Bournemouth Dorset

 Bournemouth Dorset The New Forest

Bournemouth is a nice area to visit and stay.

It is also well located to visit The New Forest Southbourne even Swanage and Wareham.

We visited and stayed at Bournemouth over a Bank Holiday weekend to spend some time with friends who live there,
we knew we would  be out and about a lot so we thought a normal caravan site would be a bit expensive so we thought we would try a Camping and Caravanning Club certified site.
Very basic, no electric hook up, no showers, no shop ect Just water and waste disposal, but at £2 a night we could not grumble and we had a great time. These camping site are just right if you just need a spot for your caravan or tent.
Bournemouth is great and has a good beach but we always end up at Southbourne Beach which is away from the big crowds.

New Forest cattle.

We had a great time visiting Bournemouth which was only a 20 min's drive away from where we stayed with Southbourne and Southbourne beach just 15 min's away. The New Forest was only 10 min's away so what more could we ask for.
We spent two days on Southbourne beach which is just right for the kids Sand, Sea, some surf and Ice creams what more could they want. Some of the beach is sectioned off for dogs so you can take your dog on to the beach. It is a short walk to the sea here so you can easily stay on the sand and keep an eye on the kids in the sea.

Other things to do around Bournemouth
We spent a day in the New Forest just lazing around by one of the forest streams watching the wild horses and other cattle come down for a drink before they wandered off again,
The pictures of the stream was on the Rhinefield Road not far from the Rhinefield House Hotel.
If you think of having a Wedding here or a Bournemouth wedding you should look up David and Teri who are Bournemouth wedding photographers,
so if you're thinking of Weddings check them out for a fun and great photography session.

There are several other locations in the new forest that you can pick from but they do get busy and you can have trouble parking at some of them.
We always pick this spot in the new forest by the stream so we can watch the horse's when they come down for a drink and the kids can have a play in the stream as well.
Horse riding is the other thing that that there is plenty of around the New Forest.

Burley is a great village to visit for gifts, shops to see, Witches, smuggling and dragons are a theme that is part of Burley's unique character. 
thenewforest.co.uk will give you lots of information on what to see and do.
A Place that has been recommended through the guest book and is a great place to visit, is Moors Valley which covers 750 acres in the Valley of the Moors River.
Tis is 10 Miles north of Bournemouth. (Thanks to Silver from the-scream for this link) We did visit here ourselves and can confirm it is a great day out here with lots to see and do.
Take your bikes if you have them or hire some.

Marwell Zoo I found this a great place to visit, follow the link for Marwell Zoo for more information. The Kids really enjoyed the day here with lots to do.

We also spent the day at an adventure park called Paultons Park at Ower, nr. Romsey Hampshire.
Follow the link Paultons park It is not cheap to get in and from an adults point of view not really worth all that money, but from a kids point of view I would say it is a good day out.
Kids under 1 meter get in free (they do check), Some pictures of Paultons Park Pictures can be found here.

We went as a group with 8 kids on the day and everyone of them enjoyed the day and they went on every single ride, some times twice with no more than approx. 10 minutes queuing time to get on a ride so this was a bonus.

Two other camps sites near Bournemouth that are great are Birchwood caravansite near Wareham and Ulwell cottage caravan site near Swanage.

Hover over thumbnail pictures to see a larger image on the left or click on the thumbnail for full size image.