The area covers 668 square miles of picture postcard villages, rolling chalk downland and ancient woodland from Basingstoke and Andover in the south to Reading in the north, Devizes in the west across to Newbury in the east.  

There are numerous interesting attractions dotted throughout the landscape, including Highclere Castle to the south west of Newbury, which is the seat of the Carnarvon family and well known as television’s Downton Abbey.

To the west of the landscape is the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Avebury, built and much altered during the Neolithic period, between around 2850 BC and 2200 BC. It contains the largest stone circle in Britain – originally of about 100 stones – encompassing two further small stone circles.

In north Hampshire is the real Watership Down, which inspired Richard Adams’ much-loved novel of the same name. The area appeals particularly to walkers and cyclists, with the Wayfarer’s Walk running along the ridge of the downs from Inkpen to Kingclere, providing a great route for enjoying the glorious countryside views. The Test Way also starts at Inkpen and follows much of the course of the River Test chalk stream to Eling, where its tidal waters flow into Southampton Water.  

One of the best places to enjoy views over the North Wessex Downs is from one of England’s best known hill forts, Beacon Hill, near Burghclere.  

In terms of the property market, the area attracts those who want to benefit from the beautiful countryside while remaining well connected by road, with the A34 and M4, and by rail, with services to London Paddington from Reading in as little as 23 minutes or Newbury from 47 minutes, and from Andover to Waterloo in just over an hour.  

The excellent schools in the area are a particularly strong draw for families, such as Cheam, St Gabriel’s, Horris Hill, Brockhurst & Marlston, Downe House, Bradfield College, Elstree and Farleigh.  

The average sale price for property within the North Wessex Downs is around £610,000, representing a 47.6 per cent premium over the average county sale price of around £414,000. For a four or five bedroom village home with a good sized garden, you’d be looking to spend about £750,000 to £1.5m, while from around £1.5m to £2m you’ll get a substantial family home with maybe a couple of acres and a swimming pool or tennis court.  

The top five highest value parishes that fall within the national landscape are Chute in Wiltshire, with an average second hand sale price in the last five years of £1,403,000, Aldworth (£1,179,000) and Ashampstead (£1,048,000) in West Berkshire, and Aston Upthorpe (£1,033,000) and Moulsford (£1,028,000) in South Oxfordshire.