Charming Portland house with sea and sunset views

Welcome to our newly renovated Dorset getaway. Our Portland stone house is 5 minutes walk from Chesil Beach and 20 minutes walk to the Weymouth & Portland National Sailing Academy. The Isle of Portland is an idyllic spot to relax with stunning sea views or base yourself to explore the many activities in the area: walking, coasteering, horse riding, sailing, water sports, alpacas etc. The house is perfect for a self catering getaway but there are great restaurants a short walk away. Our house has two good sized reception rooms and three bedrooms all with sea views. All rooms are very light (large bay windows in the first two floors) letting in the afternoon and evening sun; ideal for relaxing and reflecting on the day you just enjoyed. The main bedroom is a king, second bedroom can be either a king or two singles. The final bedroom has a double bed with a single trundle underneath. We will provide clean linen and towels for all registered guests. Please bring your own towels for the beach. The bright kitchen/diner at the back of the house comfortably seats 7 people around the table. This then leads out to an enclosed garden with a table and chairs for al fresco dinning or to dry wet suits. There is free parking on roads nearby. We also have a key lock box to allow for easy check in. Worth noting, the WiFi is good - I have worked from the house regularly with no issues. We're available to answer questions or make recommendations. The Area There are far too many things for me to list but here are some ideas that we have really enjoyed. Beaches Chesil has to be one of the most beautiful beaches in the world in our opinion. It is 18 miles long and the Chesil Cove area is 5 minutes’ walk. It is a pebble beach and open directly to the sea so not always the best for swimming if rough. Given its size, it is never normally too busy. Chesil Cove enjoys an amazing view of the sunset over Lyme Bay and is a great spot for sundowners or bbqs on the beach. It is very popular for fishing and apparently bass and mackerel can be caught regularly. Billy Winters (more details in food section) has a stretch of beach in front of it. There may be an official name, but I can’t find one. This is a great family beach with calm sea and very flat sandy plateau after the waterline. It does get wind though, which makes it very popular for water sports including kite surfing, wind surfing etc. There is also a place to hire equipment next to Billy Winters including paddle boards and wetsuits. The beach itself is pebbly but turns sandy as you go into the water – beach shoes are advised for the pebbles though. There is a limited parking space at the beach and the machine annoyingly takes coins only. Cost is £5.50 for a full day. If full or you don’t have coins, across the other side of the road is Chesil car park. The walk from the house takes about 30mins but it is only 5mins drive. Weymouth is your traditional UK seaside holiday town. There is a lovely sandy beach which does get busy on warm weekends over summer. It has a mix of everything from donkey rides, amusement arcades, Wetherspoons pubs to some boutique shops. There is also a lovely old harbour area with pubs and restaurants. This is also a great place to go crabbing. There are a variety of car parks in Weymouth and approaching from Portland direction does mean you avoid some of the traffic coming from Dorchester way. Kimmeridge Bay is an interesting natural beach. It has fossils, rock pools, snorkelling etc. and is great for an adventure. There may not be food available at the beach so worth bringing your own. There is a small wildlife centre there open at times. It is about an hour away. The route takes you through some areas used by the Army for tank training. When the back roads are open, the view are amazing over the hills and you can see some old tanks used for target practice. There are many other beaches nearby including Church Ope Cove (recently featured in the i paper as one of the top 10 hidden beaches) Durdle Door, West Bay, Studland and Lulworth Cove. Other Tout Quarry Park is a lovely place to go for a walk. The picture at the start of this document was taken from there. There are lots of stone carvings to discover and you can wonder through to the coast path which gives amazing view of Chesil Beach and Lyme Bay. It is about 10mins drive from the house. Bovington Tank Museum is a great place to visit for kids and big kids like me. Great use of rainy day. Portland Bill is a lovely lighthouse (there are three down there) at the end of Portland. The area of sea is renowned for the swell where two tides collide. It is a nice spot for a walk and also kite flying. Alpaca walking on Portland is great fun. A walk around part of the island, some history, great views and a cuddle with the alpacas. Next to it is Fancys Farm, a small interactive farm. Interestingly, one of the buildings on the farm is the entrance to a nuclear bunker under the island. Horse riding from the centre of the island to Portland Bill is suitable for riders of all capabilities and another great way to see the island. Castletown D-day Museum is an interesting small museum highlighting Portland’s role in D-day and WWII. It is very interactive with the chance to climb over the various guns, jeeps, tanks etc. Other places nearby include the beautiful Corfe Castle, Abbotsbury Swannery and monastery, Osmington Mills with its historic smugglers’ pub, the market town of Dorchester, the beautiful Purbeck peninsula and the Cerne Abbas giant. Shops About 300m up the road in Fortuneswell is a Coop. It is small but pretty well stocked and does have fresh bread. On the way, you pass the Paper Shop which also has a small fishing section where you can hire the kit you need. A bit further on is a small Boots chemist. On the way to Billy Winters is a new Lidl at the bottom of the island. It has a great bakery and some real bargains. On the top of Portland, there is a large Tesco in Easton. My wife is also very keen on the Green Room, a boutique shop on Easton main square. There is a pretty decent butchers in Easton next to the Green Room but watch out for opening hours. Restaurants, pubs and takeaways The Crab House Café is a very good seafood restaurant located on the end of the mainland at Ferrybridge. It started out as an oyster farm – the oysters are superb. The café cookbook is in the shelves of the house – do feel free to browse and it will certainly whet your appetite. Bookings are very much advised. Owned by the same people as the Crab House, Billy Winters serves an interesting mix of seafood, burgers, breakfast etc all washed down with cocktails or local beers/ciders/gin. It is a relaxed spot and has a surfer type vibe. It can get busy on warm days. About 5mins drive from the house. The Cove House Inn has to be one of the most uniquely placed pubs in the UK. It has been battered by storms and prevailing SW winds for centuries but stands it’s ground overlooking Chesil beach. The food is pretty good and it is a fantastic spot for sunset drinks. 5 min walk from the house. The George Inn on the top of Portland is very historical and has a nice beer garden. They don’t serve food every night but you can bring your own takeaway on the nights they don’t. The Boat that Rocks is a more modern pub by Portland Marina. The area was the launching ground for many of the London 2012 water based events. It attracts a more “sailing” set and has a more eclectic menu. Nearby you can arrange activities like sailing lessons, renting SUPS, SUP yoga and others. It’s about 15mins walk from the house past Portland Castle and the short helicopter runway. Chesil Chippie is a fancy fish and chip shops with good basics as well as samphire, calamari and some nice local cider. It’s a short walk from the house. Codfathers is a great traditional fish and chip shop. The batter is thicker and crispier along with the chips. It has an interesting shelf of cheap wine and non-brand name spirits. They do deliver but a nice 10min drive up the top of the island. The Lobster Pot is located next to Portland Bill. It does great crab sandwiches along with basics. The cream teas are meant to be good as are other homemade desserts. Their cheesy chips are also yummy. It is about 15mins drive from the house. The Dorset Adventure Café is a good basic café with breakfasts, homemade cakes etc. You can also organise other adventures like rock climbing and coasteering from the adjacent centre. If you fancy nice crab but not going out, S & W Shellfish do freshly cooked whole crabs for £5 each. They also have kilo tubs of scallops and sometimes lobster. I don’t know if they have official hours but I have always found them available in the morning. They take cash only. There is a regular bus service from just down the road that goes to Weymouth and around Portland