Lyme Regis Independent Walking Holiday

Lyme Regis lies on the coast at Dorset's extreme western border with neighbouring Devon. First and foremost it is a very attractive and popular resort on the World Heritage Jurassic Coast, combining its impressive waterfront esplanade and famous Cobb with narrow riverside lanes dotted with local crafts, bistros and museums. It is also well known as the setting for John Fowles' book and the subsequent film The French Lieutenant's Woman, and is closely associated with Jane Austen, who stayed there when writng her novel Persuasion. There are few towns in the UK, if any, that have attracted so many literary figures as Lyme Regis. Finally it is perhaps most famous as the fossil capital of England, with its surrounding shores continuing to yield numerous relics from prehistoric times.

Lyme Regis is a 10 minute taxi ride or 15 minute bus trip from Axminster, which is 2 hours 45 minutes by direct train from London.

It would be hard to find a better centre for walking than Lyme Regis. To the west are the famous, strange and unique Undercliffs - a 5 mile stretch of dense jungle and woods caused by some major landslides in the past, with the South West Coast Path running through them. Further west, our trail passes through the small beach resort of Seaton and on to the beautiful seaside village of Beer.

To the east along the coast from Lyme Regis the scenery is totally different again, as our trail heads through National Trust land beside the sea over Golden Cap - the highest point on the south coast of England - to the small harbour and beach town of West Bay and beyond.

Behind Lyme Regis lie rolling hills, ancient woodland, iron-age hill forts and crystal streams, with magnificent views over Marshwood Vale to the sea.

We have designed four stunning and diverse trails for our Lyme Regis hiking tour. Two head east and west from the town along the coast and the other two head inland. They range in difficulty from easy/moderate to moderate/strenuous, and from 9 to 12 miles in length, although all four trails can be shortened, if required.

Our Lyme Regis holiday is an ideal choice for parents seeking an active family break, as there are many things of interest in the town and on the trail for children. The highlights of the holiday are:

• The charming old town of Lyme Regis with its famous Cobb and fossil beaches
• The extraordinary Undercliff walk
• A series of safe beaches & seaside villages
• The Seaton Tramway
• Golden Cap
• The small harbour and beach town of West Bay
• The Cannington Viaduct
• The iron age hill forts of Lambert's Castle and Coney's Castle
• The pleasant carpet-making town of Axminster
• Trinity Hill Nature Reserve
• Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre and fossil beach.

Lyme Regis is a very popular place; so please try to book as early as possible. Depending on availability at the time of booking, we can offer a choice of good A1 (hotel) or A2 (B&B;) accommodation.

If you want to do the full trail (4 days), without allowing for any rest days, you can make a booking for 5 nights. But if you would like to spend some time fossil-hunting or relaxing on a beach for a day, then it would be best to opt for a longer holiday. Please check availability by completing our short enquiry form.

We will give you our detailed and informative Lyme Regis Trail Guide, as well as the relevant ordnance survey map (with the footscape trail highlighted, as a back-up), along with all other information that you will need for your holiday.

We can sometimes offer family rooms and special prices for children, depending on the accommodation that is available at the time, but early booking is advisable. Please give us details of your requirements on the enquiry form.

For our full range of holidays and how we operate, go to holidays 2009 and footscape.