Amberley, Sussex travel guide and Amberly information

Visit Amberley

Amberley is a small village north of Arundel in the county of West Sussex, where it forms part of the South Downs National Park.

The village is very picturesque with a large number of 'picture-postcard' thatched cottages, some half timbered. It also benefits from being in a very scenic setting due to the River Arun and the slopes of the South Downs as backdrop.

Other buildings of note within Amberley include the norman Church of Saint Michael and a 12th century manor house. The manor house had fortifications added in the 14th century to protect the bishops of Chichester, so from the outside it appears to be a castle. (The 'castle' has now been converted into a very high quality hotel, situated next to the church in Amberley.)

Amberley Museum

The main 'tourist attraction' in Amberley is the 'Amberley Museum and Heritage Centre'. Extending over a large area (14 hectares) the museum has a focus on the history of the region, and particularly on industry and transport - there are numerous reconstructed workshops of industries in days gone by (wheelwright, printworks, ironmongers etc), various interesting exhibitions, and lots of examples of buses from the 1920s and 1930s and narrow gauge trains. Many of the trades are brought to life with demonstrations of how the equipment was originally used.

Set in an abandoned lime quarry, you can see the visitors guide for the Museum at Amberley here.

Amberley Wild Brooks

On the edge of the village the Amberley Wild Brooks is a wetland region of ditches, marshes and streams, now a nature reserve and site of special scientific interest due to the wide range of flora and fauna it contains. Follow the path from Amberley towards Greatham Bridge to best appreciate the Wild Brooks.

You can find more local travel ideas in the South Downs guide and the