Route Detour
Swanage
A loop down from Studland and Corfe allows you to visit Swanage. At the far eastern end of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site this is a small, quiet and rather nostalgic seaside resort boasting a sheltered sandy beach and Victorian pier. Take a break by riding the steam railway or strolling Durlston Castle’s clifftop gardens and wildlife reserve.
Nearby, visit Spyway Dinosaur Footprints. It’s not as well known as it should be. You’ll see more than 100 dinosaur footprints created in soft mud at a watering hole 140 million years ago. They’re now extraordinary fossils preserved in a layer of flat rock.
During your trip
Other Route Detours
Lulworth
You can find some of England’s most dramatic shoreline scenery along the Jurassic Coast at Lulworth. Stop here for a chance to explore the unique circular Cove itself and Durdle Door’s famous rock archway.
Weymouth
Good old Weymouth is a chance to discover all the familiar ingredients of a classic British seaside resort: a flat golden sandy beach with a long promenade, donkeys and Punch & Judy.
Dorchester & Poundbury
If you stay on the A352 and don’t turn down to Weymouth, the road curves inland to the heart of West Dorset. If you fancy the faster progress of the A35 heading west, the Dorchester makes a fine stopping point.
Isle of Portland
The Isle of Portland is a geographical oddity, joined by the narrow strip of Chesil Beach pebbles to the resort of Weymouth – but very different. Driving across the causeway to Portland you enter a very different atmosphere.
