Kimmeridge Bay Reviews Summary

Beach and Cliffs

Pros:

• "What a beautiful Peaceful place to sit and relax."
• "Safe for snorkeling. Wear sturdy shoes for the beach and tread carefully as there are slippery rocks."
• "Visited here on a very hot day and it was spectacular."
• "It is such a beautiful drive down into kimmerage bay and an easy walk down to the pebbled beach."
• "A wonderful beach with fossils everywhere. They're on the floor in the rocks and also on the cliffs."
• "Rockpools to explore and if you're lucky you might find a fossil."
• "A lovely little stoney beach with crystal clear water suitable for swimming and snorkeling."

Cons:

• "Beach is very large pebbles, not comfortable."
• "A very dangerous place though - hard hat recommendations and warnings of high tides were noticeable in their absence."
• "The cliffs are prone to falls and can be very dangerous."
• "Ankle-breaking rocks."
• "All the sea weed makes it very slippery, and don't go too close to the cliff walls, we saw a couple of small rock falls."
• "Crumbling clay cliffs overhang the beach so care is needed especially after rainfall."
• "The footpath to the beach is rather treacherous."

Parking and Access

Pros:

• "Arrived around 6pm, so parked for free."
• "£6 to park. Large car park overlooking the bay."
• "A great place to visit but we paid £3 for parking for an hour."
• "Get there earlier rather than later, car parks fill up quick, even in winter."
• "Parking £6 all day. Looks like new cabins with toilets/cafe etc are being installed besides the carpark."
• "£6 to park all day with large car park."
• "The carpark at the top is £6 via toll road, card payment is accepted."

Cons:

• "Nice view but £5 to get down there via the toll road is too pricey."
• "Car park at the top is £5 cash only which we had to go to the pub to get."
• "It’s 6.00 to drive in, so be mindful of that, if you are only stopping for a short time."
• "Pity £6 toll road fee to get to the bay but does include parking, so ok if stopping the day."
• "You have to pay for entry to the private road to get to the beach."
• "£6 to drive down to the beach to take a few photos in the winter is extortionate."
• "To drive down to the bay you need to use a private road which is £5.00."

Amenities and Facilities

Pros:

• "A lovely little bay with good amenities."
• "The wild seas centre gave us an insight into the wildlife in the area."
• "Good for a picnic by your car with direct sea views."
• "One of the wonders of the Jurassic Coast. Also one of the best surf spots on the South Coast in the right conditions."
• "There is a toilet block on your way down to the Marine centre."
• "Great new food stalls and loos in car park above and a Dorset Wild Life Trust Wild seas centre which can be reached from car park."
• "Clean toilets, ice cream stall and random but delicious Mexican street food pop up."

Cons:

• "The toilets however... When we visited, the toilets were closed."
• "The toilet is a bit of walk to."
• "Considering the high cost, facilities at Kimmeridge bay were poor. Information panels were missing, steps & paths weren't maintained & overgrown."
• "One thing I noticed was a lack of bins... maybe a summer only thing, but there were no bins in the carpark or by the toilets."
• "The cost for a lovely day out £6. For the money they make they could up grade the toilets."
• "Facilities there are poor to non existent, with a small ice cream stand providing the only source of food and drink on site, and a poorly located toilet block, lacking toilet paper, soap, and hot water."
• "Toilets were distinguishing my 6 year refused to use them. Not clean broken locks and no hand dyer or towels."

General Experience

Pros:

• "Unlike much of the jurassic coast we've visited recently it has a lack of idiots on jet skis and motor boats, meaning the marine ecosystem is protected."
• "A wonderful place to see so many fossils & learn about them."
• "Absolutely stunning spot to spend a day by the sea."
• "A mobile coffee and ice-cream shop is located at the bottom car parking."
• "This is such an amazing place. Great day out for the family."
• "Stunning location with great surf, rock pools, fossils, a small aquarium and public toilets."
• "Fantastic day out with kids and dog. Got lucky on the fossil hunting and had a nice walk up past Cavell Tower."

Cons:

• "It was disappointing to see so much destruction from fossil hunting."
• "Compared to the other beaches/bays we visited this week (Studland, Warbarrow & Chapman's) this was the most disappointing."
• "Experience was spoiled somewhat by people smashing up the rocks randomly in the hopes of finding fossils."
• "Clearly a cash cow during the popular summer weekends, an awesome places spoiled by a very rude man."
• "Very disappointed discover it 'closes' at 20:00 now? Not really sure what paid services I need providing to be able to sit on the beach on my own."
• "In the summer this is probably a nice place to potter in the rock pools but our experience was a muddy uncared for place that we left after 5 minutes."
• "This was my first disappointing visit to Kimmeridge, as all visits before have been lovely."