Studland is across the water from Sandbanks, and the chain ferry gets you there in four minutes. It feels like a different county.
The beaches
Four miles of sand running south from the harbour entrance, backed by dunes and heath, almost all of it National Trust. Shell Bay, at the northern end, looks straight back across the harbour mouth at Sandbanks.
The heath
Behind the dunes lies lowland heath, one of the rarest habitats in Europe, with species that live almost nowhere else in Britain. Keep to the paths.
Old Harry Rocks
The chalk stacks at the end of the headland mark the eastern end of the Jurassic Coast. About a mile and a half each way from the village on the coast path, with gentle climbing and very large views.
Making a day of it
Combine with Corfe Castle and the Purbeck hills: see Dorset and countryside and the great outdoors itinerary.