Welcome To the e-travelguide to Hotels, guest houses and attractions in Somerset

Make the most of your time in Somerset, use the information provided on this web site by clicking on the links above to plan your visit.

Somerset is situated in the South West of England, and is a popular destination for tourists, thanks to its attractive and varied scenery and its host of attractions and things to see and do. It is bounded by the counties of Devon, Wiltshire and Dorset, with the historic spa town of Bath and the handsome city of Bristol to the North. Somerset is, in effect, bisected by the M5 motorway, and the famous Great Western Railway, pioneered by Isambard Kingdom Brunel in the 19 th Century, laid the foundations of the rail network that keeps Somerset connected to the rest of the country to this day.

The history of Somerset can be traced back to Neolithic times, when settlers began to inhabit the dry points on the expansive Somerset Levels. Significant examples of Iron Age habitation have been found in the county, with hill forts and burial sites dotted around the region. The name Somerset is believed to derive from Somersaete – meaning land of the summer people – and the first recorded use of this name was in AD845, at the time when the region was finally annexed by the Saxons. In more recent times Somerset was the site of the Battle of Sedgemoor in 1685, when the Monmouth Rebels were defeated in their quest to capture Bristol and Bath. Although the county of Avon was created in 1974 to incorporate Bristol and Bath, when large parts of Somerset found themselves renamed, the county is now considered redundant, with North Somerset and Bath and North East Somerset returning to the county.

Part of Somerset’s charm is its beautiful scenery. There are four main ranges of hills in the county – the Quantock Hills, the Brendon Hills, the Blackdown Hills and the Polden Hills – and these are exceptionally popular with walkers, due to their rolling nature and splendid vistas. Somerset is also characterised by the large flat expanses of the Somerset Levels, the spectacular Cheddar Gorge and the majority of the Exmoor National Park lies within the county (the remainder being in Devon). Somerset boasts a beautiful coastline, and several charming coastal resorts such as Minehead, Watchet and Burnham-on-Sea.

Contact:   0118 971 4700