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Holiday cottages in Dorset
Dorset is chalk downs (sheep, yew-tree woods, marbled white butterflies,
and a carved giant) and chalk cliffs (over which Gabriel Oak's sheep cascaded
and below which Sergeant Troy left his clothes at Durdle Door), and chalk
streams (trout fishing), and dark-thatched stone cottages with exuberant flower
gardens. It is great bowls and vales of green tree-speckled farmland looking
magnificent from wooded hill-tops, some with ancient forts; and country houses
in their own valleys, reminding one of Brideshead; and lots of double-barrelled
village names often beginning with Winterbourne or ending with Abbas and the one
and only Whitchurch Canonicorum. It is fossil-filled cliffs (and hunting them on
the beaches below) by Lyme Regis (French Lieutenant's Woman) and
Charmouth, and the dome of Golden Cap near Chideock, and the
extraordinary 18 mile long Chesil Bank of pebbles which regularly wrecked
sailing ships, enclosing a lagoon which inspired ‘Moonfleet’ (about smugglers) and
shelters Abbotsbury and its swannery; and it is Portland (its
views, stone and Bill), and Thomas Hardy, Egdon Heath and the lanes that Tess
plodded, and Lulworth Cove which gave its name to a butterfly.
Weymouth (with still handsome seafront and sandy beach where King George
III made bathing machines popular) and Poole (huge natural harbour full
of boats and Brownsea Island with red squirrels). Sherborne is its
best looking small town. At Tyneham, Army occupation has caused an
unintentional sanctuary for wild flowers, bird-song and friendly (mostly)
insects. The whole Dorset coast is called a 'World Heritage
Coastline'.
List all holiday cottages in Dorset
We have holiday cottages in the following places within Dorset
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Beaminster: thriving little town (church, pubs, cafés, shops, museum, art
gallery) in the midst of a conservation area, 5 miles north of the
ancient historic market town of Bridport and 7 miles from the wide,
unspoilt beach of West Bay on Dorset’s
‘Jurassic Coast’.
Holiday cottages in Beaminster, Dorset
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Bridport: vibrant Georgian market town (arts centre, museum, art deco
cinema) 1½ miles from the sea at West Bay (two good bathing
beaches, one shingle/sand, one pebble, lively harbour/marina). Originally a
thriving rope-making centre, now recognised, thanks to the River Cottage TV
series, for its locally-produced food, readily available in the town’s shops,
restaurants, cafés, pubs and markets (weekly street market). Gateway to the
‘Jurassic Coast’ (Charmouth, 7 miles; Lyme Regis, lovely seaside harbour town with sandy beach, 10 miles); surrounded
by traditional villages and much of the area a designated ‘Area of Outstanding
Natural Beauty’ with great justification; cliff-top golf course and wonderful
walks/cycle routes nearby.
Holiday cottages in Bridport, Dorset
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Broadwindsor: conservation village with good pub, PO, shop and handsome
church. Bonnie Prince Charlie spent the night here en route to Charmouth in
1651, possibly at the pub. Excellent base for walking the beautiful West
Dorset countryside. Pilsdon Pen, Dorset’s
highest hill and Iron Age fort (lovely views), 1½ miles.
Beaminster (very attractive tiny town), 3 miles; not far to
houses/gardens (some Nat. Trust) open to the public; the sea at West
Bay, 8 miles; Lyme Regis (harbour) or Charmouth , both with sand, pebble
and fossil beaches, about 12 miles.
Holiday cottages in Broadwindsor, Dorset
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Burton Bradstock: very pretty village (two pubs, acclaimed beach café,
PO/village shop, fine early medieval church, good children’s playground), ½ mile
from the sand/shingle 18 mile long Chesil Beach. Golf, 1¼ miles.
Bridport, 2 miles. Abbotsbury, with its famous swannery and lagoon, about 6
miles. This is beautiful, manicured countryside, relatively little known, good
for gentle walking, Nat. Trust houses, Dorset thatched villages, all-pervading
‘Englishness’ and a ‘World Heritage’ site.
Holiday cottages in Burton Bradstock, Dorset
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Caundle Marsh: hamlet (pub, shop) 6 ½ miles from Sherborne (very attractive, old, small town with superb medieval abbey, two castles - one built by Walter Raleigh - and famous public school). Mainline railway station, 5 miles. Golf, riding and fishing within 5 miles, and many fine houses and gardens, including Stourhead and Kingston Lacy (both Nat.Trust) and Longleat, within easy reach.
