BOURNEMOUTH in DORSET and the Jurassic Coast
Bournemouth is a large seaside resort town in the Borough of Bournemouth in Dorset, England.
It is a popular tourist destination as it is situated on the south coast of England and has over 7 miles of sandy beach. It is also popular with the surfing community.
Bournemouth lies adjacent to the sea with the shopping centre of the town inland - the commercial and civil heart of the town being The Square. From the Square the Upper and Lower Pleasure Gardens descend to the seafront and the pier.
Traditionally a large retirement town, Bournemouth (mostly the Northbourne, Southbourne and Tuckton areas of Bournemouth together with the Wallisdown, and Talbot Village areas of Poole) have seen massive growth in recent years, especially through the growth of students attending Bournemouth University.
Bournemouth is located directly to the east of the Jurassic Coast, a 95-mile section of beautiful and largely unspoilt coastline recently designated a World Heritage Site. Apart from the beauty of much of the coastline, the Jurassic Coast provides a complete geological record of the Jurassic period and a rich fossil record. Bournemouth sea front overlooks Poole Bay and the Isle of Wight. Bournemouth also has 7 miles of sandy beaches that run from Hengistbury Head in the east to Sandbanks, in Poole, in the west.
Europe's first artificial reef is to be found at Boscombe, in Bournemouth. The reef is constructed as part of the larger Boscombe Spa Village development. Bournemouth also has several chines that lead down to the beaches and form a very attractive feature of the area. The beaches are subdivided by groynes.
Bournemouth is a tourist and regional centre for leisure, entertainment, culture and recreation. The award winning Central Gardens are a separate major public park, leading for several miles down the valley of the River Bourne through the centre of the town to the sea (reaching the sea at Bournemouth Pier) and include the Pleasure Gardens and the area surrounding the Pavilion and the IMAX Cinema.
The Russell-Cotes Museum is located just to the east of the Central Gardens near the Pavilion Theatre and next to the Royal Bath Hotel. The museum includes many fine mostly 19th century paintings and the family collections acquired when travelling e.g. in Japan and Russia. It was Sir Merton Russell Cotes, one of Bournemouth's most prominent Victorians, who successfully campaigned to have a promenade built; it runs continuously along the Bournemouth and Poole shoreline.
The Royal Bath Hotel, located near the sea and just to the east of the Central Gardens, has attracted many important visitors over the years, including Oscar Wilde, H. G. Wells, Richard Harris, Sir Thomas Beecham, Shirley Bassey, and prime ministers Lord Beaconsfield (who stayed for three months to help his gout), Gladstone, Asquith and Lloyd George. Royal guests have been Edward VII and Edward VIII when each was the Prince of Wales, George VI when he was the Duke of York, Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands , Empress Eugenie of France and Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe before his European Travel ban.
The cover sleeve for "All Around the World" by Oasis was shot at Bournemouth, it features 4 of the bandmates standing on the beach and looking up towards to the sky, while the words "All Around The World" are written in the sand.
The main shopping streets in the centre of town are just behind the seafront on either side of the River Bourne; footpaths lead down to the sea from The Square through the lower section of Bournemouth Central Gardens.
The shopping streets are mostly pedestrianised and lined with a wide range of boutiques, stores, jewellers and accessory shops.