West Somerset

West of the county its wonderfully diverse!

One of the best ways to appreciate the beauty of the west side of the County must be the marvellous West Somerset Railway – the longest heritage railway in England. You can ride from just outside Taunton all the way to Minehead passing immaculately maintained stations, signal boxes, a castle and a harbour. The countryside is sumptuous and it is easy to see how it inspired some of this Country’s greatest poets.
It was while Coleridge was living at Nether Stowey that he and his friends Dorothy and William Wordsworth took frequent walks in the Quantock Hills and along the coast. These led them to examine the natural world and their place in it. The result formed the foundations of the Romantic movement in this country and no wonder! Today you can follow in their footsteps by taking the Coleridge Way from the National Trust owned Coleridge Cottage to Lynmouth on the other side of the Somerset border.
Protected by law as the first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty to be designated back in 1956, the Quantock Hills are famous for their heathland, oak woods and Jurassic Coast. Look out for thatched cottages, wild ponies, panoramic views and whortleberries. They lead onto Exmoor National Park, a unique landscape shaped by people and nature over thousands of years.

North Petherton

Before it became a town, North Petherton was the largest village in England. It was an important settlement as far back as Saxon times and archaeologists have found plenty to interest them on the site of the current church, St Mary The Virgin, which has one of the tallest, most elaborate towers in the region.

Kilve

Lying at the northern end of the Quantocks, Kilve is a picturesque village consisting of 3 settlements.

Selworthy

This delightful village of picturesque thatched cottages is part of the National Trust's huge Holnicote Estate, which takes in over 12,000 acres of Exmoor coast and countryside.

Dunster

There are delights at every turn in Dunster, whether it be the castle on the hill with its magnificent stables or the packhorse bridge and working watermill. It is hardly surprising that in one of the most intact medieval villages in Britain there is so much to explore and hidden gems around every corner such as the Prior’s Dovecote, Tithe Barn and a church containing the longest Rood screen in the country.

Set amid lush rolling fields that slope towards the sea, Dunster boasts picture-perfect houses, beaches, an ancient hilltop castle, and a quintessentially Somerset high street.

Watchet

The maritime history of Watchet colours every part of the town while the wild beauty of its coastline is untouched with ancient ammonite fossils lying on the shore, just waiting to be found.