THE JURASSIC COAST AT YOUR FINGERTIPS
Corfe Castle
Corfe Castle ruins are one of Britain's most iconic and evocative survivors of the English Civil War, partially demolished in 1646 by the Parliamentarians, they sit proudly upon a hill of this beautiful historical village with the same name.
Discover 1,000 years of its history as a royal palace and fortress.
Durdle Door
Durdle Door is one of Dorset’s most photographed and iconic landmarks. It is part of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site and is an extremely popular beauty spot. The coastline is of such international geological importance that it was designated England’s first natural World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2001 and is now part of a family of natural wonders including America’s Grand Canyon and Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.
Durlston Castle and Country Park
Corfe Castle ruins are one of Britain's most iconic and evocative survivors of the English Civil War, partially demolished in 1646 by the Parliamentarians, they sit proudly upon a hill of this beautiful historical village with the same name.
Discover 1,000 years of its history as a royal palace and fortress.
Lulworth Castle
This fairytale castle was originally built as a hunting lodge in the early C17th to entertain aristocracy and royalty and has been the family seat of the Weld family for 400 years.
Ravaged by a catastrophic fire in 1929, it was partly restored in a pioneering partnership with English Heritage and is now open to the public as an historic visitor attraction and exclusive event venue.
Lulworth Cove
The pebble beach and blue waters of Lulworth Cove make it an extremely popular destination.
The Cove and surrounding coastline are part of the world famous Jurassic Coast - a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Low tide reveals wonderful rock pools teeming with sea creatures – great for exploring with children.
The Cove and surrounding countryside are hugely popular with walkers. You can walk to the cove along the South West Coast Path national trail.
Old Harry Rocks
Standing tall on Handfast Point at the southern end of Studland Bay is one of the most famous landmarks on the South Coast – Old Harry. They are part of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site and are managed by the National Trust.
The chalk formations are popularly known as Old Harry Rocks, but the name Old Harry actually refers to the single stack of chalk standing furthest out to sea. Until 1896 there was another stack known as Old Harry’s Wife, but erosion caused her to tumble into the sea, leaving just a stump.
Swanage Railway
Whatever the weather, take a journey back in time with an enjoyable day of excitement and nostalgia at the award winning Swanage Railway.
Sit back and relax during a leisurely trip behind a historic steam locomotive.
The 12 mile Swanage Railway return trip takes you through the beautiful Purbeck countryside and includes stunning views of the iconic remains of William the Conqueror's Corfe Castle.
Etches Fossil Museum
Housing the finest single collection of Late Jurassic age fossils all found by just one man, Dr Steve Etches MBE - you will be mesmerized by sea monsters, prehistoric predators and the marine flora and fauna of 152-157 million years ago when Kimmeridge was but a shallow, tropical sea. All of the fossils in the collection were found by Steve in the Kimmeridge Bay locality, from the world famous oil rich Kimmeridge Clay, within 2 miles of where the Museum is located.
Learn about their Stories from Deep Time interpreted with state of the art CGI imagery of Jurassic marine life swimming above the amazing fossils in the museum gallery.
Tyneham Village
Tyneham Village - where time stopped in 1943...
Often referred to as Dorset’s ‘lost’ village, only the memories of who used to live here now remain.
The village was evacuated in December 1943 during WWII and has been deserted ever since. The area was needed for military training but after the war ended, the villagers were not allowed to return.
You can still see some of the original buildings - The Row was a row of four terraced houses, numbered from the higher end nearest the church.
