Bournemouth: Discover beaches, gardens and culture

Bournemouth offers a range of themes to explore during your stay: sandy beaches and cliff paths, self-guided walks, gardens, exhibitions and historic architecture. If you’re looking for a hotel in Bournemouth, these highlights can help you tailor your stay to your interests. The destinations differ mainly in their focus: the coast, garden and city walks, collections or history.

Beaches and cliff paths

Bournemouth Beach has beautiful sandy beaches, with walking paths running along the cliffs. This brings two distinct coastal themes to the fore: spending time on the sandy beach and walking along the cliffs. If you enjoy walking, you can make the paths a separate focus alongside the beach. When planning your trip, the distinction helps you decide whether you’re mainly looking for beaches or walking paths.

Gardens and self-guided walks

The Tree Trail is a self-guided walk through Bournemouth Gardens. The Upper Gardens offer a different perspective, with many unusual tree species. These include a North American giant sequoia, thought to be the largest in the country, as well as a group of mature Persian ironwood trees. The Tree Trail and the Upper Gardens therefore represent two different ways to experience nature: a walk as an activity and specific features of the tree collection. The examples highlight different things: the giant sequoia stands out for its presumed size, while the Persian ironwood trees form a mature group. So the interest extends beyond a single tree.

City history and the pier

The Bournemouth Cultural Trail is also self-guided, but focuses on the town centre. It follows the High Street past unique architecture and striking buildings that tell the story of Bournemouth. The two walks can be distinguished by their subject matter: the Tree Trail leads through Bournemouth Gardens, while the Cultural Trail explores the town’s history and architecture in the centre. St Peter's Church is another historic landmark: it is Bournemouth’s historic Grade I-listed parish church. The trail conveys the town’s history through architecture and striking buildings, while St Peter's Church is a specific Grade I-listed building.

The new Bournemouth Pier was opened in August 1880 by the Lord Mayor of London. There is a practical rule for cyclists: cycling is permitted year-round between Bournemouth Pier and Boscombe Pier. Remember that pedestrians have right of way. The month and year of the opening place the pier in its historical context; the cycling rule is relevant to practical use.

Exhibitions and the Oceanarium

The Russell-Cotes Art Gallery and Museum regularly hosts exhibitions featuring works of art and artefacts from its extensive collections. Its exhibitions are therefore closely linked to its collections, unlike the self-guided walks, which explore the garden or the town’s history. Bournemouth Oceanarium is next to Bournemouth Pier, right on the beach, and about a five-minute walk from the town centre. At the Oceanarium, Shark Wreck Reef is a recently refurbished walk-through tunnel exhibition with a shipwreck theme, coral and 350,000 litres of salt water.

Discover more destinations: Ringstead, Winterbourne Abbas, Portland, Alderholt, Woodsford, Shaftesbury, Fontmell Magna, Hooke

Back to the main travel overview: Dorset.