The Malvern Walking Festival (MWF) started in October 2004 with nine walks over 3 days – now we run 70 walks over 9 days. We have come a long way since we started!
How the Festival came into being
The original idea came from the South Worcestershire NHS Primary Care Trust as a Walking for Health initiative. Unfortunately the idea did not get enough support, but as a result, several keen local walkers and businessmen decided to crack on with the idea – both as a Walking for Health initiative and to benefit tourism in Malvern, still recovering from the effects of the Foot and Mouth outbreak.
Robin Elt, then Chairman of Robin Elt Shoes in Malvern, together with Ian Rowat, the then Director of the Malvern Hills Conservators, and Derek Starkey of Wychway Country Walks organised the first “festival“. The interest shown was very encouraging, and from this informal start, a committee was formed to plan and organise future festivals.
By 2006, in conjunction with the local Tourist Information Centres, there was a formal booking system, and even a website, although most of the publicity was via a multi-page brochure, giving full details of every walk, distributed locally and further afield.
Interest and the Festival grow
MWF then grew steadily, with many walkers becoming regulars, having walked almost every one of our festivals. Over the years, the walks offered have become more varied – graded from leisurely to strenuous. The most strenuous walks are the iconic Malvern Hills End2End (and back!) and the 32 mile Worcestershire Way in a Day!
With so many places of interest and so much history in and around Malvern, we also started to introduce themed walks. Over the years we have covered the Victorian Water Cure Treatment, Civil War, hill forts, geology and quarrying, farming and many many more.
As a result we have attracted walkers from all over the country to Malvern. Some just come for a day or weekend whilst others make it their annual summer holiday. It is easy to see why in such an area of natural beauty, “Country Walking” magazine recently said in one of their articles:
“The Malvern Hills are probably the most perfect location in the country. They tick pretty much every box, almost if they were created by walkers“
We can’t argue with that!
Since Covid
MWF grew successfully till the pandemic in 2020 when everything came to a grinding halt. But when we were able to restart, we took the opportunity to modernise our operations by doing everything online, including publicity, bookings and information. This made everything simpler to manage and more cost effective and, as a not-for-profit organisation, we were able to contribute to local charities for the first time; including the Midlands Air ambulance, who we see regularly flying over the Hills, but have never had the need to call for their assistance!
2025 is our 20th anniversary year with another interesting programme planned. More walks, more variety and more visitors enjoying the Malvern Hills and its environs.
We would love some help!
Planning starts for future festivals as soon as the last one finishes. We are always looking for more help, so if you feel comfortable to lead a group on a favourite walk of yours around Malvern and its Hills, or even to join the Committee, please contact us. Our chairman will be delighted to hear from you.