England · United Kingdom
Where to stay in Winchester
Winchester is a city in England, United Kingdom, home to about 35,000 people. This guide covers 1 hotel in Winchester, with about 84 rooms between them. Every one carries a published guest score, and the list below is ordered by it.
- Places to stay in this guide
- 1
- Best months
- June to September
- Nearest airport
- SOU13 km · Southampton Airport
- Currency
- GBPpound sterling
- Time zone
- Europe/London
- Language
- Cornish, English, Irish
About
About Winchester
Winchester (, ) is a cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government district, at the western end of the South Downs National Park, on the River Itchen.
Winchester has a long history: there has been continuous settlement on the site for over 2,000 years. Winchester began as a Celtic hill fort, pre-dating the Roman invasion of Britain in 43 CE. After the Roman conquest, the town grew and became known as Venta Belgarum. After prospering under Roman imperial rule for several centuries, Winchester discovered a new identity as an important Saxon city.
Wikipedia and Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.
Things to do
What to see and do in Winchester
See
Winchester's city centre is known for its narrow pedestrian streets and overhanging medieval buildings. Besides the cathedral, the main landmark is the Statue of King Alfred the Great, first king and nominal founder of England. Nearby is the Victorian Guildhall, which hosts many events throughout the year. Also of special interest are the Pentice, a group of old shops arcaded at the front, and the Butter Cross, dating back to the 15th century and built with a tax levied on people caught eating butter during Lent. The River Itchen, a crystal clear chalk stream, flows through multiple channels in central Winchester, seemingly just to surprise visitors by its tinkling presence at every turn.
- Church of St. Swithun upon Kingsgate
- Winchester Cathedral
- Winchester City Mill
- Winchester College
- Winchester Great Hall and King Arthur's Round Table
- Wolvesey Castle
- Hospital of St Cross
- Westgate Museum
- Winchester City Museum
- Twyford Waterworks
- Winchester Science Centre & Planetarium
Do
- Three Castles Path
- South Downs Way
- Abbey Gardens
- Cathedral Grounds
- Art and Mind
- Winchester Chamber Music Festival
- Winchester Hat Fair
- Winchester Cycle Fair
- BikeAbout
- Cheesefoot Head
- Theatre Royal
Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.
Where to stay
The best-rated places to stay in Winchester
Ordered by guest score as each operator publishes it, weighted by the number of reviews so a handful of perfect scores does not outrank thousands of very good ones. Scores are shown on their own scale.
| # | Place to stay | Rooms | Guest score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Travelodge Winchester hotel | 84 | 4.1/5 747 reviews |
Schematic: the city centre in orange, each place to stay as a dot, distance rings in kilometres.
Where to stay
Which part of Winchester to stay in
There are many different places to sleep in Winchester. The following can only be a set of suggestions. The prices quoted may be negotiable.
Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.
Where to stay
More hotels in Winchester
16 hotels within 25 km of the centre, as recorded in Wikidata. Each name links to its encyclopedia article where there is one.
| Hotel | Opened | From centre |
|---|---|---|
| Lainston House | 1981 | 4.7 km |
| The Eclipse Inn | 0.5 km | |
| Wessex Hotel | 0.3 km | |
| Bell Hotel | 10.7 km | |
| Ship Inn | 12.3 km | |
| Southgate Hotel | 0.6 km | |
| Swan Hotel | 10.7 km | |
| The Bush Inn | 7.9 km | |
| The Globe Inn | 10.8 km | |
| The Royal Hotel | 0.4 km | |
| The Woolpack Inn | 12.0 km | |
| Westgate Hotel | 0.8 km | |
| Wykeham Arms | 0.7 km | |
| Holiday Inn Winchester | 3.2 km | |
| The Winchester Hotel and Spa | 0.9 km | |
| Two Bare Feet | 0.4 km |
All 17 hotels in Winchester, with their history and operators
When to go
The best time to visit Winchester
The most comfortable months for a city stay in Winchester are June to September. July is the warmest month, with average highs of 22 °C; December is the wettest, with about 92 mm of rain.
Comfortable means average daytime high between 18 °C and 29 °C and under 80 mm of rain in the month. Averages for 1991–2020 over the surrounding area, a grid square about 50 km across, so a coast or a nearby mountain can make the town itself warmer or cooler. Data: CRU TS v4.10, Climatic Research Unit, University of East Anglia (Open Database License).
Getting there
Getting to Winchester: airports and arrival
The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Southampton Airport (SOU), about 13 km from the city centre in a straight line; Bournemouth Airport (BOH, 49 km) and London Heathrow Airport (LHR, 74 km) are also within reach.
Getting around
If you are planning to do any visiting or exploring beyond central Winchester, you will probably want to obtain a decent map of the area. You should ensure that any map you buy clearly shows the national grid reference lines, and explains how to use them, as grid references are frequently used to indicate out of town locations.
Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.
SOU · Southampton Airport
BOH · Bournemouth Airport
LHR · London Heathrow Airport
Local knowledge
Eating, drinking and staying safe in Winchester
Eat
There are lots of places to eat in central Winchester, particularly in Jewry Street, the High Street and the Square, and a good way to find one is simply to keep your eyes open as you visit. The prices are best guesses for a meal including drinks & tips.
Drink
England is known for its public houses, and Winchester - being the ancient heart of England - is no exception. Winchester has a good selection of city centre pubs, many of which are noted in the Real Ale bible 'The Good Beer Guide', and a few that are worth taking a stroll and the time to discover. This plethora of pubs means that Winchester is not saturated with one type of beer. It is in the enviable position that there are many brewers represented in the city. Although the best approach is to wander around and to go into the one you like the look of, there are a few that may not reveal their delights until you venture inside.
Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.
Good to know
Accessibility, parking and families in Winchester
How many places to stay in this guide offer each, in their operators' own words.
of 1 place
of 1 place
Questions
Winchester: questions travellers ask
What are the best-rated hotels in Winchester?
By published guest score: Travelodge Winchester (4.1 / 5 · 747 reviews · www.travelodge.co.uk (operator's own guest score)).
When is the best time to visit Winchester?
The most comfortable months for a city stay in Winchester are June to September. July is the warmest month, with average highs of 22 °C; December is the wettest, with about 92 mm of rain.
Which airport is closest to Winchester?
The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Southampton Airport (SOU), about 13 km from the city centre in a straight line; Bournemouth Airport (BOH, 49 km) and London Heathrow Airport (LHR, 74 km) are also within reach.
What currency is used in Winchester?
pound sterling (GBP).
Nearby
Destinations near Winchester
Sources: city facts from Wikidata and Wikipedia; airports from OurAirports; climate from CRU TS v4.10 (University of East Anglia Climatic Research Unit), 1991–2020 monthly means, 0.5° grid; places to stay, guest scores and amenities from each operator's own public pages. How this guide is made.