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market town in Buckinghamshire, England
Europe > Britain and Ireland > United Kingdom > England > South East England > Buckinghamshire > Amersham

Amersham is in Buckinghamshire, England. Home to 17,000 inhabitants, it is the heart of "Metro-land", where London suburbs meet the Chiltern Hills, a place where some of the best walks in the British countryside are located. Metro-land takes its name from the Metropolitan line of the London Underground, which facilitated the area's development.

Understand

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St Mary's Church, Old Amersham
Market Hall Amersham

A dual centred locale, Amersham is split between the historic Old Amersham (at the bottom of the hill), and the current commercial centre (and residential suburbs) of Amersham-on-the-hill at the top.

Amersham is not an obvious tourist destination, as the town does not seem to have much to see or do in it at first glance. However there are some great parks, such as Hervines Park round the back of the Dr Challoners Grammar School which has a wood and also there is a park behind the gym/swimming pool building. Old Amersham is home to a fantastic church and traditional clothes stores as well as old-fashioned streets. It is also home to the great Amersham Museum, a must-see for visitors to the area.

History

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Old Amersham is a former medieval market town, although settlement pre-dates the Norman conquest. It has held a market since the original 11th century charter, which was revised in the early 1600s to allow for a fair to be held in September. The 16th century also saw seven Lollard dissenters burned at the stake in the town. A memorial was built in 1931.

Amersham was a transit point for goods travelling between London and the north during the 1800s.

Amersham-on-the-hill was Amersham Common, until the arrival of the railway in the 1890s, with the commercial center of the town shifting to it by the mid 20th century. Dr Challoners Grammar School, originally a 16th foundation relocating from Old Amersham in 1905.

Since the 1960s Amersham has rapidly been growing into a charming little town on the outskirts of London.

Get in

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By road

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Amersham is well connected to the local road network, and can be reached by leaving the Motorway network at the nearby towns of Beaconsfield (M40), Chorleywood (M25) and Hemel Hempstead (M1).

By train

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  • 1 Amersham train station, Station Approach, HP6 5AZ. Amersham station is on the Metropolitan line of the London Underground, which runs services to Aldgate via several central London stations including Baker Street and King's Cross St. Pancras. The station is also on the National Rail London to Aylesbury line with services operated by Chiltern Railways. These services terminate at London Marylebone station, which is on the London Underground Bakerloo line. Amersham station (Q800384) on Wikidata Amersham station on Wikipedia (updated May 2017)

By bus

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  • Local buses connect with High Wycombe, Watford and Hemel Hempstead.

By bicycle

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Get around

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The town is small enough to get around on foot.

