West Country

Sourced from Wikivoyage. Text is available under the CC-by-SA 3.0 license.
Matthew Hartley

The West Country is an unofficial, but popular, name for the South West of England. If you think you know southern England, but haven't ventured beyond the South East, the West Country will be a revelation. It is at once more rural and prettier than its crowded neighbour, offering extensive countryside of hills, forest and moorland, hemmed in on three sides by the sea. From the sandy beaches of Dorset, to the creeks and inlets of Devon, via Somerset's high cliffs and Cornwall's secluded coves, the South West Coast is as diverse as it is long. Large cities are few and far between, but for the cream of the crop, head to vibrant Bristol, beachy Bournemouth or charming Bath.
In addition to city, countryside and coast, the West Country hosts some of the UK's best-known attractions. While no trip to the region would be complete without a visit to Stonehenge, other landmarks include Cheddar Gorge in Somerset and the Eden Project in Cornwall. The region's fauna is impressive. A trip out to sea may permit sightings of whales, dolphins and basking sharks; inland you can seek out England's only wild beavers, plus river otters and kingfishers in Devon, rare butterflies and great bustards in Wiltshire's meadows and reintroduced wild boar in Gloucestershire.

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