As a dog owner, you never like to leave them behind when you go for a day out somewhere. Unfortunately, not all places welcome dogs. With a little help from an old friend, who’s a local, we’ve come up with some ideas for dog-friendly places in Dorset for you to visit so that you can plan before visiting.
Dog Friendly Dorset
Dorset, with its stunning Jurassic coastline, is a great place to visit with your dogs with woodland walks, river valleys and heathland to see. There are plenty of attractions too that welcome dogs as well as all-important dog-friendly beaches. These are some of our ideas of dog friendly places in Dorset for you to visit on your next holiday there.
Dog Friendly Places in Dorset
Corfe Castle
The village of Corfe Castle, which takes its name from the ruins of the same name, is located between Swanage and Wareham. The name “Corfe” comes from the old Saxon word, ceorfan, meaning to cut or carve. It refers to the gap in the Purbeck hills where Corfe Castle is situated.
Although partially destroyed in 1646, Corfe Castle is a favourite place to visit for both adults and children. It stands proud overlooking the village and has stunning views across Purbeck. For children (big or small) there are Castle Quests to complete.
In Corfe Castle village, you will find a tea shop with fantastic views of the castle from the garden. Grab a cream tea and settle down in front of the fire. Your dog can join you too.
Click here for more information about Corfe Castle
Purbeck Hills
The Purbeck Hills are also known as the Purbeck Ridge and stretch from Lulworth Cove in the West to Old Harry Rocks in the East. The hills are a ridge of chalk downs.
There is a great pub circular walk from the South Beach car park in Studland which has amazing views of the Jurassic coast with its unique rock formations. The pub – Bankes Arms Hotel – welcomes dogs, so pop in for a pint after.
For some more ideas for walks on the Purbeck Hills, pop along to The National Trust website.
Durlston Country Park & Castle
Durlston Country Park is just south of Swanage and has 320 acres for you and your dogs to explore. There is an amazing diversity of wildlife, with many different habitats to see from sea cliffs to meadows. As well as the Castle, there are guided walks and events, or just walk the many clearly marked footpaths and trails.
The Castle is a Victorian building that took over 8 years to transform into a visitor centre for Durlston and the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. The visitor centre has many exhibits as well as a cafe and shop for you to enjoy. Dogs are welcome in both the Park and Castle.
For further details of Durlston Country Park, please go to their website.
The Walled Garden, Moreton
Between Dorchester and Wareham is the 5 acres of landscaped formal gardens know as The Walled Garden. The village of Moreton, where you will find The Walled Garden, is famous for its link with T E Lawrence (aka Lawrence of Arabia) who lived nearby. His final resting place is the local church which backs onto The Walled Garden.
There are many areas of The Walled Garden from Alison’s Woodland Walk, a Secret Jungle to the Farm and Family Area. Some truly beautiful areas for you and your dogs to explore.
The onsite Dovecote Cafe is due to reopen in mid-February 2020 after a refurbishment. Smaller portions of their delicious-looking food are available for children and water is available for dogs.
Click here for more information about The Walled Garden, Moreton
Poole Park
Another one of our dog friendly places in Dorset to visit, bordering Poole Harbour is a large urban park – Poole Park. With over 110 acres, there is plenty to keep the whole family entertained. There are large play parks, a water lagoon and lakes, a free orienteering trail, tennis courts, bowls club and so much more.
Grab a coffee or ice cream from one of the cafes in the park and sit down and watch the world go by. Dogs are welcome on the cafe decking or in Scoops (the ice cream parlour).
For more information, please click here.
Symondsbury Estate
Just outside Bridport in West Dorset is the Symondsbury Estate which covers over 1500 acres. The estate can be explored on foot, horse or even bike with the dog running behind!
There is the iconic Colmers Hill to climb, which takes about 45 minutes, with views over West Dorset and East Devon. Surely a sight to be seen?
From Colmers Hill is the well-trodden Hell Lane which leads to North Chideock. Probably used as a path 300 years ago to transport goods, you will now get a rather amazing walk along it. If you don’t fancy the climb up the hill first, then take Shute’s Lane from Symondsbury village.