Gilbert Scott Court, Amersham Old Town
  • 1 St Mary's Church, Church St, Old Amersham HP7 0DB. St Mary's Church, Amersham (Q7594265) on Wikidata St Mary's Church, Amersham on Wikipedia (updated May 2017)
  • 2 Amersham Museum, 49 High St, Old Amersham HP7 0DP, ☏ +44 1494 723700, . W-Su noon-4:30PM. Amersham Museum (Q4745824) on Wikidata Amersham Museum on Wikipedia (updated May 2017)
  • 3 The Martyrs Memorial (Footpath from St. Mary's Church, or footpath (slightly over grown) from Station Rd.). (updated May 2017)
  • 4 River Misbourne. A chalk steam which runs along the side of the Old Town River Misbourne (Q7337639) on Wikidata River Misbourne on Wikipedia (updated May 2017)
  • Old Amersham's High Street with 16-19th century buildings and market square - see Buy.
  • The Countryside, nearby woods include the woods behind 51 Copperkins Lane, the end of Deep Acres and Penn Woods
  • Go walking, cycling or riding in the countryside
  • 1 The Chiltern Pools & Gym, Bensheim Way, Chiltern Ave, Amersham HP6 5AH, ☏ +44 1494 788900. Centre (different activities have different hours) M-F 5:30AM-10PM; Sa 7AM-7:30PM; Su 7AM-7:30PM. Gym, studio, pools, climbing wall (updated May 2017)
  • 2 Theatre on the Hill (Buckinghamshire College, Amersham Campus), toll-free: +44 1494 585 286, . Professional-standard theatre at high school drama prices! (updated May 2017)
  • Chiltern Heritage Trail Hampden Route. 25 mi (40 km) circular cycle route (updated Jun 2017)
  • A touring fairground visits the old Amersham High Street in mid to late September. This is a modern continuation of a charter fair.
  • 1 Old Amersham Market, Market Sq, Amersham HP7 0DG, ☏ +44 1494 434000, . Oct-Mar: Sa 8AM-3:30PM; Apr-Sept: Sa 8AM-4PM. Saturday covered market. (updated May 2017)
  • 2 Tesco, London Rd West, Amersham HP7 0HA, ☏ +44 345 677 9000. M 6AM-midnight; Tu-Sa 24hr; Su 10AM-4PM. Supermarket, petrol & pharmacy (different hours); ATMs. (updated May 2017)
  • 3 Little Waitrose, 46 Sycamore Rd, Amersham HP6 5DR, ☏ +44 1494 433434. M-Sa 7:30AM-9PM; Su 10AM-4PM. Convenience store. (updated May 2017)
  • 4 M&S Simply Food, 38-40 Sycamore Rd, Amersham, HP6 5DR, ☏ +44 1494 726214. M-Sa 8AM-9PM; Su 10AM-4PM. (updated May 2017)
  • 5 The Entertainer, 2 Sycamore Rd, Amersham HP6 5DR, ☏ +44 844 800 5101 (premium). M-Sa 9AM-5:30PM. Small, but well established and respected toy retailer. The Entertainer (Q7732289) on Wikidata The Entertainer (retailer) on Wikipedia (updated Jun 2017)
  • 6 Fox's at Mountain Warehouse, 1 London Road, Amersham, Bucks, HP7 OHE. M-Sa 9AM-6PM; Su 10AM-4PM. Outdoor leisure clothing, and equipment store. (updated Jun 2017)
  • 1 Amersham Fish Bar, 11 Woodside Rd, Amersham HP6 6AA, ☏ +44 1494 724022. M-Sa 11:30AM-11PM; Su 11AM-11PM. Take-away. (updated May 2017)
  • 2 Tom Yum, 101 Sycamore Rd, Amersham HP6 5EJ, ☏ +44 1494 728806. M-Th noon-3:30PM & 6PM-10PM; F Sa noon-3:30PM & 6PM-10:30PM; Su noon-3:30PM & 6PM-9PM. Thai restaurant. (updated May 2017)
  • Chalfont Oriental, which, despite its name, is in Amersham.

In nearby Little Chalfont there are two excellent Chinese takeaways/restaurants- Chalfont Dynasty, and Meng House.

Drink

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The Kings Arms

Old Amersham

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  • 4 The Eagle, 145 High St, HP7 0DY (Old Amersham), ☏ +44 1494 725262. M-W 12:00-11PM; Th-Sa noon-11:30PM; Su noon-10:30PM. Pub & food. The Eagle Public House (Q26564602) on Wikidata (updated May 2017)
  • 5 Elephant & Castle, 97 High St, HP7 0DT (Old Amersham), ☏ +44 1494 721049. Pub: M-Th 11AM-11PM; F 11AM-midnight; Sa 10AM-midnight; Su 10AM-10:30PM. Food: M-F noon-10PM; Sa 11AM-10PM; Su 11AM-9:30PM. Pub & food. Elephant And Castle Public House (Q26515954) on Wikidata (updated May 2017)
  • 6 Kings Arms Hotel, 30 High St, HP7 0DJ, ☏ +44 1494 725 722. The Kings Arms Hotel (Q17539966) on Wikidata (updated Jul 2022)

Sleep

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Connect

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  • 1 Post Office, 1 - 2 Sycamore Place, Hill Ave, Amersham HP6 5BG. M-Sa 8AM-6PM. (updated May 2017)

Go next

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Nearby towns and large villages of interest include;

Routes through Amersham
END ←  W  E  → Rickmansworth → Bloomsbury-Camden


This city travel guide to Amersham is a usable article. It has information on how to get there and on restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please feel free to improve it by editing the page.
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