Going Local | A Day At Henley Royal Regatta

The lovely Oxfordshire town of Henley-on-Thames is a place very close to my heart. It is where I was born, where I went to school and where I grew up, and it is where I first met my boyfriend.

Whilst for the majority of the year Henley is a quite place, with the well-to-do locals going about their daily life, it truly comes alive in the summer months when two events – one in particular- dramatically transform the streets and riverside of my hometown. It could only be the Henley Royal Regatta.

Henley Royal Regatta

Henley Regatta is undoubtedly the best known regatta in the world and is one of the highlights of the English summer sporting season, as well as a special event in the social calendar. The event was first appeared way back in 1839 when the people of Henley made it a public attraction with a fair and other amusements. The emphasis on the rowing soon became clear and the competition duration was extended from a single afternoon to a five-day event.

Regatta takes place annually in the final week of June and attracts thousands of visitors from all across the world, who come to watch the rowing or most probably, to have a day out in their finery. During the 5-day period, more than 200 races take place, with domestic and international crews battling against each other to win one of the several rowing trophies on offer.

Apart from the rowing, visitors can enjoy the ambience surrounding the festival whilst enjoying the facilities within the enclosures including a small art gallery, the trophy and medal display, as well as a shop selling all sorts of Regatta and Henley themed souvenirs.

A Day at Henley Regatta

Thanks to a lovely friend of mine, this year I was lucky enough to enjoy Henley Regatta from the comfort of the fancy Stewards Enclosure.

The day was wonderful, we enjoyed a summery picnic spread, with tasty nibbles and drinks aplenty, caught up on all the gossip and had a great afternoon sat in the floating bandstand watching the rowing. Even a mid-afternoon torrential downpour couldn’t dampen our spirits and thankfully the sun was soon out again.

In between the races, we decided to wander around the enclosure grounds, exploring all the various corners and secretly judging outfits and hats as we went. We stopped off in the art gallery, the shop and then made our way up to the top end of the enclosure where we briefly took a seat on one of Henley’s iconic HRR green canvas chairs for a spot of respite.

We then made our way towards the committee lawn, where we met my friend’s dad and enjoyed a refreshing glass of iced coffee. OMG it was fabulous and one of the most delicious iced coffees I have ever had!

The end of the racing day was soon upon us and after one final lap of the enclosure we made our way out and along to the Leander Clubhouse. As one can imagine, it was absolutely heaving inside with all the club members celebrating their wins (or commiserating!) but my friend was still able to give me a quick tour of the building – which is absolutely beautiful inside, before we headed back to the car and our picnic patch.

We spent the early evening gorging on summer fruits and berries, brownies and flapjacks, catching up on yet more gossip and discussing our various travel plans. As 10pm approached it was time to head across the river, meet up with my boyfriend and his parents, and enjoy the Regatta’s fireworks display. As usual, it did not disappoint and we enjoyed a spectacular display of lights.

Until next year Henley..

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