New Forest Tourist.co.uk
Discover the New Forest National Park
follow the markers to explore the region

Information for the New Forest Tourist

The New Forest National Park is the smallest national park in England, and was created in 2005. The creation of the New Forest’s National Park status was, however, simply a landmark in a much longer history.

The New Forest was designated a hunting area in 1079 by William the Conqueror. To this day the New Forest ‘Commoners’ keep many ancient rural practices alive, such as the pasturing of ponies, cattle, pigs and donkeys. This explains the large number of animals roaming free around the New Forest roads and countryside, notably the famous New Forest ponies.

Since the New Forest gained its National Park status, the New Forest National Park Authority have erected more than 50 specially designed markers around the perimeter of the Park. Custom made from wood sourced and manufactured by local suppliers, you can discover most of these markers and their surroundings on this website. The marker design was intended to convey the impression of a stylised oak tree. The larger markers are 'ancient oak' trees, and the smaller markers 'young oak' trees. In fact, the markers are made from Douglas fir rather than oak because of its potentially longer lifespan and durable finish.

The 'ancient oak' markers can be found at the most significant entry points to the National Park. The 'young oak' markers are the most widespread, marking most other roads and some footpaths.

In addition to the wooden markers there are a number of zinc discs across various forest footpaths.

Also on our site you'll find pubs, restaurants, campsites and holiday accommodation available in and around the New Forest. In the process of gathering information for the website, we have taken plenty of photos of the beautiful, and varied landscapes of this region, many of which you'll find here.