The document summarizes attractions in England's South West region, which is a popular holiday destination for Brits. It describes the historic towns and cities in the counties of Wiltshire, Dorset, Devon, Cornwall and Somerset. These include the cathedral towns of Salisbury and Sherborne, as well as coastal areas like Budleigh Salterton and Torbay. Other highlights mentioned are the cities of Exeter, Plymouth, Truro, Bristol, Bath and Glastonbury. In concluding, the document states that the South West region offers language students bustling ancient ports, quiet medieval cathedrals, great surfing and sailing, and breathtaking coastal and countryside scenery.

1. ELdestinationOctober 2014 Page 7
T
he South West of England
has long been a favourite
holiday destination of the
British and offers a picture-post-
card vision of Britain: ancient
ruins, seaside resorts, historic
market towns, cathedral cit-
ies – and of course the famous
cream teas. Officially starting
where Bournemouth ends, the
region encompasses five coun-
ties – Wiltshire, Dorset, Devon,
Cornwall and Somerset. So let’s
explore the region, visiting all the
locations of English UK South
West member schools, to dis-
cover why Brits love it so much.
Driving due north from
Bournemouth, we first come to
the cathedral town of Salisbury
– a hop, skip and a jump from
the ancient monument of Stone-
henge – well known for its street
markets, arts centres and charm-
ing individual shops. One of the
most famous tourist attractions
in the area is Longleat, a stately
home and safari park just out-
side the historic market town of
Warminster, in the Wylie Valley,
an area of outstanding natural
beauty. To the south-west, in the
county of Dorset, lies Sherborne,
one of Britain’s most beautiful
medieval towns, with its ancient
abbey, two castles and cluster of
historic schools.
Due west, just over the bor-
der in Devon, lies Budleigh
Salterton on the Jurassic Coast,
a Unesco world heritage site.
The area boasts fishing villages,
coastal walks and the magnifi-
cent Bicton Gardens. Nearby
lies the cathedral town of Exeter,
home to a bustling modern uni-
versity and nestled between a
coastal area famous for surfing,
sailing and windsurfing and the
Dartmoor National Park.
Just to the south-west lies
Torbay, a region known as the
English Rivera, where palm
trees grown in the warm micro-
climate. The biggest of the three
towns that make up the area
is Torquay, one of Britain’s
favourite holiday destinations
with its marina, beaches and,
of course, Kents Cavern, home
to Britain’s earliest humans for
700,000 years. Next door Paign-
ton is famous for its festivals,
carnivals, regattas and annual
children’s week.
Follow the River Dart north
from Paignton and you arrive at
Totnes, an old market town on a
hill overlooking the river which
is famous for its locally made
products, both traditional and
bohemian, and where, legend has
it, you can buy anything from a
walking stick to a didgeridoo. If
you head south-west from here
you arrive at Plymouth, regional
capital of Devon and Cornwall
and famous as a maritime city
since the tenth century. From here
you can wander the historic Bar-
bican, shop at the stylish Armada
Centre or have a night out at the
Theatre Royal, one of the best in
the country. Cross the Tamar and
you are in Cornwall, England’s
most westerly county. Right at its
heart lies its capital Truro.
If you head north from Truro
and then drive east through
the spectacular scenery of the
north coast of Cornwall and
Devon you arrive in the county
of Somerset. The inland county
town of Taunton in the spectac-
ular vale of Taunton Deane has
flower boats, a mass of parks
and gardens and an annual
flower show known as the Chel-
sea of the West.
A few miles east you find
Glastonbury, home to the legend
of King Arthur and a world-
famous music festival. Two
miles away is the charming town
of Street, headquarters of the
typically English Clarks shoes.
Then northward to Bath, a
2,000-year-old city with Roman
baths, a magnificent 500-year-
old abbey and the famous
Georgian architecture described
so vividly in the novels of Jane
Austen. Like Florence and Salz-
burg this city is a Unesco world
heritage site.
Just north-west lies Britain’s
fourth city, Bristol. The historic
docks have been turned into
a buzzing artistic centre and
its stunning architecture, from
medieval to modern, spectacu-
lar views and lively university
scene makes it a perfect place
to live and study. Indeed in a
recent survey of international
students the city was voted the
best place to be a student in
Britain.
The South West of England
has everything to offer a lan-
guage student, from the bustle
of ancient ports to the quiet of
medieval cathedrals, and from
the best surf and sailing in the
country to breathtaking walks
though national parks, hills and
cliff tops. Try it – millions of
British people do every year. n
From resorts to ancient ruins
Melanie Butler takes a trip through England’s South West to discover what
makes the picturesque and historic region a perfect language study destination
PICTURE-PERFECT PAST Ancient monument Stonehenge is one of the region’s many attractions
CourtesythegarethwiscombeThe region has everything to offer a
language student, from the bustle of ancient
ports to the quiet of medieval cathedrals
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