Holiday cottages in Caundle Marsh, Dorset
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Charlton Marshall: village (pub, fine early 18th cent. church) in the
valley of the River Stour (coarse fishing) on the road between
Blandford Forum (very handsome Georgian town), 2 miles, and the sea at
Poole and Bournemouth (superb sandy beaches), 12 miles. Poole
Harbour (natural, huge) is beautiful with boats and Brownsea Island (Nat.
Trust, red squirrels, woods). White cliff coast (Durdle Door, Lulworth
Cove), about 16 miles.
Holiday cottages in Charlton Marshall, Dorset
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Charmouth: large coastal village (shops, PO, pubs, church, seasonal
weekly market), mostly old, thatched and Regency (Jane Austen liked and stayed
in it), and the ‘Jurassic Coast’ cliffs (World Heritage Site) famous for fossils
(a child found the ichthyosaurus here, fossil shop on beach). Long sandy/pebble
‘Blue Flag’ beach. Lyme Regis, a lovely old seaside/harbour town with
famous cob (as in ‘French Lieutenant’s Woman’ film) and harbour with sand, 2
miles. Golf nearby. Market towns of Bridport, 7 miles and
Axminster, 6 miles (mainline railway connection
with Waterloo). Beautiful, hilly, wooded country inland. Good walks.
Holiday cottages in Charmouth, Dorset
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Chedington: quiet hamlet on the north edge of the Dorset downs, about 2 miles from Corscombe. Beaminster (very attractive tiny town, good and nearest shops), 3 miles; Crewkerne, 4 miles; Somerset’s ‘Hamstone country’; Cricket St Thomas Wildlife Park, golf, and the sea at West Bay and Chesil Beach, all about 10 miles.
Holiday cottages in Chedington, Dorset
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Chideock: one of South Dorset’s prettiest villages, and only a mile
from the sea (good seafront pub). It is built mainly of local golden
sandstone; many thatched houses and cottages; PO/stores, two pubs, church;
footpath to the beach (pebbly between cliffs); pub on the beach. Much of the
surrounding country and coastline is designated as an ‘Area of Outstanding
Natural Beauty’, much owned by the Nat. Trust, and the coastline is a World
Heritage Site (‘Jurassic Coast’). Excellent walking, birdwatching area;
spectacular coastal scenery (Golden Cap). Bridport (small town, leisure
centre with swimming pool, art centre, cinema), 2 miles; seaside West Bay
(golf, good fish restaurant), 2½; Lyme Regis (pretty, with sandy beach,
historic Cob, ‘French Lieutenant’s Woman’ connections, and boats for mackerel
fishing), 7 miles. Weymouth (resort, sandy beach, sailing,
Channel Island day-trips), 17 miles.
Holiday cottages in Chideock, Dorset
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Christchurch: saxon port (King Alfred), now a picturesque resort town overlooking its big natural harbour. Separating the harbour from the open sea is Hengistbury Head, a mile long headland of low hills,
dunes, sandbanks, part of it nature reserve (birdwatching), much of it car free,
with sandy beaches on its sea side.
Holiday cottages in Christchurch, Dorset
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Corscombe: pretty by-road village with ancient church and Dorset’s pub of the year, in hilly wooded farmland close to the edge of the Downs. Very attractive Beaminster (tiny town, nearest shops), 3 miles; the start of Somerset’s glorious ‘Hamstone country’, 5 miles; Cricket St Thomas Wildlife Park, golf, and the sea at West Bay and Chesil Beach, all about 10 miles..
Holiday cottages in Corscombe, Dorset
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Maiden Newton: large chalk stream village (pub, shops, PO, bakery,
restaurants, railway station) 7 miles north-west of Dorchester (county
town, museum). Of geological and historic interest (Norman church, famous Maiden
Castle, Iron Age hill-fort, 10 miles), the village was the inspiration for
Thomas Hardy’s ‘Chalknewton’ in many of his works. Nature trail along disused
railway branch line to Bridport (11 miles east) passes through water
meadows where butterflies, dippers, kingfishers and otters thrive. Weymouth
(seaside town, day trips to Channel Isles), 17
miles.
Holiday cottages in Maiden Newton, Dorset
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Melbury Bubb: farm hamlet with fascinating church, beautifully sited below a wooded hill. This is West Dorset at its best, rolling countryside, unhurried, soft and gentle. Footpaths all round, lovely walking, huge views.
