The Chiltern Gateway Centre
The Chiltern Gateway Centre
The Chiltern Gateway Centre
3.7
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
What is Travelers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.
Top ways to experience nearby attractions
Are you currently on your trip?
Help us find experiences available for you.
The area
Reach out directly
Best nearby
Restaurants
206 within 3 miles
Attractions
58 within 6 miles
Contribute
Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
3.7
147 reviews
Excellent
45
Very good
39
Average
40
Poor
16
Terrible
7
D T
Bedfordshire, UK35 contributions
Aug 2021
Cafe review only. The downs themselves are stunning as ever, and the shop staff are friendly. The food at the cafe is on the whole good, but when ordering food some of the staff have been somewhat unwelcoming and surly. Sad to say it, but you need people who like the public working in a public role, and the staff on the till recently have certainly not seemed as though they enjoy being there,
Written August 21, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
GreyladyHitchin
Hitchin, UK44 contributions
Jul 2020
The area around the Gateway Centre is beautiful and there are heaps of walks away from this hub. The building itself is in the style of an airport building and thus utilitarian and uninspiring. However, it has toilets a cafe and gift shop - what more do you need. Parking is free for National Trust members. A really helpful National Trust person oriented us to the start of the walk and recommended a pub on the route. Once you get away from the children running about with dogs, kites and parents clogging up the space, it's a lovely area. There are plenty of marked paths.
Written July 15, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Roz
London, UK100 contributions
Sep 2020
A good place for walking (and a good number of benches, too). Best to stick to the main paths. Walked up one grassy slope only to find that it turned into a very steep chalky slope - scary!
It was fun watching gliders take off. Also bough a small £10 kite from the shop, which I enjoyed flying, and was pleased to see that adults were flying kites too, so I didn't look too silly. Why did the lady serving in the shop not wear her face covering properly, though? It should have covered her nose, not just her mouth. (This didn't happen just the once.) Also, members of the public didn't wear face coverings in the toilet building and I didn't see any notices asking them to do so.
The food hatch had run out of cheese and onion pasties, but I did enjoy the curried chickpea pasty and would have that again.
If you have cash, you can pay £3.50 for parking at the machine, else you need to set up a pay-by-phone arrangement, else walk to the Gateway Centre to get a ticket using a debit card.
There are details of three walks (from the Gateway Centre) on the notice boards. I just walked along the top of the hill, where there are good views. The other walks involve meadows and the Tree Cathedral. You could certainly spend a few hours here, maybe two separate visits.
It was fun watching gliders take off. Also bough a small £10 kite from the shop, which I enjoyed flying, and was pleased to see that adults were flying kites too, so I didn't look too silly. Why did the lady serving in the shop not wear her face covering properly, though? It should have covered her nose, not just her mouth. (This didn't happen just the once.) Also, members of the public didn't wear face coverings in the toilet building and I didn't see any notices asking them to do so.
The food hatch had run out of cheese and onion pasties, but I did enjoy the curried chickpea pasty and would have that again.
If you have cash, you can pay £3.50 for parking at the machine, else you need to set up a pay-by-phone arrangement, else walk to the Gateway Centre to get a ticket using a debit card.
There are details of three walks (from the Gateway Centre) on the notice boards. I just walked along the top of the hill, where there are good views. The other walks involve meadows and the Tree Cathedral. You could certainly spend a few hours here, maybe two separate visits.
Written September 19, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Michelle H
8 contributions
Oct 2024 • Friends
Where do I begin. We go every Sunday. Every week we order and without fail. The order is incorrect! Staff are miserable. Inefficient. Slow beyond comprehension! How difficult is it to make a coffee??? We have started taking our own drinks and having them outside as it is unbearable and spoils our walk.
