Farnborough

Orientation:

The northeasternmost town in Hampshire, Farnborough is contiguous with Aldershot (with which it shares a local authority, the Borough of Rushmoor) to the south, and Camberley (in Surrey) to the north. The town's eastern boundary is marked by the River Blackwater, on the other side of which are the suburban villages Ash, Frimley and Mytchett, which are nowadays considered part of Camberley. Farnborough Airport is immediately to the south-west of the town centre, and west of that is beautiful mixed forest and heathland leading to Fleet.

Although locals divide Farnborough north and south, and into other named areas not relevant here, the visitor may understand it better as a town of four quadrants:

The north-west covers the mostly residential areas known as Cove and Southwood, which were formerly independent villages. Although there are some older buildings, the bulk of this part's urbanisation took place in the mid- to late 20th century, and there is little here of interest to a visitor.

The north-east is separated from the NW by Farnborough Road. This is the oldest part of town and contains the former village centre (Farnborough Street), the parish church of St Peter, St Michael's Abbey and Farnborough Hill House (Farnborough Park).

The south-east was Farnborough's 19th-century town centre, and is still today predominantly Victorian in character, known as South Farnborough or North Camp. It is mixed residential and commercial, and has many of the best restaurants and pubs.

The south-west is dominated by Farnborough Airport, and the high-tech industry, business parks and hotels which surround it. This is also the location of the RAE Heritage Quarter and FAST Museum.

The modern town centre sits where these four quadrants meet.

Early history:

Farnborough is 35 miles (56 km) south-west of central London.

By car:

Farnborough is served by the M3 motorway (junctions 4 and 4a) which runs from London to Southampton. The town is about an hour's drive from central London, and 15 minutes from junction 12 of the M25. The A331 Blackwater Valley Road is a fast dual carriageway running from junction 4 along the eastern edge of Farnborough and Aldershot to the A31 Hog's Back Road (which links the A3 at Guildford with the M3 at Winchester).

All listed 'see' and 'do' attractions, and most of the sleep listings, have on-site or nearby parking, and visitors to the town in general won't have trouble finding a car park. The Meads multi-storey car park on Kingsmead is particularly helpful, as are the Pinehurst car parks slightly further down the same road. Less useful is the "secret car park" on the roof of Sainsbury's; since it was painted up, it has only been accessible to pedestrians, as a ramp up from the road was never built! Its 'discovery' by a reporter in 2016 prompted much derision in the national media.

By train:

Farnborough is served by five railway stations, listed in decreasing order of utility: