The county town of Dorchester is very small and has characterful shops, museums, arcades, busy Wednesday market, Roman remains and several historic buildings which feature in Hardy’s novels. His birthplace and final home nearby can bevisited. The train service to Waterloo is 2 hours. Tourist Information Centre (01305 267992) Trinity Street (Antelope Walk).

Weymouth, just 6 miles south, is a large resort with a sandy beach and wide range of popular activities. The old harbour (fishing trips) is packed with yachts and lined with attractive, mostly old buildings; it leads inland to reed beds with RSPB bird watching. The Tourist Information Centre (01305 785747) is on The Esplanade.

The inland route of the Coast Path has great views especially from Admiral Hardy’s Monument. Inland, footpaths abound. Cerne Abbas with its infamous Giant and Piddlehinton on the river Piddle can form the focus of a walk. Also easily accessible are Athelhampton stately home/garden, the Iron Age hill-fort of Maiden Castle and Kingston Maurward College gardens/lake.

The shore offers many contrasts: the unique Chesil Beach whose shingle bank encloses the Fleet lagoon (Abbotsbury swans at one end and oyster farm at the other); Portland Bill with its quarries, famous lighthouses and harbour (ideal for sailing/windsurfing); Weymouth’s harbour and sandy beach lead finally to open shingle beaches backed by wild cliffs at the tiny settlements of Osmington Mills and Ringstead.

Broadmayne/West Knighton (cottage 252, 355 & 363 ): Easy access to Dorchester and the coast. Broadmayne has a small shop; both villages have pubs plus a network of paths to the Frome Valley and White Horse Hill overlooking the sea.

Charminster (cottage 290, 401, 427 & 443) : An old village convenient for Dorchester on the river Frome with a fine church, shop, pubs and nearby golf course.

East Fleet (cottage 425): A small hamlet made famous in the smuggling novel “Moonfleet”, close to the inland lagoon known as The Fleet and Moonfleet Manor Hotel.

Langton Herring (cottage 257, 267, 304, 354, 399 & 510) A secluded village with a green, play area and good dining pub surrounded by fields. There are lovely walks to the nearby Fleet Lagoon and Chesil’s shingle beach, ideal for surf-cast fishing.

Little Waddon & Coryates (cottage 259 & 3413): A tiny, rural hamlet nestling beneath Bronkham and Black Down Hills and Admiral Hardy’s Monument, equidistant from Weymouth, Dorchester and the attractions in Abbotsbury.

Martinstown (cottage 269) Near Dorchester but tucked away in the valley of the Winterborne, which meanders through the village with its traditional architecture, shop and pub.

Osmington (cottage 239, 353, 390, 3412 & 428): This pretty village, with a family pub, is off the Weymouth road in a valley beneath the inland route of the Coast Path and other wonderful walks. A mile down a country lane is a seaside hamlet with riding stables, famous pub and rocky beach.

Sutton Poyntz (cottage 233 & 350): In the lee of the downs above Weymouth with access to ridge paths, a stream, pond and pub complement this very picturesque village.

Ringstead (cottage 317): This secluded and unsophisticated beachside hamlet has a seasonal shop and Dorset coastal scenery is all around in the ownership of the National Trust.

Upwey (cottage 221 & 264): An excellent spot for a holiday, this pretty village on the River Wey has a Wishing Well, tearooms, pubs and water gardens. It is convenient for all the attractions of Weymouth yet has direct access to open countryside.

Warmwell (cottage 247): A small hamlet on the edge of the Frome Valley, convenient for Dorchester and Ringstead and with the benefit of a swimming pool, ski slope and shop in a holiday park just over a mile away.

Whitcombe (cottage 333): An beautiful, old manorial estate with thatched cottages, a manor house, an unused church and two thatched tithe barns, convenient for Dorchester and Hardy’s homes.

Winterbourne Steepleton (cottage 249): Tucked away in a pretty valley with a meandering stream, this hamlet has a fine, old church and is very near Winterbourne Abbas which has a pub, garage shop and restaurant.