Cardington is a small village and civil parish just to the south‑east of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England, set amid arable farmland and the floodplain of the River Great Ouse. The settlement sits close to the small planned village of Shortstown and retains a quiet, rural character while being within easy commuting distance of the larger town.
The village is best known for the enormous airship sheds of the Royal Airship Works at RAF Cardington, where the R101 was built and the site later served as an RAF depot and barrage‑balloon school; the huge hangars still dominate the skyline and are often used for film, TV and events. Locally the economy mixes farming with small businesses and commuters, the parish church and community groups keep a strong social life, and the airship history gives Cardington an unusual industrial and historic identity for a rural Bedfordshire village.
Postcode districts covering Cardington
Most populated places nearby
- Milton Keynes 15.5 miles
- Northampton 22 miles
- Luton 14.7 miles
- Cambridge 23.8 miles
- Bedford 3.2 miles
- Stevenage 16.8 miles
- Hemel Hempstead 24.7 miles
- St. Albans 24.7 miles
- Kettering 23.9 miles
- Kettering Town 23.8 miles
- Welwyn Garden City 22.7 miles
- Dunstable 16.1 miles
Neighbouring places
- Cardington Built-up area 0.8 miles
- Cotton End Built-up area 0.9 miles
- Shortstown Built-up area 1.1 miles
- Cople Built-up area 1.3 miles
- Kingsbrook Ward 1.9 miles
- Willington Built-up area 2.3 miles
- Riverfield Ward 2.4 miles
- Wilshamstead Parish 2.4 miles
- Elstow Parish 2.5 miles
- Wilstead Built-up area 2.6 miles
- Haynes Built-up area 2.8 miles
- Cauldwell Ward 2.8 miles
Example postcodes in Cardington
MK44 3TE, MK44 3SF, MK44 3SZ, MK44 3SJ, MK44 3SS, MK44 3ST, MK44 3SL, MK44 3SE, MK44 3SP … See all
Transport links
- Luton Airport 16.1 miles
- Stansted Airport 31.2 miles
- Bedford St Johns Railway Station 3.1 miles
- Bedford Railway Station 3.8 miles
Hotels near Cardington Ad
- Holiday Inn Express Bedford 3 3.1 miles
- Embankment Hotel 4 3 miles
- Verve Hotel 4 4 miles
- The Kingfisher 4 1.7 miles
- Premier Inn Bedford 3 2.3 miles
- Mercure Bedford Centre Hotel 4 3.2 miles
- The Knife and Cleaver 4.5 miles
- d'Parys 3.6 miles
- Albero Bedrooms 3.3 miles
- Bedford Swan Hotel 4 3.2 miles
Local points of interest
- Moot Hall Museum 2.8 miles
- Wrest House Estate 6.8 miles
- Silsoe College - Cranfield University College 7.1 miles
- Redbourne College College 7.2 miles
- Flitwick Moor Nature reserve 7.9 miles
- Woburn Abbey Estate 11.8 miles
- Santa Pod Raceway Recreation 12.1 miles
- Toddington library Library 12.2 miles
- British School Museum Museum 12.4 miles
- Hayley Wood Forest 13.6 miles
- Putteridge Bury Estate 13.6 miles
- Wimpole Estate Estate 15.2 miles