RoutesHiking trails & RoutesUnited KingdomEnglandWest Midlands RegionWorcestershireMalvern HillsGuarlford
Great Malvern Town Centre – Priory Park Footbridge loop from Guarlford
RoutesHiking trails & RoutesUnited KingdomEnglandWest Midlands RegionWorcestershireMalvern HillsGuarlford
Great Malvern Town Centre – Priory Park Footbridge loop from Guarlford
Moderate
2
hikers
Great Malvern Town Centre – Priory Park Footbridge loop from Guarlford
04:31
16.9km
200m
Hiking
Moderate hike. Good fitness required. Easily-accessible paths. Suitable for all skill levels. The starting point of the route is accessible with public transport.
Last updated: May 26, 2026
Tips
Your route passes through protected areas
Please check local regulations for:
Waypoints
A
Start point
Bus stop
Get Directions
1
3.62 km
Great Malvern Station
Highlight • Historical Site
Great Malvern railway station is one of two stations serving the town of Malvern, Worcestershire, England (the other being Malvern Link station) on the Hereford to Worcester section of the Cotswold Line. It is situated downhill from the centre of Great Malvern and close to Barnards Green. The station retains most of its original Victorian station design by the architect Edmund Wallace Elmslie and is a Grade II listed building.
Great Malvern station was opened by the Worcester and Hereford Railway in 1860 and the present buildings, by architect Edmund Wallace Elmslie, were completed in 1862. The Midland Railway and the London and North Western Railway collaborated on the construction cost; the solicitor, Samuel Carter, was also solicitor to both of these major companies. It was later absorbed by the Great Western Railway.
Lady Emily Foley was a key sponsor of the building of Great Malvern station. She had a waiting room made for her exclusive use at Great Malvern Station, which is now ‘Lady Foley's Tea Room’.
The station celebrated its 150th birthday on 23 May 2010 with the unveiling of a plaque and a special train. An additional part of this celebration was the reinstatement of some of the highly decorated lighting columns around the cab road at the front of the station.
Architecture
The buildings are in local Malvern Rag stone and follow a French Gothic theme.
Floral capitals to canopy columns
A particular feature of the station are the deep canopies which are supported by elaborate, cast-iron girders, which are in turn supported by columns with elaborate capitals. These capitals are decorated with high relief mouldings depicting different arrangements of flowers and foliage. The sculptor William Forsyth was employed to work on the buildings and designed the metal capitals of the columns which support the canopies above both platforms of the station.
The Worm access to Imperial Hotel
At the end of Platform 2 is the entrance to the Worm, an enclosed passageway which leads under Avenue Road into the former Imperial Hotel (now Malvern St James). It formed a private pedestrian access and is believed to be the only structure of its kind in the country. Although in need of extensive restoration and generally not open to the public, the Worm is itself Grade II listed.
Great Malvern station was opened by the Worcester and Hereford Railway in 1860 and the present buildings, by architect Edmund Wallace Elmslie, were completed in 1862. The Midland Railway and the London and North Western Railway collaborated on the construction cost; the solicitor, Samuel Carter, was also solicitor to both of these major companies. It was later absorbed by the Great Western Railway.
Lady Emily Foley was a key sponsor of the building of Great Malvern station. She had a waiting room made for her exclusive use at Great Malvern Station, which is now ‘Lady Foley's Tea Room’.
The station celebrated its 150th birthday on 23 May 2010 with the unveiling of a plaque and a special train. An additional part of this celebration was the reinstatement of some of the highly decorated lighting columns around the cab road at the front of the station.
Architecture
The buildings are in local Malvern Rag stone and follow a French Gothic theme.
Floral capitals to canopy columns
A particular feature of the station are the deep canopies which are supported by elaborate, cast-iron girders, which are in turn supported by columns with elaborate capitals. These capitals are decorated with high relief mouldings depicting different arrangements of flowers and foliage. The sculptor William Forsyth was employed to work on the buildings and designed the metal capitals of the columns which support the canopies above both platforms of the station.
The Worm access to Imperial Hotel
At the end of Platform 2 is the entrance to the Worm, an enclosed passageway which leads under Avenue Road into the former Imperial Hotel (now Malvern St James). It formed a private pedestrian access and is believed to be the only structure of its kind in the country. Although in need of extensive restoration and generally not open to the public, the Worm is itself Grade II listed.
