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Europe > Britain and Ireland > United Kingdom > England > South East England > Buckinghamshire > High Wycombe

High Wycombe

High Wycombe is a large and historic town between hills in the county of Buckinghamshire in England. Furniture making played an extensive role in the town's industrial heritage. The market in High Street dates back to the Middle Ages.

Understand

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High Wycombe

Often just called Wycombe, it is the 'furniture capital of England' .

Each May the town has an unusual ceremony known as Mayor Making. A tradition dating back to 1678, the town holds a public weighing of the Mayor, the intention being to see if they have put on weight, i.e., "to see if they are getting fat at rate payers' expense". In the interests of confidentiality the actual weight is not revealed but the gain or loss of weight is and is announced by the town crier.

Get in

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By road

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The town lies on the main London-Oxford-Birmingham M40 motorway. 30 miles from London, 30 miles (48 km) to Oxford and 12 miles (19 km) from the M25 motorway.

The A404 main road connects the town to the M4 (London-Reading-Bristol-Swansea) motorway (to the S), close to Maidenhead.

By train

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  • 1 Railway station, Amersham Hill, High Wycombe, HP13 6NN. Chiltern Railways manage the station and run services. On the line from Birmingham to London Marylebone and served by both local and fast trains. There are usually 3 trains an hour between High Wycombe and London Marylebone and 1 train an hour between High Wycombe and Birmingham. Check timetables as trains do not run overnight. High Wycombe railway station building (Q26668593) on Wikidata High Wycombe railway station on Wikipedia (updated Jun 2017)

By bus

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Wycombe is also served by buses to and from many of the nearby towns and villages, though due to the sheer number of traffic lights installed along London Road and around the entrance to the bus station it's generally quicker to walk.

There are also bus services to Oxford and Stansted Airport.

The town boasts a spacious park and ride facility, see National Park and Ride Directory which stops running at 7PM, rendering it useless to anyone wanting to have dinner, visit the cinema or go late-night shopping. At 6:30PM, however, the Eden Car Park changes its pricing plan to £1.50 for the rest of the evening. The Dovecot car park is even cheaper, but much less well-maintained.

By air

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Whilst the town does have an airfield Booker Airfield, this is a private airfield for light aircraft.

The town is 20 miles (32 km) from Heathrow Airport and 40 miles (64 km) from Luton Airport

Get around

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Buses: Buckinghamshire County Council have a guide to bus services in the High Wycombe area.

Walking and cycling: The town centre is largely pedestrianised.

Car: Good links with the M40 and M4.

See

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Trinity United Reformed Church

Do

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The Cressex area of High Wycombe (near the main M40 junction) offers a few options close to the Holiday Inn hotel, a badminton centre, and Handy Cross sports centre (http://www.wll.co.uk) which has many facilities including a Gym and Swimming pool.

  • 1 Odds Farm Park, Wooburn Common, High Wycombe HP10 0LX (4 miles from J2 of the M40), ☏ +44 1628 520188, . Daily from 10AM. Meet new babies, enjoy Animal Activities/Demonstrations and discover the NEW Giant Indoor Playbarn! (updated May 2017)
  • 2 Hollywood Bowl (Ten-pin Bowling), 9 Denmark St, Eden Centre, High Wycombe HP11 2DB, ☏ +44 844 826 3042 (premium). Daily 9AM-late. Adults £5.99/game; Under 16's £4.99/game. (updated Jun 2017)
  • 3 Swan Theatre, St Mary St, High Wycombe HP11 2XE, ☏ +44 1494 512000. (updated Jun 2017)
  • Watch football at Wycombe Wanderers[dead link]. They were relegated in 2021 and now play soccer in League One, the game's third tier. Their home ground Adams Park (capacity 9400) is two miles west of High Wycombe town centre.
  • 4 Badminton Wycombe, Crest Rd, High Wycombe HP11 1UA, ☏ +44 1494 436200. M-F 9AM-11PM, Sa 9AM-5PM, Su 9AM-11PM. (updated Jun 2017)
  • 5 Wycombe Leisure Centre, Handy Cross, High Wycombe HP11 1UP, ☏ +44 1494 688100. M-F 6AM-11PM, Sa Su 7AM-8PM. Gym, pools, studios, group cycling studio, sports hall, squash courts, climbing wall, bowls hall, café (updated Jun 2017)
  • 6 Cineworld, Denmark St, Eden, High Wycombe HP11 2DB, ☏ +44 871 200 2000 (premium). (updated Jun 2017)
  • 7 Empire (Cinema), Crest Rd, High Wycombe HP11 1UA. (updated Jun 2017)

One of the best things to do in High Wycombe is use its fantastic transport links and go somewhere else.

Buy

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Church Street
  • 1 [formerly dead link] High Wycombe Market, High St, High Wycombe, HP11 2BN, ☏ +44 1483 277640, . Tu F 8AM-4PM, Sa 8AM-5PM. (updated Jun 2017)
  • 2 Eden Shopping Centre. The town centre has undergone a major refurbishment project and now has one of the largest shopping centres in the country with over 100 shops, including a large House of Fraser and Marks and Spencer. It is probably also the coldest as it has no roof in some areas, so wrap up warm. The way the building was built it acts as a wind tunnel. Eden, High Wycombe (Q5336791) on Wikidata Eden, High Wycombe on Wikipedia (updated Jun 2017)
  • 3 Chiltern Shopping Centre, Frogmoor, High Wycombe HP13 5ES. (updated Jun 2017)
  • 4 Desborough Road (Shopping Area), Desborough Rd, High Wycombe, HP11 2QA. (updated Jun 2017)
  • 5 John Lewis (Department Store), Holmers Farm Way, Cressex Centre, High Wycombe HP12 4NW, ☏ +44 1494 462666. M-F 10AM-8PM, Sa 9AM-7PM, Su 11AM-5PM. Near the M40. The store does not stock clothing - only household goods and furnishings. (updated Jun 2017)

Supermarkets

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  • 6 Waitrose (Supermarket), Marlow Hill, High Wycombe HP11 1TJ, ☏ +44 1494 441652. M-Sa 7AM-10PM, Su 10AM-4PM. (updated Jun 2017)
  • 7 Asda (Supermarket), Holmers Farm Way, High Wycombe HP12 4NU, ☏ +44 1494 441611. M 7:30AM-midnight, Tu-F 24 hr, Sa midnight-10PM, Su 10AM-4PM. Petrol station (different hours) (updated Jun 2017)

Eat

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There are many places to eat in the town centre, but it can be worth visiting some of the country pubs in the surrounding villages which often offer excellent food.


Drink

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Some say: "There are no pubs in High Wycombe. There are some restaurants that have an alcohol licence, but none of any note." It's not (entirely) true! There are a few decent pubs in town; at the very least they have better drink than the restaurants.

There is a pub called The Antelope, which although rough in appearance serves only drink and is popular every night of the week. The prices are inexpensive but the place could be described as "the worst pub in the world".

Sleep

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Connect

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  • 1 Post Office, 3 Castle St, High Wycombe HP13 6RZ. M-Sa 8:30AM-7PM. (updated Jun 2017)

Go next

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Routes through High Wycombe
Oxford ← Thame ←  NW  SE  → Uxbridge → London
Oxford ←  W  E  → Follows to Uxbridge


This city travel guide to High Wycombe 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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