Day Out - The Dorset Coast

March 26, 2015


Ben and I never normally plan holidays for the end of July or August as prices are stupidly high with the school holidays and you'd land up surrounded by annoying children. Instead we plan a couple of summer day trips within the UK and a super sunny day in Dorset has been one of our favourites. It was 28 degrees that day without a cloud in the sky! We felt like we'd been away in Europe for the day without any of the hassle. England can be so so beautiful.



From us the Dorset Coast is just over 2 hours away without traffic so we got up early and left before 6am to make the most of it and avoid being sat in a car for half the day. We got down to Durdle Door just after 8, it was quiet and felt hot already.


If you've been to Durdle Door before you'll probably be familiar with the steep steep hill you have to walk up from the car park at Lulworth to reach the coves. But it's so worth it.



The Dorset coast is incredible, the water is so clear and sparkly on a sunny day.



We reached the Man of War bay first. How is this England?!!




Then just around the corner was an even more spectacular sight, Durdle Door *heart eyes*. Ridiculously beautiful.





We couldn't wait to get down on the beach and go for a paddle. There was just one other couple down there who promptly left as we arrived! Private beach, yes please. I'm sure it would have been crowded later in the day though and at weekends.




We put the camera onto self-timer and messed around taking cheesy photos under the 'Door' - a unique feature of coastal erosion. I did a huge study on Dorset for my Geography A-level my inner geek loved it.




After we'd been on the beach for a while we walked back along the coast path to Lulworth Cove.



There are some adorable cottages and villages in Dorset, this was in Lulworth Cove.



From Lulworth we got back in the car and drove along the coast to the west, stopping off at a few places en route and headed to the Hive Beach Cafe, somewhere I'd read about in Conde Nast Travel magazine a few weeks previously. It's the best seafood beach cafe in Dorset, perfect for this hot weather and rated as one of the best places to eat alfresco in the country. 


It was super busy not surprisingly but we managed to get a table and the food was oh so good. Locally caught sardines for me and fish and chips for Ben overlooking the beach.


The beach is called Burton Bradstock and is just around the corner from Bridport - somewhere we would have visited for their Saturday market had it been a weekend. The cliffs look just like the ones from Broadchurch at West Bay which is just along the coast.


From here, after sometime on the beach, we drove back the other way along the coast to Studland Bay for an afternoon on the sand and an ice cream.We had a national trust membership which meant we could park for free in the car park and then walk through to the beautiful beach.


Studland Bay and the beaches around are some of the best in the UK and are so unspoilt.


We honestly felt like we were in another country, especially at this point in the afternoon when it was roasting hot and there were boats out on the water.


After a couple of hours on the beach we got the car chain link ferry from Swanage across to Sandbanks/Poole. 


How gorgeous is that sand! We've booked to stay at Studland Bay for a couple of nights this summer for our first wedding anniversary, I really really hope we have amazing weather again. We can't wait to return and explore further!


We ogled some properties on Sandbanks island {£££!} and then went on to Bournemouth for dinner to let the traffic die down before we headed home. 

What an amazing summer's day trip. Please let the weather be good this year! And where else should we plan to go? We haven't been to the Newforest, I hear that Christchurch and Lymington are lovely? Maybe that should be on our list for this summer.

R <3 xx

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5 comments

  1. love lulworth cove & durdle door - spent much of my childhood there with family friends. As for the New Forest; Lymington is beautiful! Some wonderful little shops and restaurants. Brockenhurst in the New Forest is also a favourite, we often do day trips there with living only 20 minutes away so I definitely recommend! x

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  2. This is just down the road from me!! I spent most of my childhood round the area as my dad had a boat we'd go out on. Lulworth castle is beautiful too, a few of our friends have gig married there. So glad you had a nice time and are coming back to visit x

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  4. I've also stayed at Brockenhurst in the New Forest and can highly recommend Cottage Lodge B&B- have a look at their four poster rooms! The owner can give you lots of maps for some beautiful walks too.

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  5. What a gorgeous par of England! I can see why you wanted to beat the crowds there and got up early! So quiet and peaceful - and romantic too. You gotta love the nature you saw, but those villages you visited are just as pretty. And girl, you sure know how to eat. I spied some pretty yummy looking fish! :)

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