Dorset holiday cottage: Lyme Regis

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Lyme Regis is the perfect place for a family holiday and Appletrees has been equipped particularly with families in mind. When our own children were small, the short level walk to the beach was a huge advantage. Within a few minutes they were scampering across Cobb gate, down the steps onto the shingle, racing in and out of the lapping water, and up again onto the long, lovely sea front walk to the real beach- the glorious bay of golden sand which curves round and joins the celebrated 'Cobb' and its tiny harbour.

From the end of the Cobb - where you can literally see and smell the ancient history of this most romantic of Dorset's fishing towns-you can look back and see the panorama of colour washed buildings against their exquisite backdrop of wooded hills. Or, you can look out to sea and feel the power of the waves as they lash the outer wall of the Cobb. No wonder this was the place to inspire such writers as Jane Austin, Thomas Hardy and John Fowles.

To the west, a cliff top walk, with a fabulous birds eye view of the harbour, will take you to the Undercliff - a National Nature Reserve famous for its strange land slips, thickly wooded paths and glimpses of the sea. East - towards Charmouth- lies the beach famous for fossils. Here at low tide great slabs of shale become visible, revealing thousands of rock pools. This was our children's favourite place-fishing for tiny creatures or looking out for ammonite/s still fossilised within the rocks.

Within easy reach of Lyme lie many places of interest. For walkers, try any of the cliff top walks for spectacular coastal views, or travel west to the river Otter or east to fascinating Chesil beach, Abbotsbury swannery or Portland. For children, try Cricket St Thomas, Seaton Percorama or Farway Country Park. Or, close to home, our favourite, the Seaton to Colyton tramway. The town offers a good golf course, many excellent restaurants and old fashioned pubs and the whole area abounds in traditional tea shops and antique shops. Further afield lie Exeter with its beautiful Cathedral, Dorchester with its iron-age hillfort, Corfe with its extraordinary ruined castle….I could go on….!