Written October 10, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Nic D
Dunstable, UK105 contributions
Nov 2020 • Solo
We are in lockdown, a dry day and lunch time should all point and be a clue that people will want some food, fresh air and a hot drink. How can a cafe be surprised and not be prepared??? So now hungry and taking my money home and not supporting the upkeep of the national trust. Unfortunately this is not the first or a unique time and situation
Written November 24, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lynne B
Luton, UK89 contributions
Apr 2024 • Family
Despite many visits here, today was the first time I tried the cafe for food.
Positives: great food, piping hot, good-sized portions, amazing chips. I only had the ploughman's thinking it would be light, but I was completely stuffed afterwards!
Negatives: slightly unclear as to whether they are supposed to be clearing tables or not. It was hard to find a clean table, and lots of tables seemed to have people who had mostly bought a picnic and added a purchased drink to justify sitting. No one came to wipe tables while we were there. Maybe some signs are needed to tell you what to do with your dishes?
To be fair to staff, it was Easter school hols, so I'd hope it would be cleaner normally.
Member parking is free as usual for NT.
Had a walk along the downs path. Sadly, there seems to be an issue with takeaway food rubbish being heavily piled up by several of the benches, which was unpleasant.
Positives: great food, piping hot, good-sized portions, amazing chips. I only had the ploughman's thinking it would be light, but I was completely stuffed afterwards!
Negatives: slightly unclear as to whether they are supposed to be clearing tables or not. It was hard to find a clean table, and lots of tables seemed to have people who had mostly bought a picnic and added a purchased drink to justify sitting. No one came to wipe tables while we were there. Maybe some signs are needed to tell you what to do with your dishes?
To be fair to staff, it was Easter school hols, so I'd hope it would be cleaner normally.
Member parking is free as usual for NT.
Had a walk along the downs path. Sadly, there seems to be an issue with takeaway food rubbish being heavily piled up by several of the benches, which was unpleasant.
Written April 12, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Jean P
Dunstable, UK16 contributions
Jan 2020 • Couples
We frequently visit the visitor centre while walking on the downs. The food is typical cafe style, and the staff on a whole are helpful. The building is warm and comfortable. However it does get very crowded during the summer season .
Written January 7, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Solange
Hemel Hempstead, UK23 contributions
Apr 2022
Unimpressed with our drinks. The cappuccinos barely tasted of coffee and my grand daughter’s hot chocolate with cream and marshmallows was boiling hot and stayed that way for too long. Children's drinks should not be served boiling hot. My grand daughter burnt her mouth, lost interest and left the drink. There were too many people queuing to address the problem with your staff at the time.
Written April 5, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LAB
Huntingdon, UK14 contributions
Apr 2021
Visited today for a walk and some refreshments. Had to wait nearly 40 minutes for a 2 takeaway teas and 2 sausage rolls!
Only 2 people serving at "The Hatch", one taking orders and money and another doing the drinks and food. Very slow service, big queue on a sunny Sunday as lockdown easing. Surely the management should have foreseen how busy it would be and put on extra staff. Next time we will bring our own refreshment and the National Trust will miss out on the funds!
Only 2 people serving at "The Hatch", one taking orders and money and another doing the drinks and food. Very slow service, big queue on a sunny Sunday as lockdown easing. Surely the management should have foreseen how busy it would be and put on extra staff. Next time we will bring our own refreshment and the National Trust will miss out on the funds!
Written April 18, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dee B
Blackpool, UK55 contributions
Sep 2020
We spent over a good hour here and we were not rushed, despite social distance regs. we actually only went for a coffee and stayed for a lunch time snack. Very clean and tidy, staff were helpful....The cheese scone was wonderful
Written September 6, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Turn right towards centre when coming into car park,travel to end and nearest row of parking to centre is disabled parking .I did see blue badges in cars there.
Written March 23, 2016
how much are the parking charges?
Written February 28, 2015
It was about £2 or £1.50, but you need chage for the machine. Not sure for long time that covered, but we were there at least 3h or even more.
Written February 28, 2015
Showing results 1-2 of 2
*Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing