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London to Dorchester...with visits to Stonehenge and Bath

Posted by (Boise, ID, USA) on

Hello! This may be a crazy idea. After researching my ancestors, I discovered that my 15th great-grandfather was William Martyn. He built Athelhampton House near Dorchester. I will be in London in December and if possible, I'd love to visit Athelhampton! Since I've also never been to Stonehenge, Bath and Highclere Castle, I was contemplating a night or two away from London to see those as well. Would it be a crazy idea to rent a car and drive? I don't know what the road conditions may be like in December. I'm fine taking public transit also, but since it's an unusual itinerary, I wasn't sure if it would work out well. There are two of us traveling.

Any thoughts? Where would be a good place to overnight? Has anyone been to Athelhampton?

Thanks!

Posted by
1 posts

I am also planning a trip to England (August- September) and will be visiting Highclere Castle. They are only open for tours at certain times of the year and I don't think December is one of the options. I will be driving in the Cotswolds area, but using trains and bus transportation elsewhere. I am taking a Viator.com coach tour out of London to see Highclere as the individual tickets are sold out for 2016 on the website. I will also be tracking down ancestor information (tombs/gravestones, etc.) in Whitbey (Oxford alumni from the 1500's and the 1600's), and Durham (Hilton Castle). Hope your trip goes well.

Posted by
2409 posts

Athelhampton is only open on Sundays during winter - (please double check). http://www.athelhampton.co.uk

It is most unlikely that you would encounter snow & ice (apart from the odd frost) in this part of Britain in winter. You may like to consider taking the train from London Salisbury & use that as a base. You would be best advised (in my opinion) to rent a car (at Salisbury) to reach Athelhampton. On the same day trip, you may also like to reach the nearby coast at Lulworth Cove / Durdle Dor.
http://www.lulworthonline.co.uk

Another day trip in the car, could go to Highclere & then Stonehenge. However, both are also served by coach tours from London. Salisbury & Stonehenge can also be done as a day trip from London (Waterloo) by train to Salisbury & then shuttle bus to Stonehenge.

Likewise, Bath can also be done as a day trip from London (Paddington) by train. The GWR main lines are being electrified. Check for planned engineering here:>https://www.gwr.com/travel-updates/planned-engineering
If you visit Bath from Salisbury, I would definitely go by train as the road is very busy.

PS. The nearest rail stations for Athelhampton are Poole / Dorchester.
The nearest station for Highclere is Newbury. None of these have direct rail links with Salisbury.

Posted by
5326 posts

There will be a limited number of direct trains between Salisbury and Dorchester West on summer Saturdays although it isn't at all clear whether they will continue as they are a kind of experiment.

One alternative is the train from Waterloo to Dorchester South - rent a car from near there to Athelhampton and drive up to Salisbury on the A354.

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