In April, when the soft light of spring bathes the new-green of tiny leaves and bluebells bloom under beech, England is transformed into a special place.

We were breakfasting on the beautiful terrace of Phyllis Court at Henley-on-Thames, flanked by cropped croquet lawns and a velvety expanse of green - gently sloping towards an old tow path washed by the River Thames. This was a first stop on the "Literary Road": a journey through the leafy villages of Berkshire and Surrey - towards Hampshire and Somerset: Jane Austen country.

Jane Austen was born in 1775 at the Rectory in Steventon, Hampshire - 34km from Chawton where the family moved in 1809 (after a brief stay to Bath) and where she lived until 1817 - the year that she died. Preferring the hedgerows and byways, we set off in a southerly direction before joining the A31 through Farnham to Chawton.

The rural charm of English villages, particularly in early summer, is delightful. Their quaint names pre-date the literary era and trip easily off the tongue: thus Farn means "fern"; Bramley - "Broom plant" and the early Anglo-Saxon group-name, Godalming - "Godhelm and family".

Godalming's half-timbered Tudor carriage-archway issues an open invitation to enter, and its narrow walking streets, lined with ancient and medieval buildings (Peter the Great stayed at the King's Arms in 1698 on his way from Portsmouth to London) make this historic town - established on the banks of the River Wey in the first millennium - a memorable find. Today the de facto logo is the Pepper Pot: an octagonal, 17th-century Town Hall at the end of the High Street.

The nearby village of Shere - one of the most visited tourist attractions in Surrey - offers excellent cream teas (try the Lucky Duck Tea Room), antique speciality shops and a chocolate-box river setting.

Trading on the popularity of these two lovely villages, The Holiday - a movie starring Cameron Diaz, Kate Winslet and Jude Law - was filmed here in 2006.

Driving westwards into Hampshire through historic forests of oak and beech and along timeless, woodland ways, one is almost transported to a by-gone age.

Much of picturesque, minuscule Chawton - with its over-hanging trees, quaint buildings, bay-windows and leaded window-panes - still appears to be firmly rooted in the 19th-century: Shire horses graze in fields, territorial ducks cross a village green and the time-worn, stone church of St. Nicholas, where Jane Austen's mother and sister are buried, keeps vigil over the tranquil village scene.

All attention is, however, focused on a neat, double-storey, red-brick house at the end of the old road - the former, main route to Winchester.

Lift the latch on the wooden gate leading to a lovely, country garden - well-tended yet deceptively wild and carefully re-stocked with fragrant shrubs and blooms from the 1800s (winter pansies and petunias) and you are in a world where a more leisurely lifestyle prevails. The side-entrance to the cottage-museum opens into a tiny vestibule which leads to the charming Drawing Room - tastefully decorated with period furniture, paintings and engravings while the adjoining Dining Room, with its pretty Wedgewood crockery, could have slipped straight from the pages of Mansfield Park.

The writing table where Jane Austen wrote the manuscripts for this novel, as well as for Emma and Persuasion, still stands by the window and the squeaking door - that gave advance warning of approaching company so that her work could be hidden - is still unoiled.

Upstairs, the bedroom Jane shared with her sister, Cassandra, overlooks the large, pristine back yard (still housing her donkey cart).

The Granary has been restored and is used today as a small seminar room. Memorabilia include a topaz cross given to Jane by a beloved brother; original letters; a quilt made by Cassandra, Jane and their mother; and costumes of the period. The "Admirals' Room" down the corridor could well have the sub-title, Jane's Fighting Ships, as it displays artefacts that once belonged to her two, famous sailor brothers! The museum also houses a gift shop and a well-stocked bookstore.

On the opposite pavement two old-world restaurants offer refreshment: the Greyfriar Pub and an aptly named English tea-room: Cassandra's Cup.

A pleasant 10-minute walk in the direction of the church leads to Great Chawton House: the mansion inherited by a third brother, Edward Austen Knight, and currently being restored as a research centre for Early English Women's Writing. (Jane Austen's House is open to the public daily and is visited by more than 30 000 people each year. Entrance fee: R80)

Jane's final journey was to Winchester and, following in her footsteps, we drove the 27km south-west to the Cathedral City. Once the capital of all England, King Alfred the Great continues to watch over his subjects as he looks down from a central monument at the base of the steeply rising streets.

Drive into the carpark of the Wessex Hotel and take a seat in the lounge/restaurant, not because the Wessex has charm - it is singularly uninspiring - but because its huge plate glass windows look directly onto the park-like gardens of the magnificent 12th-century Cathedral and with such a backdrop, much can be forgiven.

A short walk around the church and through the historic King's Gate leads to 8 College Street and here, in a small, rented house standing in the shadow of the great cathedral, and from where she could hear the peal of the bells, Jane Austin died in 1817. There is a plaque on the front wall but the house is privately owned and not open to the public. Her grave is metres away in an illustrious setting.

Winchester Cathedral is the longest in England and has been a place of worship for over 900 years - its nave and choir are Norman (although disguised with perpendicular superimpositions). It contains the bones of both the father and grandfather of King Alfred; the Winchester Bible, a splendid 12th-century illuminated manuscript on display in the South Transept; and is the burial place of saints and kings. Jane Austen's grave is positioned below the north wall, near the entrance, and a brass memorial plaque adjacent to the ledger-stone commemorates her life and work.

(The spectacular church is open to the public daily and the famous Cathedral Choir sings at all the main services.)

Before leaving Winchester, the imposing, medieval halls of the 14th-century College beckon. This famous public school (pre-dating Eton) offers informative tours but at specific times only.

One of the joys of English travel is the distances are not vast and, even along country roads, it is quite possible to enjoy a morning in Chawton, an afternoon in Winchester and still drive to Bath in time for dinner.

If Jane's life in countrified, ecclesiastical Hampshire was not merry to dissipation - at least there was one livelier interlude when, on her father's retirement, the family moved briefly to Bath in Somerset - the setting for both Northanger Abbey and Persuasion.

We saved the best for the last and checked into Hunstrete House Hotel to soak up the Regency environs before following Jane to Bath. This elegant Georgian manor, in the folds of the Mendip Hills, is set in a 29 hectare park on the outskirts of the fashionable watering-place.

Bath is the centre of the most fascinating Roman remains in Britain; it is also the site of the country's only hot springs - said to have been discovered by the father of Shakespeare's King Lear, Bladud, in 500BC. The historic heart of the city is the Abbey Churchyard. Here you will find the 15th-century Abbey built on the early Saxon site where King Edgar was crowned in 973AD, and the Georgian Pump Room where one can still "taste the waters". (Then again, maybe not - unless you like dirty bath water with an unpleasant, chemical taste!)

Regency Bath, on the banks of the River Avon, is a showcase of elegance, natural beauty and superb architecture (the Assembly Rooms in Bennett Street are among the finest in Europe). Stop for Bath buns at the quaint tearooms in Stall Street and then walk over historic Pulteney Bridge, lined with small shops, towards Laura Place and the Sydney Gardens - 4 Sydney Terrace was once the address of the Austen family. Their second home was at 25 Gay Street, near the Royal Crescent, and the Jane Austen Centre is currently housed in a similar property at 40 Gay Street. (Open all year. 10am to 5.30pm)

First Impressions was the original title given by Jane Austen to Pride and Prejudice - and what an impression fashionable Bath, with its genteel society, must have made on the young, country-bred girl. The modern city with its colourful street markets, museums, theatres and 5 000 listed buildings is no less impressive and is today an exciting holiday venue.