Zoe stumbled on the historic village where she managed to take a dip in the River Thames – and it’s just 45 minutes from London Paddington. So have you been here before?
A village near London has been dubbed “beautiful” with simply everything you need for a fun day out. Sometimes we love finding things to do in the local area, but often flocking to a nearby village can be a enough for a cosy autumn vibe.
Of course our city has so much on offer – from a ‘hidden village’ with independent shops and vintage streets to, of course, the more touristy activities like visiting Big Ben, the London Eye and more. Now one woman who loves exploring the UK and finding towns nearby London managed to stumble on a village where even Agatha Christie lived.
Agatha Christie lived in several houses in England, but mainly resided in her childhood home in Devon or Oxfordshire. Now the village which is just 45 minutes away from London Paddington has a special link to the author – plus so many fun activities.
Speaking about Wallingford Beach, Zoe told her 53,600 followers on TikTok: “Don’t come at me for this but I’m at a beach on the River Thames. I didn’t decide that, that’s actually its name.
“Located in a historic village where Agatha Christie lived, this is Wallingford Beach. The water quality gets tested here regularly and it’s consistently clean so I decided to come check it out and make a walk out of it.
“Here’s how I did it, got the train from London to Goring on Thames. The station is actually Goring and Streatley, it’s about 45 minutes from London Paddington with a change at Reading.
“Goring is a lovely village, worth a visit in itself. I didn’t stay though I had a walk to get to, but first coffee.”
Zoe began her trek as she headed to the Thames Path, which is around seven miles. While it’s nice as it’s along the river and meadow, the hiker did find this stretch of her trip quite long.
She continued: in the TikTok video: “It was a very hot day today and although there were lots of trees there wasn’t quite enough for this level of heat, it is a lovely walk but I was very happy when it was over.
“There’s lots of very interesting buildings in Wallingford, full of history, a castle and places to eat. But by this point, I was so hot and bothered, I ignored all of that and headed straight to Wallingford Beach.
“The main area was quite busy but a little further along, I found a nice part, my own private beach. Then spent the rest of the day doing a mix of swimming and chilling and eating.”
Zoe informed followers that Wallingford doesn’t actually have a train station, but can be accessed by buses. She suggested the no. 134 bus back to Goring, or head straight to Reading on the X40 River Rapids. There she took a 25 minute train ride back into London.
Wallingford Beach is a popular natural riverside spot best known for wild swimming. It’s located on the eastern bank of the River Thames in Oxfordshire, just downstream from Wallingford Bridge.
