Thinking of staying on the south coast, Doreset this year with the family, A one year old and a 3 yo with us. We want to stay on the coast so we can walk to the beach with the kids which towns are nice to stay in ? Lyme Regis, Bridport, Sidmouth or futher towards Weymouth ?
A bit of riding local would be a big plus.
Cheers.
Couple of nice (*IMHO) routes around Corfe Castle/Purbecks
, off road family stuff on heath between Swanage/Wareham, can ferry across and do Bmouth Poole )(can cycle along prom to Christchurch but summer restrictions on bikes)
I *LOVED* (mainly for bright sun and scenery reasons) lapping Portland (follow the coast and don't look down)
Swanage ? (FYI Studland is naturist beach in places *or maybe more)
not ridden S Coast futher west
Cheers, So more riding down towards Poole etc than West along the coast ?
Purbecks/Swanage suit for what you want - good riding, nice beach, sights like Corfe castle. Bournemouth obviously has the bigger beach / more touristy thing but not as nice in my view with a young family. Weymouth probably middle ground, nice beach and picturesque harbour not too over-run just avoid the Olympics !
If you want to go further West there are plenty of options in Devon
Weymouth's a good kids beach. Nice sand , and the slope is really shallow with small waves so there's no worries. Its quite protected/sheltered. Pretty close to some hills too. Some of the beaches along dorset drop off quite steeply, and waves can be about 4 ft so can be a bit much for the little ones, but IME Weymouth's most kid suitable.
Urgh! Weymouth. Big, dull beach and a grotty town centre. Bridport is a bit grim too.
Swanage much nicer and good riding in the Purbecks and Wareham Forest.
Or you can stay in our kids playhouse in our back garden in Poole for a small fee 
mmm, thanks for Tips.. playhouse sounds perfect !
To be fair to Weymouth, there's plenty there. Sea-life centre (expensive though), fairground stuff, donkey rides, etc. It's just that ever time i go there i always say i'll never go there again.
Lyme Regis is nice (if a little isolated).
As said before, make sure you avoid Olympics weeks as the traffic will be horrendous. It's bad enough Friday nights and Saturday mornings anyway, tailing back/crawling from Wimborne bypass back to Southampton sometimes!
With little kids, i'd try and avoid those times to travel, particularly if it's during the school holidays.
You could always try Sussex instead, West Wittering is lovely, one of the best beaches in the UK, Chichester just up the road and the South Downs for riding.
Or the Isle of Wight. Beaches galore and more than enough trails to be getting on with for whatever me-time you're able to grab during a family holiday
Plenty of lovely stuff, right along the coast, just go inland!
The coast is **** busy! Getting somewhere in a peak time is a big issue too!
We stayed on a nice campsite near sidmouth years ago, beautiful beach, and you could walk along a cliff path to sidmouth which was nice great holiday
If you want to go further West there are plenty of options in Devon
Rubbish, Devon sucks.
Take Bazz's advice.
Bazz - Member
You could always try Sussex instead, West Wittering is lovely, one of the best beaches in the UK, Chichester just up the road and the South Downs for riding.
Lyme Regis is great. If you're renting a cottage/house then the one's you can walk to the town/beach from are the ones to go for.
Lots of rock pools at low tide on the east side of town plus the fossil hunting will keep even young kids occupied as it's basically turning stones over and lookign at them.
Pecorama up the road is worth a visit.
We went there for some years with our two when they were younger and still go back every now and then.
Sidmouth..............gooseberry crumble ice cream....mmmmmmmmm
Or the Isle of Wight. Beaches galore and more than enough trails to be getting on with for whatever me-time you're able to grab during a family holiday
+1
Having been to the IoW a few times for biking and festivals, I've always thought (as the place is still basically in the 1950's but in a good way) it'd be a fantastic place for a proper old-fashioned UK family holiday. Beaches, cream teas, donkey rides, crazy golf, all that kind of shizzle.
witterings etc is ok, chichester is nice, but its all quite built up - i grew up in that area! there is though loads to do if you want activities away from the beach.
if you want more scenic/country head west. as you get into west dorset/east devon its lovely. around lyme regis would be my call, nice beaches and epic for fossil collecting. swanage area also worth a look.
IHN - MemberOr the Isle of Wight. Beaches galore and more than enough trails to be getting on with for whatever me-time you're able to grab during a family holiday
+1
Having been to the IoW a few times for biking and festivals, I've always thought (as the place is still basically in the 1950's but in a good way) it'd be a fantastic place for a proper old-fashioned UK family holiday. Beaches, cream teas, donkey rides, crazy golf, all that kind of shizzle.
Think Ventnor would be just the ticket for that. Great riding round about, too. If I was coming here on a family holiday, I'd stay here: Steephill Cove . Magical.
Funny, I've just booked a holiday in Weymouth in July. Might leave the bike at home for once or take the roadie instead of the MTB though.
Big bonus for our three-year-old is that Peppa Pig World at Paulton's Park is not too far!
The south coast is one of the last places I'd look for a holiday. Too crowded, too developed, too expensive.
Devon has a nice balance but I'd probably go to west wales. Quieter, cheaper, cleaner beaches, friendly people and some riding not too far away. Maybe north wales if it's closer? Not been to many beaches there though.
No, I'm not welsh.
And don't forget to avoid the Weymouth area during the olympic period.
I had a very pleasant few days camping at Freshwater Beach Holiday Park near Bridport with my son a couple of years ago.
Not the cheapest but that keeps the chavs out and the staff all seemed to be making an effort.
another + for Swanage, even got a steam train (with Thomas if you are lucky), good beach, walk towards the Ballard Down end & not too many people either
wow, lots more to digest, many thanks.
I grew up on the Isle of Wight so in addition to my above link to the Freshwater Beach park in Dorset I can offer the following info on the Island.
Ventnor, pretty but steep and exposed.
Sandown/Shanklin, best beaches, most hotels, most amusement arcades etc.
Ryde, er you can see across the water to Portsmouth, it's got an ice rink that may or may not be open when you get there (the parent company now has a winding up order against it).
West Wight Freshwater/Yarmouth, scenic, historic but very quiet, retirementville.
Biggest tourist attractions:
Robin Hill Park, mainly animal based with some good activities for school age children.
Blackgang Chine, rides, loads of displays, looks great when illuminated in late summer evenings.
Carisbrook Castle, plenty of history.
Sandown Zoo, lots of tigers and snakes.
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