Two Days to Fill While in the Salisbury Area with Auto

A great opportunity to visit all the historic earthworks in the area. Check the English Heritage and National Trust UK sites on-line for suggested itineraries.

Bath seems like the obvious choice. On the way there you could stop at Glastonbury and Wells, or Avebury, or maybe all of them.

Also consider Stourhead & Longleat.
http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/stourhead
http://www.longleat.co.uk

You might wish to take a day trip from Salisbury down to the Dorset Coast. Take A354 going SW to Blandford Forum - by-pass. Then continue SW on A354 for about 4 miles & turn left for Bere Regis. Continue S on back roads to Wool and then B3071 to Lulworth Cove. Also visit Durdle Dor.http://www.lulworthonline.co.uk

Alternatively go east to see Mottisfont - which could be combined with a visit to Winchester.http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/mottisfont
http://www.visit-hampshire.co.uk/places-to-visit/winchester-and-central-hampshire/winchester
OR - how about Wilton House, on the western edge of Salisbury? http://www.wiltonhouse.co.uk

Thanks all for your suggestions. James the route south looks very interesting. Might you have any suggestions for a town for lodging. We are looking to "change it up" a little after staying for two evenings in Salisbury?

Wells is a nice town that often gets overlooked but is part of the same diocese as Bath - it has a 14th C cathederal, Milton Lodge (well known for it's garden - it's an NT property iirc), a town museum, vicars close (oldest occupied cottages in europe), etc. If you're into automotive history at all, the Haynes museum a bit to the east is one of the best of it's kind in the world with 100's of exhibits, and Wookey Hole is widely known for the massive cave system (quite a lot is opened to visitors with walkways and steps). From Wells, you can go west over the mendips getting on to on Plummers lane to drop down into Cheddar (where the cheese originated) before joining the A38 north straight to the airport. The mendips are great for walking too, so if the weather is good you could amble over from Wells to Cheddar straight across, and either walk back (if you're fit) or take the bus back to Wells. I don't get down that way nearly as much nowadays but when I do I make a point of avoiding Bath as it gets so packed and parking can be horrific; getting into Bath is definitely better by bus or train.

Aiken,
Thank you so much for your detailed response and good suggestions.

By heading south, I think you mean down to the Dorset coast. Dorchester would be a suitable town in which to find somewhere to stay. I would advise that you check for parking as this is more likely to be difficult within towns. You may also like to consider staying on a farm. Here you would be guaranteed ease of parking but the downside would be that you may have to drive down narrow country lanes in order to reach the farm. (This may involve driving in reverse should you meet someone coming the other way). So, check on Google Earth the location of any place where you plan to stay. Note also that some farms just want people to stay a week:> http://www.farmstay.co.uk/Accommodation/SearchResults?page=2&pagesize=10&guid=1460707536692
On the above site, select the county where you wish to stay. You could do this by clicking the map. Dorset, Wiltshire & Somerset are the most likely counties that you will want.

Between Lulworth & Dorchester, you may wish to visit Thomas Hardy's cottage. http://www.dorchesterdorset.com/hardy-cottage.php

It has been mentioned that Bath is very difficult for parking/congestion. You may wish to go by train - it takes about an hour from Salisbury. See www.nationalrail.co.uk

On route A352 - going N from Dorchester to Sherborne is the village of Cerne Abbas. Just above the village in the Giant:>
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerne_Abbas_Giant

A little further north on the A352 is Minterne gardens. www.minterne.co.uk

Sherborne is also worth a look and has some very old streets. It also has a castle - which I have only seen from the outside. http://www.sherbornecastle.com
http://www.visit-dorset.com/about-the-area/towns/sherborne

From Sherborne, you could head NW on B3148 & head for the National Trust place of Lytes Cary. (It is a very complicated route so a good map is essential). http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/lytes-cary-manor
Alternatively, head west to Yeovil and then to :>http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/montacute-house

Either way, you can then head north to Glastonbury and Wells (which would be another good place to find accommodation).
You could drive from Wells to Bath or go by bus. See www.traveline.info
Cheddar gorge & caves are nearby and you are now well placed for Bristol Airport
.http://www.wellssomerset.com

James,
Thank you for great suggestions. We're thinking of heading south to Lulworth Cove (Durdle Door, Stair Hole) after breakfast, then work our way north / northwest in the afternoon to Wells (or other town in the vicinity) for some brief site seeing and lodging for the evening. Thinking of using Wells as a base to access Bath the next day prior to flying out of Bristol. An option I was looking at for accessing Bath is the Odd Down (South of Bath) Ride and Park for the day and then returning in the evening to Wells.

That sounds like a very good idea. If you park at Lulworth Cove, see the cove & Stair Hole and then take the footpath to Durdle Dor, beware that the route is steep - but not in anyway dangerous. If you wish to save time, see Lulworth Cove & Stair Hole & then drive to Durdle Dor. You will find a caravan / camping site which you drive through to a car park high above Durdle Dor. It really is spectacular with white cliffs and this sea arch. You may even want to go in the sea! The only downside to this is that you may have to pay parking fees twice. Ask if the Lulworth ticket can be used at DD as they are all under the same landowner - I think.