Tip by
2
3.86 km
Great Malvern Town Centre
Highlight • Settlement
Originally centred around an 11th-century Benedictine priory, Great Malvern grew to prominence as part of the spa town of Malvern. The Georgians had a penchant for taking to the waters and the region’s popularity increased during Victorian times, when Doctors Gully and Watson introduced hydrotherapy.
It became a cultural centre in the 20th century, with Edward Elgar and George Bernard Shaw bringing music and theatre festivals to the town. Its long-established hospitality venues today benefit from this heritage and from the beauty of the surrounding countryside. The modern-day town is full of independent shops and cafes, perfect for a mooch. From the train station, there are direct trains to Birmingham New Street, Bristol Temple Meads and London Paddington.
The Malvern Hills are a delight to explore. They are easily one of England’s most scenic upland regions, certainly the finest in the Midlands. Worcestershire Beacon, at 1,394 feet (425 m), is the highest point in the county and, along with neighbouring North Hill, dominates the west of the town.
It became a cultural centre in the 20th century, with Edward Elgar and George Bernard Shaw bringing music and theatre festivals to the town. Its long-established hospitality venues today benefit from this heritage and from the beauty of the surrounding countryside. The modern-day town is full of independent shops and cafes, perfect for a mooch. From the train station, there are direct trains to Birmingham New Street, Bristol Temple Meads and London Paddington.
The Malvern Hills are a delight to explore. They are easily one of England’s most scenic upland regions, certainly the finest in the Midlands. Worcestershire Beacon, at 1,394 feet (425 m), is the highest point in the county and, along with neighbouring North Hill, dominates the west of the town.
Tip by
3
4.45 km
Priory Park Footbridge
Highlight • Bridge
4
5.54 km
Malvhina Spout of Malvern Spring Water
Highlight • Natural Monument
Drinkable fountain, get some of that good ol' Malvern water
Tip by
5
5.57 km
Malvern Museum in the Priory Gatehouse
Highlight • Historical Site
The Malvern Museum in Great Malvern, the town centre of Malvern, Worcestershire, England, is located in the Priory Gatehouse, the former gateway to the Great Malvern Priory. The museum was established in 1979 and is owned and managed by the Malvern Museum Society Ltd, a registered charity. The Priory Gatehouse was a gift to the museum in 1980 from the de Vere Group, the owners of the neighbouring Abbey Hotel, and is staffed by volunteers. As such, the building itself is the museum's major exhibit.
Among the museum's exhibits are many local artefacts and archaeological findings dating from the Iron Age hill fort at the British Camp, to recent history. A series of rooms depicts different periods of history and include lifelike displays and information boards. Themes covered include natural history, Malvern Priory, Malvern Forest and Chase, life in Victorian Malvern, Edward Elgar, the Malvern Festival, the history of the local economy including the 19th century hydrotherapy using Malvern water (instrumental in the settlement's rapid growth from a village to a large town), the development of radar by TRE, and Morgan Motor Company cars. The museum is open daily, 10.30 to 17.00, from 25 March to 31 October.
Priory gatehouse
Erroneously referred to as the Abbey Gateway, it was built around 1480 and is the second oldest building in Malvern after the Norman priory church. The gatehouse is the only other remaining building of the 12th century Benedictine monastery that was dismantled in 1539 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries by King Henry VIII of England.
Among the museum's exhibits are many local artefacts and archaeological findings dating from the Iron Age hill fort at the British Camp, to recent history. A series of rooms depicts different periods of history and include lifelike displays and information boards. Themes covered include natural history, Malvern Priory, Malvern Forest and Chase, life in Victorian Malvern, Edward Elgar, the Malvern Festival, the history of the local economy including the 19th century hydrotherapy using Malvern water (instrumental in the settlement's rapid growth from a village to a large town), the development of radar by TRE, and Morgan Motor Company cars. The museum is open daily, 10.30 to 17.00, from 25 March to 31 October.
Priory gatehouse
Erroneously referred to as the Abbey Gateway, it was built around 1480 and is the second oldest building in Malvern after the Norman priory church. The gatehouse is the only other remaining building of the 12th century Benedictine monastery that was dismantled in 1539 during the Dissolution of the Monasteries by King Henry VIII of England.
Tip by
6
5.70 km
Rose Bank Gardens and Buzzards Sculpture
Highlight • Structure
A house named Rose Bank appears in the 1841 census of Great Malvern. It was the home of Mary Ann Wilmot the widow of Sir Robert Wilmot 2nd Baronet (1753-1834) of Osmaston Hall in Derbyshire. The Wilmot family lived at Rose Bank from about 1840 to 1880. Lieutenant General Eardley Nicholas Wilmot of Rose Bank was named as a magistrate in the 1873 Post Office Directory. In 1826 his sister Mary Ann married General Sir Richard Church at Worthing. The 1871 census confirms she was the wife of General R Church KCH who was then in the service of the King of Greece.
