Weymouth is a town in Dorset, England, situated on a sheltered bay – Weymouth Bay – and the natural harbour formed by the mouth of the River Wey on the English Channel coast. The town is eight miles south of Dorchester, and just north of the Isle of Portland.
Weymouth had long been a port before the Georgians popularized it as a resort. It's possible that a ship unloading a cargo here in 1348 first brought the Black Death to English shores, and it was from Weymouth that John Endicott sailed in 1628 to found Salem in Massachusetts.
A few buildings survive from these pre-Georgian times. But Weymouth's most imposing architectural heritage stands along the Esplanade, a dignified range of bow-fronted and porticoed buildings gazing out across the graceful bay.
Transportation in Weymouth
By Car: Weymouth is 8 miles south of Dorchester on the A354. Weymouth can also be approached from the A35 at Poole by following the A351, then the A352, & then finally the A353 into the Town Centre.
By Train: Weymouth train station can be reached easily from Bristol, Bath and London.
By Coach: There is a frequent National Express service operating coaches to Weymouth Kings Statue in the centre of town
By Ferry: Weymouth is a great resort for all the family, with its safe bathing beach, picturesque harbour and a variety of attractions and events. Weymouth ferry port is managed & controlled by the local Borough Council, & offers up to date facilities for handling both passengers & freight traffic all year round. The Weymouth ferry passenger terminal is operated by Condor Ferries and welcomes ferries from the Channel Islands of Guernsey (St Peter Port) and Jersey.
Weymouth's slightly faded gentility is now counterbalanced by a number of "all-weather" attractions, the most high-profile of which is the Sea Life Park in Lodmoor Country Park east of the Esplanade, where you can get close to sharks and rays and wander among multichrome birds in the tropical house. Other attractions include the Deep Sea Adventure at the Old Harbour, which describes the origins of modern diving and the sobering story of the Titanic disaster. Over the river on Hope Square, The Timewalk housed in Brewer's Quay, contains an entertaining and educational walk-through exhibition of Weymouth's maritime and brewing past. A fifteen-minute walk southwards leads to the Palmerston-era Nothe Fort, which has a number of displays on military themes, as well as a museum detailing the centuries-old practice of coastal defence, made obsolete in 1956 by advancing technology.
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