Kimmeridge Bay
Located along the South West Coast Path to the west of Swanage, on the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site is Kimmeridge Bay. It boasts the best rock pooling and safest snorkelling site in Dorset. It is also a great place for fossil hunting.
Alongside the slipway at the bay is the Wild Seas Centre that runs events year-round as well as having a small aquarium and exhibits.
Overlooking the bay is Clavell Tower. Originally built as a folly and observatory it has inspired Enid Blyton, Hardy and PD James. In 2006 the tower had to be dismantled and removed from the edge of the crumbling cliff. It was re-located away from the edge of the cliff but still gives stunning views from its new position.
The walk up to the tower is quite steep, but the view is spectacular over the bay so is well worth it.
To get the most out of your trip to the Bay, please check tide times. Access to the beach car park is via toll road and charges may apply. If you are after a dog friendly restaurant whilst visiting Kimmeridge, try Clavell’s Restaurant. Just mention when booking that you will be bringing your four-legged friend.
Upton Country Park & House
Set in 160 acres of formal gardens, shoreline and parkland is Upton House and Country Park. There is plenty to see and do in the Country Park and the kids can have a chance to blow off some steam in the new Adventure Play Area.
“What about the dogs?”, I hear you ask. As well as the chance to explore the parkland and woodlands, there is also a designated dog walkers car park which gives direct access to a large off-lead area. Perfect for burning off excess energy!
There is also the opportunity to give your dog a quick wash and blow-dry at the self-service dog wash. Yes, you did read that correctly. Upton Country Park has a dog wash with warm water, natural products and a two-speed dryer to give your dog a quick wash if they’ve got muddy.
Also available is a dog training area. This enclosed area is ideal for training your dog off lead knowing that they can’t escape from you! If you are an accredited dog trainer, you can also book this for exclusive use.
There is so much more to do at Upton Country Park, so pop along to their website for a look.
Swanage Railway
I’ve never been on a steam train but it is on my list to do. If you are the same, this is one of the dog friendly places in Dorset, you could pay a visit to – the Swanage Railway.
The trains run between Swanage and Norden – just beyond Corfe Castle. The 6-mile journey takes you through beautiful Dorset scenery while you just sit back and relax. A single trip takes about 25 minutes and the return journey is 1 hour 10 minutes.
The trip on the Swanage Railway can be combined with a visit to Corfe Castle Model Village, which is also dog friendly. The model village shows you what Corfe Castle would have looked like before the English Civil War.
Walkabouts
I love a good walk in new places with the dogs. However, they’re even better when they are reasonably circular walks and end up back where you started! The Walkabout project is a combined idea of Dorset Council and local volunteers, so this a great dog friendly places in Dorset to visit.
First is Kingston Maurward Walkabout which is just outside Dorchester. There are two walks both of which take in the homes of Thomas Hardy and could be combined if you fancy a longer dog walk. Both routes have a printable/saveable map which will show you points of interest along the way.
Secondly are the Thorncombe Wood Walkabout routes. Both routes start from Hardy’s Birthplace Visitor Centre, which is handy as there is a very dog friendly cafe there called Under the Greenwood Tree Cafe. One of the routes is just under a mile, making it perfect for little legs and the other is 3 – 5 miles. The longer route takes in Thorncombe Wood, Puddletown Forest, Duddle Heath and Black Heath.
The final eight routes are the Sturminster Newton Walkabouts. They all start from Sturminster Newton and take in the surrounding Blackmore Vale area. The routes vary in length from 1.5 miles to 5.5 miles. All walks start from the Station Road car park, and just round the corner from there is The Swan Inn which welcomes dogs.
Dog Friendly Holidays
So now that we’ve given you some ideas of dog friendly places in Dorset for you to visit, you are going to need somewhere to stay.
We have plenty of choice of dog friendly holiday accommodation in Dorset for you to choose from. Whether you want to stay in a self-catering cottage, hotel or holiday park you can find details at dogsinvited.co.uk.