Help me out - what to do in Weymouth?

[SushiSuave]

We are travelling down to Weymouth today (OH, DS7 and me) for a weeks holiday and the weather for the next few days is rubbish! We want to go to Sealife one day, but can anyone recommend any other places to visit when it's raining? Hopefully it will dry out and we can spend the end of the week on the beach!

The Nothe Fort is fab. We’ve been many times over the years and have always enjoyed it.

Go fossil hunting in Lyme Regis or Kimmeridge.

A trip to Portland.

Visit Bournemouth or Poole for cinemas etc.....

A great play park has opened up at Poundbury (King Charles' Town).

Thank you both - is nothe fort ok on a rainy day? Is there enough that is inside/covered?

Just wear a raincoat? It's not cold. We've just returned from there and the weather was wet, but wear coats and enjoy your holiday!

The Tank Museum at Bovington isn't too much of a drive. Our DS's enjoyed it.

The sand sculpture place by sea life is good as well, and undercover.

Abbotsbury subtropical gardens are warmer and more sheltered than anywhere else around - we went there a couple of years ago while on a wet windy camping week in Weymouth and it was great. Definitely less windy there than elsewhere, and warmer.

Museums in Lyme Regis or Dorchester?

Really it only looks like today is rubbish and the rest of the week is basically fine with a bit of rain every now and again. Don’t worry about it!

Most of the Nothe Fort is undercover 😃

Second the tank museum! Stop on the way down to break the journey.

Portland bill lighthouse is great . There's a visitor centre to look round at the bottom but it is definitely worth paying to climb to the top as well

There’s a great water park in Poole called splashdown. Loads of different, themed slides.

Haynes Motor Museum at Sparkford is about an hour from Weymouth.

Thank you everyone, lots of great ideas here

Monkey World is a good day out

Splash down in Poole is mostly indoors and good for a rainy day. The tank museum is also a good shout. Dorchester has a lovely cinema call the plaza. It’s really old fashion and only £3.50 a ticket. Dorchester also has quite a few museums including a dinosaur one. Max gate (Thomas Hardy’s house) or Kingston lacy if you have national trust membership. Dorchester also has brewery square where you can sit and have something to eat while the kids play in the fountains.

weymouth has a big sealife centre, but quite a bit of it is outdoors so would be best done a on a dry day. Bournemouth has a small sealife centre which is all indoors. Weymouth also has lots of arcades you can waste money in when it’s wet.

Also the fleet air arm museum or Haynes motor museum if you want to travel a bit further.

Dorchester has a few musuems(dinosaur, Teddy and Egyptian) odeon cinema. Weymouth has a cineworld cinema I think.

There's also Weymouth pavillion which does shows I think

And a road train which might be ok with raincoats on

We had a rainy long weekend in Weymouth and did sealife and lighthouse and played a load of board games and walked along the harbour, the children loved it and can't wait to go back

Definitely Monkey World

We used to stay at Osmington Mills when the kids were little and used to go to Sharkys soft play if we had a spare hour in Weymouth.

The Dorset mums blog has a huge list of things to do, including free events and ideas for rainy days, so well worth a look.
Hope you have a great time In beautiful Weymouth.

There is an indoor skate park on the front if you have brought scooters.

Book sailing at Andrew Simpson or windsurfing at OTC. They are wet anyway, so rain doesn't matter.

In wet weather recommend that you get on the train and go to Dorchester. There's a group of museums at different venues but fairly close to each other which a 7yr old would love - the Dinosaur Museum, the Tutankhamun Museum, the Terracotta Warriors Museum and although a bit twee, the Teddy Bear Museum. There is also the Dorset County Museum which is excellent and has a wide variety of exhibits for all ages. The Keep Military Museum is also very good if your DC finds that interesting - our DC loved it.
I would not recommend going on Portland to see the lighthouse in poor weather as you'll see very little and tbh it can get a bit hairy in the wind. Go and see the lighthouse on a dry calm day and visit on the bus for better views on the journey - I think there's still a tourist open top bus which is great.
We've visited The Nothe on a wet day and it was ok as much is undercover but you still have a walk to get to it.
Hope this helps.

Mine preferred it in the wind and rain @MothralovesGojira (we've done it in sunshine too) . It was more dramatic this way!!

@BlossomCloud
I agree it is more dramatic but when we went on a wet windy day the youngest DC (8) got blown over and we spent 6 hours in A+E with a head injury!

So much to do.

Make sure you are well coated up.

Sea life (you've mentioned this)
Crazy golf pirates (next door)
Sand world (also next door)
Pottery painting in town
Northe fort

Slight drive
Bovington tank museum
Monkey world
Lulworth castle
Moreton gardens (animals, garden and tea rooms)

Independent cinema (Plaza) in Dorchester which is cheap and on the train line from Weymouth.

Cineworld in Weymouth (expensive)

There is Abbotsbury Swannery and subtropical gardens which is a bus ride from Weymouth.

Dorchester on the train line. So many museums, Teddybear museum, Dorchester museum, Tutankhamen museum, Shire museum.

Very good fish and chips in both towns.

Lots to do!