Skip to content

Outdoor activities at Ringstead Bay

View across the shingle and water to the cliff on the east side of the bay at Ringstead Bay, Dorset
View across Ringstead Bay, Dorset | © National Trust Images / John Miller

The beach, coast path and unspoilt countryside makes Ringstead Bay an ideal place to enjoy a variety of outdoor activities. From coastal walks, some family fun and bird spotting, there's something for everyone.

Walking around Ringstead Bay

The countryside surrounding Ringstead Bay is a haven for walkers with miles of footpaths to explore, including a particularly scenic stretch of the South West Coast Path.

Starting from the National Trust car park, you can follow it west towards Osmington and Weymouth or east towards the famous Durdle Door and Lulworth Cove. Alternatively walk through the wildlife-rich fields down to the bay. 

Family fun activities

Calling all young (and young at heart) adventurers. You can complete almost half of the '50 things to do before you're 11¾' challenges at Ringstead Bay. Take a look at the handy activity map to show you what you can do and where.  

Butterflies at Golden Cap, Devon
Butterflies at Golden Cap, Devon | © National Trust Images/Nick Upton

Wildlife spotting

Wildlife enthusiasts should bring their binoculars because they're in for a treat.

The scrub at Ringstead attracts migratory birds such as the white throat, and you might also see waders on the foreshore and rock pipits, and see or hear a nightingale.

 

Butterflies and wildflowers

You're in prime butterfly spotting territory too. On the ground, you can see many beautiful wildflowers including viper's bugloss, carline thistle and other flowering plants of calcareous grassland.  

 

Running along Ringstead Bay

Why sweat it out on a treadmill in a gym when you can enjoy traffic-free running in the fresh air? For a beautiful but challenging training session, the undulating South West Coast Path awaits. 

The shingle beach with the sun rising behind the cliffs in the background at Ringstead Bay, Dorset

Discover more at Ringstead Bay

Find out how to get to Ringstead Bay, where to park, the things to see and do and more.

You might also be interested in

PDF
PDF

Ringstead Bay - 50 things to do map 

Check out our top spots for completing some of your '50 things to do before you're 11 3/4' challenges around Ringstead Bay

Three adults and a baby in a red room in the house at Max Gate
Article
Article

Things to do in the house at Max Gate 

Designed by Thomas Hardy himself, Max Gate is where he wrote some of his greatest novels and poetry, and where he lived until his death in 1928.

Hardy's Cottage in autumn in late afternoon sunshine in Dorset.
Article
Article

Things to see and do at Hardy’s Cottage 

Explore the simple thatched cottage where Thomas Hardy was born and raised, and the surrounding woodland landscape that greatly influenced his work.

Visitors kayaking near Old Harry Rocks, Studland Bay, Dorset

Outdoor activities in Dorset 

Get active this with autumn outdoor activities at a National Trust place near you in Dorset. There's plenty of places to exercise in the outdoors this season.

Looking over a drystone wall and across a grassy clifftop, two people look out to sea from behind a wooden fence

Walking in Dorset 

From strolls along the coastline by the sea to spectacular views over three counties at the top of Hambledon Hill, these are some of the best walks in Dorset this winter season.