connection to the surrounding landscape.

A traditional Book of Common Prayer communion service is held in the church at 8 am on the first and third Sundays of each month; everyone is welcome. If you would like to attend a service, plan for the appropriate Sunday and check the time before travelling.

Horse riding and nature

Since 1974, East View Riding Centre has offered rides from the village of Chelwood Gate into Ashdown Forest. The connection with the forest takes different forms: the church is on the edge of the forest, while the rides lead from the village into the forest. If horse riding is a priority, this offers a clearly defined link between the village starting point and the destination.

The United Kingdom Cat Centre offers a reception area for conversations about cat adoption and advice on cat care, as well as a 52-acre nature trail. These activities have different focuses: one is about cats, while the other is about nature. When planning your trip, you can therefore consider whether you are more interested in adoption and cat care or in the nature trail.

Village life and events

The Isle of Thorns and District Bowls Club in Chelwood Gate welcomes players with or without previous experience. So, if you would like to play bowls, prior experience is not a requirement for joining; what matters for planning is that you arrange your participation before you arrive.

The Chelwood Gate and Danehill village market is a regular event featuring a wide range of local produce. If you would like to plan a visit to the market, confirm the dates before your trip. That way, you can check whether a market day falls during your stay.

Since the 1920s, Chelwood Gate Village Hall has served as a recreation and reading room for residents of Chelwood Gate and the surrounding area. It adds a historical perspective on community life to the activities that take place on specific dates: the focus is on its use as a recreation and reading room and the people it was intended for.

The activities differ considerably in their timing: the worship service takes place at 8 am on the first and third Sundays, you should confirm the market dates, and participation in the bowls club should be arranged before arrival. Horse riding and the nature trail, by contrast, offer different thematic focuses. These differences can help you decide what to explore in Chelwood Gate based on your interests and the practical details of your stay.

Discover more destinations: Icklesham, Playden, Brede, Staplecross, Ewhurst Green, Groombridge, Pevensey Bay, Forest Row

For the wider travel overview: East Sussex.