How to get to Dorset?

[mummaberry]

Planning to drive to Dorset from London and seem to remember that the last time we did this, discovering that we had gone the long way round!
Is it quicker to go somewhere like Bournemouth and get a boat accross?

[yousankmybattleship]

Erm....Bournemouth is in Dorset. No boat required! I'm not surprised you got lost last time!

Where exactly are you trying to get to?

[mummaberry]

Oh ha ha - sorry! Um.. tring to get to Swanage :)

[mummaberry]

i mean

[bibbitybobbityhat]

Put your starting point and destination in the AA route planner website. It takes you through every step of the journey, you can print it off and have it in the car with you. Has never let us down yet.

[kahlua4me]

I think it is easier to drive although it does seem long.
Have never used the ferry though so may be wrong!

[purplepidjincantatem]

M3, M27, A31, follow signs for Poole Beaches

bloody grockles messing the place up all summer

[purplepidjincantatem]

PS the ferry finishes at about half ten, so you'll need to know both routes if you're coming down of an evening

[mummylin2495]

If you can find your way to sandbanks,you can get the ferry asross to swanage.

[mummaberry]

grockles??

[mummaberry]

Thanks mummylin!

[purplepidjincantatem]

Tourists, particularly those jamming up the roads. In Cornwall it's emmets

To clarify, I live down here

[mummaberry]

Oh ok, in London we just call them "f**king tourists" when they jam up the tubes by standing still with their suitcase in the middle of rush hour

[purplepidjincantatem]

You got the same ones as us then. Round here they're usually showing acres of sunburned flesh and shouting about how crap the place is

[ElephantsAndMiasmas]

Erm, I thought swanage was...on land. I didn't get a boat there. Am i going mad?

[purplepidjincantatem]

The ferry takes you across the entrance to poole harbour. It's quicker than driving round the outside. So no you're not going mad!

[ChippyMinton]

The most direct route to Swanage using the ferry is to go via M3, M27, A31 then at Ringwood turn off to Bournemouth on the A338.
Continue into Poole, then follow signs for Beaches and Ferry. This will take you to the Sandbanks ferry (if you know the area you can cut through the back roads, but it's a bit tortuous to describe).

Your holiday starts now!
Join the queue, leave the driver in the car and stroll along and buy ice-creams while you wait. If you can, head for the right-hand side of the ferry as this side usually off-loads first. Have cash ready for toll on the other side.
Follow signs to Swanage.

[ElephantsAndMiasmas]

THANK YOU purplepidjin, I was really worried that my geeography was even shitter than I thought :)

[redfoxy]

grockles? lol Where I lived in Scotland we simply called them "tourrorists"

[mummaberry]

So we took the chain ferry from Sandbanks - saves you 1/2 hour driving on a return journey. Mentally this is a good thing when driving for a long time with a toddle in the car!

[Bunbaker]

I suggest you use Google Map and click on the Get Directions tab. You put in your own postcode and the one of the place you are going to - if you don't know the postcode just put the street name and town in.