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General
Information
Duration
of tour: 8 days (7 nights)
Season:
April to October
Joining
point: Lyme Regis
End
of tour: Lulworth Cove
Getting
to the Start
Outward
journey from London to starting point: By train from London Waterloo
to Axminster; service about every 2 hours, journey time approx 2.5 hours;
Then taxi or bus to Lyme Regis from Axminster train station.
Inward
journey to London at end of tour: Taxi from Lulworth Cove to Wool
train station (6 miles/£12). From Wool direct hourly train service to
London Waterloo via Bournemouth, Southampton (for trains to Gatwick
Airport). National Rail website is www.nationalrail.co.uk
if you want to look at the journey involved.
Breakfast:
in UK will generally consist of sausage, bacon, eggs etc, cereals and
fruit will also be available. It is important for you to tell us if you
have any dietary requirements when you book your holiday so that we can
inform everyone that you are staying with.
Baths:
it is not normal for your room to have a bath, the main reason being
that it takes up a lot of space, some hotels/guesthouses may have a
separate room in the house where a bath is available to guests, but in
the main it is showers.
Single
Supplements:
are payable on most of our tours. 1) The single supplement
guarantees the privacy of your own room, however, rooms can at times be
small and in some places may not enjoy the same facilities as
double/twin rooms. 2) You are not just paying a supplement on the
room but the luggage transfer costs you are paying in full. The cost of
moving 1 bag or 2 bags etc remains the same. On some of our trips it is
possible to reduce the cost of the single supplement if you happen to be
a 3rd person travelling, or have chosen a date when other clients are
booked.
Luggage:
When staying in hotels, sometimes your luggage will have been taken
to you room awaiting your arrival. However don’t be surprised if your
luggage is waiting for you to take it up to your room.
Your
Accommodation
q
Nights 1 & 2: Our first two nights are spent in
the little fishing port of Lyme Regis. The hotel was formally a Coaching
Inn. The hotel still retains its superb 17th century
character, oak beams and irregular shaped rooms. All bedrooms are
tastefully decorated and comfortable with ensuite or private facilities.
q
Night 3: Our third night will be spent at West Bay,
the harbour of the old market town of Bridport, in a guesthouse of
architectural and historical interest.
It is situated on the quieter side of a small fishing village and
just 1 minute from the harbour and beach.
There is a comfortable residents' lounge with attractive garden.
q
Night 4: Your accommodation tonight is set in the
very heart of Abbotsbury. Abbotsbury itself boasts breathtaking views of
rolling meadows and glorious country gardens. All rooms are ensuite.
q
Night 5 & 6: A large, early 19th century
townhouse has been converted into a hotel, offering spacious rooms and
great comfort right in the heart of this busy town.
q
Night 7: Your accommodation tonight is a
comfortable family run hotel of 17 rooms, only 200 yards from Lulworth
Cove. Built 100 years ago in a quiet elevated position overlooking the
Cove and Stair Hole, it still holds an unrivalled position with views of
the sea and surrounding hills. En-suite facilities.
PLEASE
NOTE: It is generally normal practice when staying in hotels that you
check-in on or after 2pm and checkout by 10am the following morning.
Guesthouses/bed & breakfast establishments are normally check-in on
or after 4pm and checkout by 10am.
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Outline Itinerary
q
Day 1 Lyme Regis: Travel to starting point (Lyme
Regis). Explore town and medieval stone (Cobb) harbour.
q
Day 2 Lyme Regis: Walk through famous Under-cliff
(nature reserve on coast west of town) or explore coastal cliffs for
fossils and walk to Seaton, maybe return to Lyme by taxi (10 miles 6
hours).
q
Day 3 Bridport: “Roller-coaster” footpath along
coast over Golden Cap hill (highest sea cliff in the south of England)
to West Bay (11 miles 6 hours).
q
Day 4 Abbotsbury: Coastal path via Saxon Hill Fort
with magnificent views of Chesil Bank (longest shingle beach in Europe)
to Abbotsbury with its medieval tithe barn and swannery.
(9 miles 4 hours).
q
Day 5 Dorchester: Inland via Dorset Ridgeway path
to Maiden Castle, a massive ancient earthwork fortress sacked by the
Romans in the 1st C A.D. and Dorchester (11 miles 5 hours).
q
Day 6 Dorchester: Optional walk from Dorchester to
the famous village of Milton Abbas (12 miles, 6 hours) with its two long
curved rows of thatched cottages facing each other across the village
green. On the way you walk past the isolated cottage at Higher
Bockhampton where Thomas Hardy was born (limited public opening) and the
village of Puddletown (the setting of Weatherbury in’ Far from the
Madding Crowd'). Bus or taxi from Puddletown (6 miles, 3 hours from
Dorchester) or Milton Abbas back to Dorchester; fares not included in
tour price but we provide bus timetables and a local taxi number. If the
weather is unfavourable there is plenty to do and see in Dorchester
itself, with Roman remains and a good local museum.
q
Day 7: While your baggage goes direct from
Dorchester to Lulworth Cove, you return by train (hourly service,
journey time 10 minutes) to the coast at the lively resort of Weymouth
and then follow the Dorset Coast Path eastwards along the brilliant
white chalk cliffs from Weymouth to Lulworth Cove. On the way you pass
the natural arches of Bats Head and Durdle Door and the long abandoned
medieval village of Ringstead.
q
Day 8: End of tour. When/if you can tear yourself
away from the scenic wonders of Lulworth Cove and Stair Hole you will
need to order a taxi from Lulworth Cove to Wool train station for your
journey back to London. There is also a bus service from Lulworth Cove
to Wool, Wareham and Swanage.
Included
Bed
and breakfast, with ensuite facilities. Luggage transfers from Inn to Inn during the tour.
Full route notes and map package.
Not Included
Transfers
from and to train stations at start and end of tour are not included,
nor are bus/train/taxi fares during the tour.
Extend your stay
Extra
nights: Extra nights are possible at any point in the tour.
Two nights at each of Lyme Regis and Dorchester are already
included. Another very pleasant place for an extra night is Abbotsbury,
with its famous swannery (England's first nature reserve - open to the
public), medieval tithe barn (still in use for storing reeds, not open),
the 15th century hilltop chapel of St Catherine and a sub-tropical
botanic garden. Abbotsbury is also only just over a mile from the famous
10-mile long ridge of shingle known as Chesil Beach.
Abbotsbury
from £40 per person per night
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