Evershot (pub, own bakery, PO/shop, Emma film set), 1½ miles; Sherborne (attractive small town, abbey, castle), 6; the coast at Abbotsbury (famous swannery), about 15 miles or at Weymouth (sandy beach), 18. Leisure centre, 5½ miles (Yeovil). Riding, golf, swimming pool, clay pigeon shooting, all locally.
Holiday cottages in Melbury Bubb, Dorset
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Milborne St Andrew: small village (church, pub, two shops) in a
valley below the great chalk downland arc of the Dorset hills midway between
Dorchester (county capital) and Blandford Forum (handsome Georgian
market town), 8 miles from each. Lovely countryside. The ‘World Heritage’ south
coast at beautiful Lulworth Cove, 17 miles; Poole and
Bournemouth , 15 miles; Weymouth (Georgian resort town with sandy
beach), 18 miles.
Holiday cottages in Milborne St Andrew, Dorset
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Monkton Wyld: hamlet with church in oak-wooded hills, 2 miles inland from
Charmouth and the fossil-cliffs coast, close to Devon and to the
beautiful, richly fertile Marshwood Vale. Pretty Lyme Regis, 4 miles.
Holiday cottages in Monkton Wyld, Dorset
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Sandbanks: sandy beach-lined peninsula at the mouth of Poole's
enormous and magnificent natural harbour, thronged with yachts, used by
bigger ships also, including ferries to France. Sandbanks, with beach shops,
pub, cafes and restaurants, is reckoned among the south coast's top sea
bathing places and is excellent for windsurfing and sailing (still unspoilt
creeks to explore); bikes and boats for hire. Ferries cross the harbour to
Purbeck (more miles of sandy beaches, sand dunes) and pretty
Studland via Brownsea Island (Nat. Trust: woods, gardens, bird
sanctuary and red squirrels). Poole town was popular with pirates in its
early (13th cent.) days, its harbour with smugglers. Its oldest part, behind the
quay, is a 'conservation area', mainly Georgian. It has an arts centre and
famous pottery, good parks, outstanding gardens (Compton Acres), fine golf
course. Bigger resort Bournemouth (good aquarium, IMAX cinema) is its
adjoining neighbour. Nearby inland, beautiful Dorset farmland, Corfe
Castle (spectacular ruins), the New Forest and Beaulieu
with its abbey and vintage cars.
Holiday cottages in Sandbanks, Dorset
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Shaftesbury: interesting, attractive, small Saxon hilltop town that grew
around its 9th cent. abbey (now ruined) constructed by King Alfred. Full of
quaint corners, arts and crafts, with regular farmers’, book and flea markets,
and stunning views over three counties. Thomas Hardy’s ‘Shaston’ in his novels.
Mainline railway station at Gillingham, 6 miles. Bath, 35
miles; Dorchester, 28; Stonehenge, 26; the south coast at
Sandbanks, Poole, Bournemouth, 25-30 miles; many fine
houses and gardens, including beautiful Stourhead and Kingston Lacy (both
Nat.Trust) and Longleat, within easy reach.
Holiday cottages in Shaftesbury, Dorset
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Shillingstone: village (Shop, P.O. Pub, part Norman Church) below the chalk downs on the A357 Blandford Forum to Sherborne road, 4 miles from Blandford Forum (handsome Georgian small town beside the River Stour). On the hilltops - Hambledon and Hod - are Iron Age forts, beech trees, a Yew wood and much wildlife: excellent walking. The sea at Weymouth (resort town, sandy beach) about 28 miles or Lulworth Cove (very beautiful) about 21 miles.
Holiday cottages in Shillingstone, Dorset
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Stour Provost: little Dorset village (church, pub, shop) of old stone houses peaceful in lanes between the rich farming vales of Stour and Blackmore: 'Tess of the d'Urbervilles' country. Tremendous views from the wooded top of Duncliffe Hill, 1 mile. Good walking, many footpaths. Shaftesbury, 6 miles; Gillingham (on the railway), 3.5; Stourhead (beautiful gardens with statues round lake), 7.5; Salisbury, 22.
Holiday cottages in Stour Provost, Dorset
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Whitchurch Canonicorum: small hillside village (fine medieval church,
pub, thatched cottages) in the lovely Marshwood Vale with its River Char which
winds down to Lyme Bay at Charmouth, 2½ miles away. Lyme Regis
(lovely old seaside/harbour town with sandy beach), 4 miles;
Bridport, 5½.
Holiday cottages in Whitchurch Canonicorum, Dorset
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