Local Attractions
You can easily spend a day looking around the medieval village of Dunster. Here you will find some of the gems hidden in Dunster.
Dunster Medieval Village
Dunster is one of the largest and most complete medieval villages in England. The fairy-tale Dunster castle overlooks the village and the Victorian Folly tower at the other end of the village makes a good viewing point. The old octagonal yarn market stands proud in the High Street, right outside the hotel. There is so much to discover here, you can easily spend a whole day wandering around.
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Dunster Castle (NT)
Dunster Castle sits high on Dunster Tor. It is worthy of a guided tour to see the fascinating interior brought to life. It is over 1000 years old and was once the home to the Luttrells who gave it to the National Trust in 1976.
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Dunster Church
No visit would be complete without a visit to the beautiful St. George's Parish Church. Its ornately carved 'Rood' screen and unique collection of 'Hatchments' were originally hung outside the house of the deceased, as a form of information board. They were then moved to the Church after the funeral.
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Dunster Working Water Mill (NT)
A walk down West Street (the cottages are some the oldest in Dunster) to the Dunster Working Water Mill. Here you can often watch the flour being ground and see the big water wheel driving the milling stones. You can buy some flour to take home and try in your 'Bread makers', or for the more experienced you can knead and prove it in the old-fashioned way.
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Yarn Market
The famous Yarn Market building is right outside the Hotel and was built in 1605 for the Farmers Wives to spin the sheep's wool and weave it into cloth which was known as 'Dunster Cloth'.
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Dunster Dovecot
The dovecote was probably built in the 16th century and belonged to the Benedictine Priory. Pigeons would have been bred as a source of food. The interior still has the rows of pigeon holes with a revolving ladder to enable the pigeon-keeper to reach the pigeons.
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West Somerset Steam Railway
The West Somerset Steam Railway runs from Minehead to Bishops Lydeard. This is about 22 miles which makes it the longest, standard gauge, privately run railway in England. A nostalgic trip in a steam train is a must. With a Rover Ticket you can get off and on as you wish at all the quaint village stations along the route. Discover pretty villages attached to the stations and enjoy the beautiful scenery as you travel through the Quantocks with views of Exmoor in the distance.
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Watchet
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Watchet is a few miles from Dunster with its new Marina and interesting Museum. On the way to Watchet you will come to Tropiquaria in the old Radio Transmitting Station. There are various attractions here which appeal to young and old alike. Everybody enjoys d the wonderful selection of animals, birds and reptiles. There is also a very interesting Radio Museum.
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Cycling in Exmoor
Exmoor has many miles of off-road bridleways, perfect for cycling with your e-bike or mountain bike. There are some excellent books available from the National Park Visitor Centre in Dunster. Our road network is less inviting as even our main roads can be narrow in places.
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Walking in Exmoor
Exmoor is blessed with some of the best walking in the country with over 300 miles of well-kept and signposted paths. The South West Coast Path starts at Minehead and follows the rugged and high cliffs to Combe Martin. The Coleridge Way starts at Nether Stowey and ends 51 miles later at Lynmouth. It is easy to make circular walks and the hotel has plenty of information to help you. Check out Exmoor National Parks Guides Walks for various different walks throughout the year.
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Guided Walking
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Check out Exmoor National Parks Guides Walks for a rich variety of walks throughout the year. Many different places to be explored and lots to learn about the area.
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Gardens and Wildlife
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For every season the local Gardens offer an explosion of different colours, with a variety of beautiful flowers and plants scattered thoughout the Village and the surrunding woodland area, where you can also meet our Red Deers and the famous Exmoor ponies.
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