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What to See in Bournemouth - Top Sights and Attractions

Discover 20 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Bournemouth (United Kingdom). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum, St. Andrew's Church, and Oceanarium. Also, be sure to include Hengistbury Head in your itinerary.

Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Bournemouth (England).

Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum
wikipedia / Ethan Doyle White / CC BY-SA 4.0

The Russell-Cotes Museum is an art gallery and museum in Bournemouth, England. A Grade II* listed building originally known as East Cliff Hall, it is located on the top of the East Cliff, next to the Royal Bath Hotel.[1]

Address: Promenade East Cliff, BH1 3AA Bournemouth

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St. Andrew's Church

Parish church
wikipedia / Chris Downer / CC BY-SA 2.0

Parish church. St. Andrew's Church is a Grade II* listed historic parish church in Kinson, Bournemouth, Dorset. The church dates from the 12th century.[2]

Address: Millhams Road, BH10 7LN Bournemouth

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Oceanarium

Aquarium in Bournemouth, England
wikipedia / Tiia Monto / CC BY-SA 3.0

Aquarium in Bournemouth, England

Address: Pier Approach, BH2 5AA Bournemouth

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Hengistbury Head

Visitor center in Bournemouth, England
wikipedia / Hut 8.5 / CC BY-SA 3.0

Visitor center in Bournemouth, England. Hengistbury Head, formerly also called Christchurch Head, is a headland jutting into the English Channel between Bournemouth and Mudeford in the English county of Dorset. It is a site of international importance in terms of its archaeology and is scheduled as an Ancient Monument. Declared a Local Nature Reserve in 1990, the head and its surroundings form part of the Christchurch Harbour Site of Special Scientific Interest. It is also a Special Area of Conservation, Special Protection Area, an Environmentally Sensitive Area and a Site of Nature Conservation Interest. The name "Hengistbury Head" refers to the immediate area; the elevated portion is called Warren Hill.

There has been human activity on the site since the Upper Palaeolithic. During the Victorian era, it was heavily quarried, and in recent years tourism has become significant – it receives more than one million visitors annually. The various habitats on the Head provide a home for many plants, birds and insects, some of them rare and critically endangered. Erosion remains a threat to the site, although long-term projects are intended to secure it for the future.[3]

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St Peter's Church

Building in Bournemouth, England
wikipedia / Ethan Doyle White / CC BY-SA 4.0

Building in Bournemouth, England. St Peter's Church is a Church of England parish church located in the centre of Bournemouth, Dorset, England. It is a Grade I listed building classed as a 'major parish church', and was completed in 1879 to a design by George Edmund Street as the founding mother church of Bournemouth. The building incorporates work by some of the finest Gothic Revival architects and artists, including Street, George Frederick Bodley, Ninian Comper, Arthur Blomfield and Edward Burne-Jones, with stained glass and frescoes by Clayton and Bell. The chancel has been described as 'one of the richest Gothic Revival interiors in England'. The 202-foot -high spire is a landmark in Bournemouth's centre, where it is the Town Centre Parish Church, together with the churches of St Stephen and St Augustine.

Mary Shelley, author of Frankenstein, is interred here, reputedly along with the heart of her husband, the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley.[4]

Address: 4 Hinton Rd, BH1 2EE Bournemouth

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BH2

BH2
wikipedia / Wilfredor / CC BY-SA 4.0

Shopping, Shopping centre, Cinema

Address: Exeter Crescent, BH2 5AU Bournemouth

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Bournemouth Parks - Lower Gardens

Bournemouth Parks - Lower Gardens
wikipedia / Ethan Doyle White / CC BY-SA 4.0
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Little Theatre Club

Little Theatre Club
facebook / BLittleTheatre / CC BY-SA 3.0

Bournemouth Little Theatre Club was founded in 1919 as The Bournemouth Dramatic and Orchestral Club and is the oldest amateur drama club in the Bournemouth / Poole / Christchurch area.

