Whitecliff Farm

It's hard to imagine the lively town of Swanage (a mile away) was once a teeny-tiny fishing port. These days, you can toot your way around town on the steam railway or find your zen in the folds of the sandy beach and its invigorating seawater. If you want to tackle the coastline in a different way, coasteer or kayak your way around the sandy shores, or add a new skill to your repertoire with a go at bushcraft, raft racing, or mountain biking the local terrain at Cumulus Outdoor Adventure (five minutes' drive). From Sandbanks Ferry (30 minutes), you can venture further afield by boat, stopping off at Poole over the pond, where the busy quayside, waterparks, and extra-long beach make an even bigger splash. Or if you want to stick to the local knockabouts, that’s fine too. You can skip between the turrets of the Norman fortress, Corfe Castle (five minutes), which dominates the local landscape, or head towards the chiselled chalky coastline (25 minutes), where there are walking and cycling routes into every nook and cranny of the Jurassic Coast.