7 Days in Dorset

Now that the age of cheap airfares is over more and more families are turning to the UK for their holidays. While there's lots of beautiful places to go to none are as beautiful as Dorset in the summer. Here's what to do if you're bringing your family on holiday for 7 days in Dorset.

Home of the Weld family from1642 to 1929, when it was gutted by fire, Lulworth Castle stands in stunning grounds and has many activities during the summer. Th castle itself has been partially restored and is wonderful to look round, while the grounds host a variety of activities including jousting, archery and a small farm. There are various events during the summer.

After your visit to the castle be sure to pop down to Lulworth Cove and Durdle Door a walk by the sea

For information on openeing times, entrance fees and events please check the Lulworth Estate website.

Putlake Farm is a fantastic day out for children. Situated in the small village of Langton Matravers, just outside Swanage, Putlake Farm has an indoor soft play centre, an outdoor play area, tractor trailer rides and, of course, farm animals. There is animal food available and you can feed everything from goats to alpacas (warning: the alpacas like to steal the feed cups!) The best part of the day has got to be the lamb and goat bottle feeding - you get to do the feeding, but watch out, the goats are really greedy!

After Putlake Fram why not pop in to Swanage for an ice-cream by the sea.

Visit the Putlake Adventure Farm website for further information.

Brownsea Island is located in Poole Harbour and currently belongs to the National Trust (except the castle which belongs to the John Lewis group, and is used by their employees for holidays.) Its full of wildlife and nature walks and is a brilliant place to take your children to get them intrested in the environment. You access the island by boat from Poole Quay or Sandbanks (you can get there from Bournemouth and Swanage but the journey is much longer), and if you go from Poole you get to take a tour around all the islands.

If you go to Poole Quay on Thursday stick around for the 10pm fireworks - they're spectacular.

For opening times, and prices please visit the National Trust website.

Based in Wareham and set up by Jim and Alison Cronin in 1987, Monkey World Ape Rescue Centre has the largest group of chimps outside Africa. The animals have all been rescued from abuse in various countries throughout the world and Monkey World gives them a home and rehabilitates them back into social groups. The rescue centre currently houses over 150 primates and is a fantastic day out for all anilmal loving children. To help the centre fund their work the chimps can be adopted, and when you adopt a chimp you get a certifiacte, information on the chimp and a photo.

After your visit to Monkey World pop into Wareham for a cream tea and a walk by the river.

For more information go to the Monkey World website.

Famous for being the most expensive place to live in the UK, Sandbanks certainly seems to have it all. The beaches really are golden and the houses sitting on the Sandbanks Peninsula are to die for. Sadly there's only one road on to Sandbanks so mind you don't get caught in the queue for the Swanage ferry - you'll be in for a lon wait.

After spending a day on the beach at Sandbanks why not wander down to Poole Harour and watch the Kite Surfers have fun in the sun.

Abbotsbury Swannery is the only place in the world where you can wak through the heart of a colony of nesting swans. The best time to go is mid-May to late July when the baby swans are hatching, but if you're in Dorset later in the year it's a pleasure to see those babies grow into fluffy teenagers (July - October) or make their first attempts to fly (September - October.)

After visiting the Swannery try the Abbotsbury children's farm - you don't want to miss the goat racing.

For opening times, etc see Abbotsbury Swannery and Abbotsbury Children's Farm.

The Blue Pool is a former clay pit, dug in about 1840, that was left to it's own devices after the pit closed down. The pit quickly filled with rainwater and plant life colonised the banks and soon became a popular tourist attraction. The pool is constantly changing colours becaus eof the clay particles suspended in the water - they diffract the light differently depending on the surrounding conditions.

Pop into the tea rooms while you're there and enjoy the vast variety of the surrounding wildlife.

Find information on The Blue Pool here.