Poole

Poole is a coastal town and seaport in Dorset, on the south coast of England. Poole is a tourist resort, attracting visitors with its large natural harbour, history, the Lighthouse arts centre and Blue Flag beaches.

Understand
The town has cross-Channel freight and passenger ferry services, which connect with the Channel Islands of Jersey and Guernsey, as well as the French port town of Saint-Malo, Brittany.

In 2016, it was home to 15,000 people.

Visitor information

 * Poole Tourism website

By train
is about 2½ hr from London Waterloo with 2 trains per hour for most of the day. There are regular, quick and convenient trains on the South West Trains service, but rail fares are generally expensive, so be careful.

By coach
There are coaches between Poole bus station and London Victoria about once an hour, via Bournemouth.

By road
From the east, take the M27 until it becomes the A31. Continue past Ringwood, and follow the signs for Poole. From the west, come in on the A35.

By bus
There are regular buses on the More and Yellow Buses services. However, more buses tend to go further, with links to Southampton, Dorchester and Salisbury.

By boat
Daily ferry services from Poole Harbour run to Cherbourg in France as well as Jersey and Guernsey in the Channel Islands.

Do

 * Kite flying. From the quay, when facing the water turn left and walk for about half a mile until you reach a park. This is known as Baiter Park and is very close to Poole Park. On a good day, the kites will probably be visible from afar.
 * In the summer, there are fireworks displays alternately in Bournemouth and Poole.
 * Every Tuesday evening from April to September, motorbike enthusiasts converge on Poole. Apparently there are sometimes as many as 1000 cycles and, of course, the pubs on the Quay do good business from them. A good opportunity to swap tales or see what everyone else is riding. All parking on the quay is reserved for motorbikes but there is a charge of £1 and a prize for the best bike.
 * Tower Park, indoor waterpark, movie theatre, various restaurants, bingo, and more.
 * Folk on the Quay is a folk festival, held in late June.
 * Folk on the Quay is a folk festival, held in late June.

Eat
Most restaurants are along the quay, but there are a number of great eateries further into the Old Town.

Drink
There are lots of pubs along the quay and a little inland.

Sleep
There are many hotels and guesthouses in Poole, especially in the town centre. There are also camping sites in neighbouring towns such as Swanage and Merley. There is a Youth Hostel in Swanage.

Connect
As of June 2022, Poole has 4G from O2, and 5G from EE, Three and Vodafone.

Go next

 * Bournemouth is nearby and has other places to visit, such as the oceanarium.
 * MonkeyWorld, near Wareham, is about 30 minutes away by car.
 * The New Forest is about an hour away by car and very popular in the summer.