Why you should follow in Harry and Meghan's footsteps and visit Chichester

Why go now?

Not just because Harry and Meghan just did, on their first official joint visit. Chichester is perfectly placed for an autumn walking break, set between the high chalk uplands of the South Downs, and the peaceful waterside tracks around Chichester Harbour.

As for the city itself, its streets and lanes of Georgian buildings that fan out from the lovely medieval cathedral close at its heart, is charming to explore on foot. 

Here's how to spend 36 hours...

Getting there

It’s 90 minutes by train from London Victoria (southernrailway.com); by car, take the scenic route across the South Downs, or the faster A27.

Where to stay

Special Treat

The Goodwood Hotel is set in glorious countryside on the Goodwood Estate, just north of Chichester, and has a great restaurant and a health club as well as leisure activites including motor racing, horse racing, flying and golf.

Mid range

The Crab and Lobster in Sidlesham has stylish rooms with good bathrooms (and Ren toiletries) in a 17th-century pub overlooking the salt marshes of Pagham Harbour, six miles from Chichester. There are lovely walks from the door, and West Wittering beach is nearby.

Budget

George Bell House (01243 813586; chichestercathedral.org.uk) is a B&B with a superb setting in the heart of the cathedral close, right in the centre of the city. Rooms vary in size, but all are peaceful and comfortable. There’s an attractive walled garden and – a godsend in Chichester – free parking.

On arrival

7pm
Get there in time for a performance at Chichester Festival Theatre (01243 781312; cft.org.uk), one of our best regional theatres, with regular West End transfers. There is a restaurant and café if you want to eat first. Book now for The Midnight Gang (Oct 13 - Nov 3); Shakespeare in Love (Nov 20-24) and Sleeping Beauty (Dec 15-30).

Day one

9am 
Start with the cathedral, which is free (although donations are welcome). Volunteer guides offer free drop-in tours of the medieval building, and the superb modern art within it. Look out for the Arundel Tomb (subject of a Philip Larkin poem), and the wonderful 12th-century carved panels, the Chichester Reliefs. Also see the stained glass window by Marc Chagall and the show-stopping John Piper tapestry behind the altar. (chichestercathedral.org.uk)

Wander around the paths and gardens of the cathedral close, and out into the well-preserved Georgian city centre, largely pedestrianised, with four main streets leading north, south, east and west from the late-medieval market cross.

Turn off South Street into the Pallants, a twist of quiet lanes, and in a handsome Queen Anne house you’ll find Pallant House Gallery (01243 774557; pallant.org.uk). Here, and in the airy modern extension, is an exceptional collection of 20th-century British art, with works by artists including Walter Sickert, Lucian Freud, Graham Sutherland and Ben Nicholson, as well as changing exhibitions. 

12.30pm
Cross the road and bag a table for an early lunch at St Martin’s Organic Coffee House (01243 786715; organiccoffeehouse.co.uk). This Soil-Association-certified eaterie opened in 1979 and for the past 17 years, the chef has served up vegetarian-friendly, health-focused yet hearty lunches. The garden is a sun trap where you can while away the afternoon. Open 10am-6pm Tuesday to Saturday.

1.45pm 
Head north to the Goodwood Estate and the Cass Sculpture Foundation, an outdoor sculpture park with striking contemporary works set in peaceful woodland with a backdrop of cornfields; it’s a special place (01243 538449; sculpture.org.uk). Open until October 31. Adults ￡12.50, children under 5 go free.  

3.45pm  
Have tea and delicious home-made cakes on the terrace at nearby West Dean Gardens (01243 818210; westdean.org.uk) before inspecting the herbaceous borders, magnificent kitchen garden with original Victorian glasshouses, and 100m-long Edwardian pergola. Adults ￡9, under-16s go free.

Families will enjoy the Weald and Downland Open Air Museum, just down the road at Singleton, where rescued buildings of South East England, dating from 1300 to 1910, have been restored and re-sited amid 50 acres of the South Downs. Dogs welcome. Adults ￡15, children ￡6.50 (01243 811363; wealddown.co.uk). 

8pm 
Head to The Goodwood Hotel and dine at its on-site "farm-to-fork" restaurant, Farmer, Butcher, Chef. (goodwood.com; 01243 755070).

Day two

9.30am 
Head seven miles south to the pretty sailing village of Itchenor and take a boat trip around Chichester Harbour on a Falklands War vessel (chichesterharbourwatertours.co.uk). The harbour is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and the on-board commentary fills you in on its history and wildlife (trip times are set to the tides).

Alternatively, park by the beach at West Wittering and walk to the dunes of East Head. It’s worth buying A Walker’s Guide: Chichester Harbour (￡4) from the harbour office.  

12pm 
Slip in lunch at the Crab and Lobster at Sidlesham for wonderful crab and lobster salads and sandwiches. Stop off to see the Roman mosaics and gardens at Fishbourne Roman Palace, once the largest Roman domestic building north of the Alps. Adults ￡9.50, children ￡4.90 (01243 785859; sussexpast.co.uk).

Checklist

If you’re feeling energetic, you can explore all the places mentioned via the excellent network of local cycle paths. There are maps and details of cycle hire shops at chichester.gov.uk/cycling.

Watch out for rush-hour jams on the A27 access to Chichester, and at the level crossing in town.

For tourist information, go to visitchichester.org or call 01243 775888.  

For complete guides to Britain’s best cities and regions go to telegraph.co.uk/destinations.