VERDICT: We gave 5 out of 5 tickets and here’s why!
This guide forms part of our complete UK Travel Guide, featuring scenic road trips, iconic destinations, practical travel advice and honest first-hand travel experiences from across the United Kingdom.
This article is part of our 🚗 24hr UK Road Trip series, exploring Stonehenge, Durdle Door and Lulworth Cove in Dorset. The adventure takes us through a 5,000 year old monument, historic coastal towns, spectacular beaches, and the iconic Jurassic Coast. Read the complete itinerary here.
1st Stop: Top UK Destination – Stonehenge ✅
2nd Stop: A Perfect Natural Arch Formed Millions of Years Ago – Durdle Door ✅
3rd Stop: The Jurassic Coast, a UNESCO World Heritage Site – Lulworth Cove ✅
A scenic 24hr itinerary through ancient wonders, dramatic cliffs, and quaint English villages.
Want to know a gorgeous little road trip loop in southern England that we took?
From Trowbridge to Stonehenge, on to Durdle Door, then to Lulworth Cove & back to Trowbridge. Here’s the route we settled on + a short destination description. Visit links for more information:
Trowbridge, Wiltshire
This was our starting point, a historic market town that used to be the heart of England’s cloth industry. It’s low-key and real red brick mills, independent shops & Trowbridge Park for a quick cuppa before you hit the road.
Trowbridge is about 2 hours from Stonehenge. It’s a great base because it’s less expensive than Bath & still puts you right between Salisbury Plain & the Jurassic Coast. It also happens to be where some of our family live.
Stonehenge, Salisbury Plain is about a 1 hour and 45 minutes drive southwest. These iconic, 5,000-year-old standing stones sitting in the middle of farmland hit different in person. Truly mind blowing.
We suggest to go early to avoid crowds & to get that misty, ancient vibe. The visitor centre is very modern, incredibly interesting, but the stones themselves feel timeless.
Tips: walk the perimeter path, it’s free and gives you great views without the ticket queue. But you’re missing out by not getting the history in the visitor centre. We hopped the shuttle(as the weather wasn’t great)& enjoyed the ride along the fields to the henge. Give yourself at least 1.5 hours here. There’s also a great gift shop & cafe.
Durdle Door, Dorset
Another 1 hour 15 minute drive south, this famous limestone arch drops straight into the turquoise sea.
It’s part of the Jurassic Coast, so the cliffs are 185 million years old!The walk down is very steep but worth it. One of us made it down, the other knew better than to try. The views & photos were stunning either way.
This is not a town, just raw coastline, a car park, and that perfect postcard view. There were a couple of snack stands but not much else, and that’s the point.
Lulworth Cove, Dorset
5 minutes down the road from Durdle Door is the lovely Lulworth Cove. A perfect horseshoe bay with calm, shallow water & a pebble beach. The little village of West Lulworth sits right behind it.
Think thatched cottages, a couple of pubs like The Lulworth Cove Inn(we enjoyed dinner here), ice cream shops, and fossil stores. It’s touristy but cute, and way more sheltered than Durdle. Great spot for lunch & a paddle before heading back.
The drive back to Trowbridge is only about 1 hour 45 minutes north through the Dorset countryside. You’ll pass rolling hills, farms, and tiny villages. It’s quaint, the quintessential English countryside.
For a one day trip, this would be about 5.5-6 hours of driving + stops. It’s a long but epic day. Or you could do it leisurely in two days with an overnight stay in one of the coastal villages.
Before You Go
by My Return Ticket
Local Tip
Start early in the morning to capitalize on time spent at each stop. Earlier at Stonehenge will also avoid crown build up later in the day as this is one of the most popular places in the UK.
Information Verified: 10/02/2025
The Bottom Line
This was an amazing road trip combining ancient monuments like Stonehenge, through to seeing the incredible Jurassic Coast. The three stops were about the maximum number of attractions to see in one day. Road Trip commenced in Trowbridge, Wiltshire.
Continue Exploring The South Coast:
Nearby Attractions:
Planning Your Trip?
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With every trip, we offer feedback to travel companies along with honest views for you, the reader. We rate adventures on a scale of one to five tickets, judged on quality, service, memorability, and price. A perfect ‘Ticket Rating’ of a five-ticket score means the experience was flawless and we’d eagerly return. Your desire to go back is the ultimate measure of a trip’s worth. Exclusive to My Return Ticket.
