Holiday accommodation in Somerset: Cheddar Gorge, abbeys and heritage railway

Nature and trails

The River Parrett Trail complements these landscape experiences with a scenic 50-mile walking route. The route can be completed in three to four days or in shorter sections. It runs from the bridge near Stathe Farm via Stoke St Gregory and Meare Green Court with the Coates English Willow Baskets Visitor Centre, then via Windmill Hill along the River Tone to the road at Burrowbridge. Along the River Parrett Trail, the landscape, history, heritage, nature and wildlife can be experienced.

For further walks, Somerset has more than 3,803 miles (6,129 km) of publicly accessible Rights of Way. This means that the network of paths extends far beyond the River Parrett Trail, without altering its specific route.

Culture and history

Glastonbury Tor has been a place of religious significance for more than 1,000 years and is suitable for walks and picnics. Two of the four orchards at the foot of the slopes of Glastonbury Tor are open to the public. The Somerset Rural Life Museum, based in Glastonbury, explores rural life and the rural working world from the 19th century onwards.

Cleeve Abbey has the most complete and unaltered collection of monastic cloister buildings in England. The oldest refectory floor dates from around 1270 and is presented in a specially built timber protective structure. An exhibition and a virtual touchscreen tour provide additional insights into life in the monastery.

Muchelney Abbey was once a wealthy and important monastery. The two-storey abbot's lodgings are a fully preserved small-scale early Tudor manor house. The interior of Muchelney Abbey can be visited on selected days as part of a guided tour; this must be booked online in advance. The Abbey Barn at the Somerset Rural Life Museum also combines history and architecture: it is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and a Grade I listed building.

Traditions and landscape

The guided Thatchers Cider Tour lasts approximately two hours, offers the opportunity to taste different ciders and explains how Thatchers has been producing cider in Somerset for more than 120 years. The West Somerset Railway is a 20-mile heritage railway through the countryside and along the coast of Somerset.

The Coates English Willow Visitor Centre invites visitors to learn about the history and art of willow growing and basket-making. A longer circular route along the River Tone and up to a viewpoint on Windmill Hill also starts there.

Open the pages for the places you would like to explore in more detail and compare the details provided for each one.

Other places in Somerset:Minehead, Yeovil, Woolverton, Wiveliscombe, Wincanton, Wells, Washford, Templecombe, Taunton, Sparkford, Shepton Mallet, Redlynch, North Petherton, Montacute, Martock, Lydford, Langport, Ilminster, Ilchester, Highbridge, Hatch Beauchamp, Glastonbury, Frome, Dunster, Dulverton, Cheddar, Chard, Castle Cary, Bridgwater, Brent Knoll, Horsington, Crewkerne, Beckington, Lyng, Burnham-On-Sea, East Brent, West Huntspill, Holford, Winsford, Somerton, Catcott, Lovington, Norton St Philip, Nether Stowey, Bishops Lydeard, Puriton, Street, Lympsham, Holcombe, Williton, Axbridge, Exford, Ashwick, Burrow Bridge, Wedmore, West Quantoxhead, Litton, Brompton Regis, Kilve, Kingsbury Episcopi, Bruton, Fitzhead, South Petherton, Fivehead, Tintinhull, Bagborough, Laverton, North Curry, West Chinnock, Wellington, Milborne Port, Mark, Henstridge, Evercreech, Clatworthy, Chilcompton, Baltonsborough, Badgworth, Staple Fitzpaine, North Brewham, West Camel, Porlock, Stoke-sub-Hamdon, Queen Camel, Tolland, Stratton-on-the-Fosse, Rode, West Coker, Maundown, Stogumber, Stowell, Nunney, Ditcheat, Goathurst, Cucklington, Ashcott, Chiselborough, Othery, Milverton, Cutcombe, Buckland Dinham, Stawley, Mells, Hornblotton, Otterhampton.

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