Only 35 miles west of London, between Oxford, Windsor and Reading, Henley is the perfect place for a short break or as a base for a longer stay. The town and surrounding countryside offers excellent hotel and bed & breakfast accommodation and a wide selection of pubs and restaurants. Henley also has a tempting array of independent shops and boutiques selling gifts, clothes and items for the home - few towns can boast a shop dedicated exclusively to teddy bears! Henley is a beautiful and historic market town intimately connected , as its name suggests, with the River Thames, being sited on one of the most majestic stretches of the river with the beech clad hills of The Chilterns, Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, acting as a worthy backdrop. The town itself has over 300 listed buildings ranging from the medieval Chantry House, via the predominately Georgian town centre and Victorian waterfront, to the award-winning River & Rowing Museum - opened by Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, in 1997. That Henley was chosen as the site for the museum was only fitting since the town is the 'spiritual' home of rowing. Since 1839 the town has played host, during the first week of July, to the world famous Henley Royal Regatta, one of the highlights of the British sporting and social calendar. The Leander Club, the world's oldest and most renowned rowing club, has been based in Henley since 1896. Sir Steven Redgrave and Matthew Pinsent are numbered among the many oarsmen and oarswomen to earn success at World and Olympic Championships.