The club stages 6 to 8 productions (dramas, thrillers, comedies, and farces) a year, and is the only local group with its own dedicated premises on Jameson Road in Winton, Bournemouth.[5]

Address: 11 Jameson Road, Bournemouth

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Bournemouth Town Hall

Bournemouth Town Hall
wikipedia / Chris Downer / CC BY-SA 2.0

Bournemouth Town Hall is a municipal facility in Bourne Road, Bournemouth, England. The town hall, which is the meeting place of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council, is a Grade II listed building.[6]

Address: Bourne Avenue, Bournemouth

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The Square

The Square
wikipedia / Chris Downer / CC BY-SA 2.0

The Square is a public square in Bournemouth Town Centre that marks the centre of Bournemouth, England. The Square separates the Central Gardens from the Lower Gardens.[7]

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Pavilion Theatre

Theatre in Bournemouth, England
wikipedia / Tiia Monto / CC BY-SA 4.0

Theatre in Bournemouth, England. The Pavilion Theatre and Ballroom is a concert hall in Bournemouth. It opened in 1929 and has been redesigned several times since.[8]

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Talbot Woods

Talbot Woods
wikipedia / Chris Downer / CC BY-SA 2.0

Talbot Woods is an area of Bournemouth, Dorset. Talbot Woods is south of Talbot Village.[9]

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Bournemouth International Centre

Sports venue in Bournemouth, England
wikipedia / LordHarris / CC BY-SA 3.0

Sports venue in Bournemouth, England. The Bournemouth International Centre in Bournemouth, Dorset, was opened in September 1984. It is one of the largest venues for conferences, exhibitions, entertainment and events in southern England. Additionally, it is well known for hosting national conferences of major British political parties and trade unions.[10]

Address: Exeter Road, BH2 5BH Bournemouth

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RockReef

RockReef
wikipedia / Henning Schlottmann (H-stt) / CC BY-SA 4.0
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St Stephen's Church

Anglican church in Bournemouth, England
wikipedia / LordHarris / CC BY-SA 3.0

Anglican church in Bournemouth, England. St Stephen's Church is an Anglican church in Bournemouth, Dorset. The liturgical life of the Church is rooted in the Anglo-Catholic tradition. The Church has a noted Lady Chapel, and celebrates Marian masses, benediction and recitation of the Rosary for the Society of Mary. Devotion to Our Lady of Walsingham is also common.

The church is close to Bournemouth Town Centre and Meyrick Park.[11]

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Bournemouth Pier

Bournemouth Pier
wikipedia / NMOS332 / CC BY-SA 2.0

Piers and boardwalks

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Bournemouth Hebrew Congregation

Synagogue in Bournemouth, England
wikipedia / Public Domain

Synagogue in Bournemouth, England. The Bournemouth Hebrew Congregation is a synagogue in Lansdowne, Bournemouth, England. Its Rabbi is Adrian Jesner.[12]

Address: 10 Wootton Gardens, BH1 1PW Bournemouth

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Corpus Christi Church

Catholic church in Bournemouth, England
wikipedia / Pjposullivan / CC BY-SA 4.0

Catholic church in Bournemouth, England. Corpus Christi Church is a Roman Catholic church in Boscombe, on the outskirts of Bournemouth in Dorset. It in the Diocese of Portsmouth and is served by the Society of Jesus. It is situated on St. James' Square, on the corner of Parkwood Road and Christchurch Road. It was founded in 1895 and from its 108 ft tall bell tower, it is possible see the Isle of Wight.[13]

Address: 18 St James's Square, BH5 2BX Bournemouth

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Stour Valley Local Nature Reserve and Kingfisher Barn Visitor Centre

Stour Valley Local Nature Reserve and Kingfisher Barn Visitor Centre
wikipedia / Lewis Clarke / CC BY-SA 2.0

Park, Relax in park

Address: Granby Road, Bournemouth

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Bournemouth War Memorial

Bournemouth War Memorial
wikipedia / LordHarris / CC BY-SA 3.0

Bournemouth War Memorial is a First World War memorial built in 1921, located in the central gardens in Bournemouth, United Kingdom. The memorial is guarded by two stone lions made by WA Hoare. It was designed by Bournemouth's deputy architect Albert Edward Shervey, who copied the two lions from Antonio Canova's lions which guarded the tomb of Pope Clement XIII.[14]

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