Highlights
2-night guided small group Jurassic Coast tour, England’s only natural UNESCO World Heritage site.
Explore Dorset’s key landmarks of Durdle Door and Lulworth Cove and your expert guide will explain the fascinating geology of these impressive landforms and rock formations.
Visit the Etches Collection in Kimmeridge to see the newly-displayed fossilised giant pliosaur skull, and hear the story of its very local discovery, and its national importance.
Learn about the Victorian pioneering fossil-hunter, Mary Anning, and her achievements.
Stay two nights at the charming Mortons Manor Hotel in the centre of Corfe village and enjoy visit to the Castle as part of the tour.
Kimmeridge Bay, Dorset
Overview
The UNESCO-designated Dorset and East Devon Coast World Heritage Site, more popularly known as the Jurassic Coast, displays world-famous rocks, fossils and coastal landforms and provides a unique and spectacular glimpse into a period spanning 185 million years. Over the course of this two-night and two day tour, our expert local guide will help you find fossils and tell you the story of this intriguing coastline, sharing key insights behind its fascinating landscapes, history and geology.
The insider knowledge is provided by our expert guide Jonathan Evans, a geologist who lives locally and is a Trustee of Lyme Regis Museum.
How did the dramatic coast and landscapes evolve? The tour unravels the early history from arid desert landscapes when the dinosaurs appeared (around 240 million years ago) through to shallow tropical seas which saw the rise of titanic marine reptiles, the peak of the dinosaur period and the evolution of ammonites. Dorset remained under warm sub-tropical seas while chalk was produced, and finally the tour reveals the changes and erosion of 10,000 years, following the last ice age.
An exclusive Lyme Regis walk will highlight Mary Anning (1799-1847), whose fossil finds intrigued the Establishment scientists and formed the basis for our understanding of dinosaur evolution.
In addition, you will have a chance to go fossil hunting at a location selected by our expert, where you can be the first to release fossils from millions of years of burial! This tour also includes a visit to the Etches Collection museum, to see its newly-displayed giant pliosaur skull, which featured on a BBC David Attenborough documentary.
Above all, this is a landscape that leaves a lasting impression.
Useful details about your Jurassic Coast tour:
- Start / finish: The tour begins and ends at Mortons Manor, Corfe Castle village, Dorset, England.
- Activity level: Leisurely, suitable for occasional walkers (view our activity level definitions). The tour involves walks of up to 3 km (1.5 miles) and takes in coastal sections with rocky foreshores, and often many steps to reach the beach.
- Transport: Participants will travel by small coach which has air conditioning, suitable for the number in the group.
- Weather: Spring and Autumn weather on the Jurassic Coast is mild; Summer can be warm. Rain is always possible, and guests should be prepared with waterproof clothing.
- Accommodation: We will stay at Mortons Manor, a Grade II listed Elizabethan Manor House in the centre of Corfe Castle village that is now a very comfortable hotel.