The 1901 and 1911 census recorded Rose Bank occupied by George Silas Guy born about 1837 and his second wife Hannah. George's occupation was recorded as 'managing director of an iron and steel tube manufacturory'. George Guy died in 1912.
Rose Bank House, which had double fronted bowed windows offering panoramic views over Worcestershire, and its large gardens were purchased by local benefactor Charles William Dyson Perrins in 1918 and gifted as an amenity to the town of Great Malvern in Worcestershire, UK.
Rose Bank was used by the Womens Royal Voluntary Service (WRVS) during WWII, but, according to reports, the house fell into decay and was demolished in 1959, a year after Dyson's death.
The gardens today
Rose Bank Gardens, situated above Belle Vue Terrace, to the south of the Mount Pleasant Hotel remain an attractive place to walk, rest, and access footpaths onto the hills.
A notable feature is a sculpture of two buzzards in flight, installed in 2012, to mark Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee.
The 1901 and 1911 census recorded Rose Bank occupied by George Silas Guy born about 1837 and his second wife Hannah. George's occupation was recorded as 'managing director of an iron and steel tube manufacturory'. George Guy died in 1912.
Rose Bank House, which had double fronted bowed windows offering panoramic views over Worcestershire, and its large gardens were purchased by local benefactor Charles William Dyson Perrins in 1918 and gifted as an amenity to the town of Great Malvern in Worcestershire, UK.
Rose Bank was used by the Womens Royal Voluntary Service (WRVS) during WWII, but, according to reports, the house fell into decay and was demolished in 1959, a year after Dyson's death.
The gardens today
Rose Bank Gardens, situated above Belle Vue Terrace, to the south of the Mount Pleasant Hotel remain an attractive place to walk, rest, and access footpaths onto the hills.
A notable feature is a sculpture of two buzzards in flight, installed in 2012, to mark Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee.
Tip by
7
5.87 km
View of Great Malvern and St. Anne's Church
Highlight • Religious Site
After ascending the 99 steps from Malvern, you’re rewarded with a stunning view of the town, beautifully framed by rolling hills and sprawling farmland in the distance.
Tip by
8
5.94 km
The Ninety-Nine Steps and C.S. Lewis Plaque
Highlight • Trail
If you follow the path by the wall westwards from the entrance off Belle Vue Terrace, you will reach the ninety nine steps leading to a footpath up to St Ann's Well.
At the foot of the steps there is a small plaque which records:
CS Lewis 1898 - 1963, Scholar and Author
Cherbourg House School Malvern 1911 - 1913
Malvern College 1913 - 1914
The Malvern Hills reminded Lewis of the Mourne Mountains at home in Ireland.
A gas lamp appears in his story, The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe.
At Magdalen College, Oxford, Lewis tutored George Sayer 1914 - 2005 who became a close friend and Head of English at Malvern College. Lewis, like JRR Tolkien, often visited him in Alexandra Rd, Malvern Link.
After you have rested at the top of the 99 steps bear right a few steps into Foley Terrace, joining St Ann's Road. At this point you will see a sign pointing the way up a steep zig zag footpath to St Ann's Well where there is a cafe.
At the foot of the steps there is a small plaque which records:
CS Lewis 1898 - 1963, Scholar and Author
Cherbourg House School Malvern 1911 - 1913
Malvern College 1913 - 1914
The Malvern Hills reminded Lewis of the Mourne Mountains at home in Ireland.
A gas lamp appears in his story, The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe.
At Magdalen College, Oxford, Lewis tutored George Sayer 1914 - 2005 who became a close friend and Head of English at Malvern College. Lewis, like JRR Tolkien, often visited him in Alexandra Rd, Malvern Link.
After you have rested at the top of the 99 steps bear right a few steps into Foley Terrace, joining St Ann's Road. At this point you will see a sign pointing the way up a steep zig zag footpath to St Ann's Well where there is a cafe.
Tip by
B
16.9 km
End point
Bus stop
Way Types & Surfaces
Way Types
8.34 km
6.73 km
687 m
624 m
295 m
166 m
Surfaces
7.34 km
3.83 km
2.40 km
2.22 km
720 m
342 m
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Wednesday 8 July
34°C
15°C
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Max wind speed: 7.0 km/h
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