Littlesea Holiday Park

Monkey World is an ape and monkey rescue centre set in 65 acres near Wool in Dorset. It was founded in 1987 and takes in primates rescued from the illegal pet trade, laboratories and abuse, rehabilitating them into natural living groups.

Tip: Book online in advance, as tickets are cheaper than at the gate.

The Cerne Abbas Giant is an ancient figure cut into the chalk hillside above the village of Cerne Abbas. At 180ft tall, it is Britain's largest chalk hill figure and perhaps the best known.

Tip: The viewing area in the car park gives the best view; the A352 lay-by is free but offers only a limited view. Keep dogs on leads, and expect mud on the steep slope after rain.

Portland Castle is one of Henry VIII's coastal artillery forts, built from Portland stone to defend Portland harbour. Its squat, rounded seaward form was designed to deflect incoming cannon shot, and Historic England considers it one of the best preserved examples of the king's forts.

Tip: The Captain's Tearoom offers vegan, gluten-free and dairy-free alternatives.

Chesil Beach is a major shingle beach in Dorset, running 29 kilometres from West Bay to the Isle of Portland. In places it is up to 15 metres high and 200 metres wide. Behind it lies the Fleet, a shallow tidal lagoon. The beach and the Fleet are part of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site and the Dorset National Landscape.

Tip: For the view Simon Jenkins rates as one of England's top ten, look along the coast from Abbotsbury towards Portland Bill.

The Tank Museum at Bovington tells the story of tanks and the crews who fought in them. Its collection of around 300 vehicles runs from the First World War through the Second World War and the Cold War to Afghanistan, with exhibitions built around personal stories from the soldiers themselves. It is Dorset's largest indoor attraction.

Tip: Allow 4-5 hours for your visit, and wear comfortable walking shoes as there is a lot of ground to cover.

Corfe Castle is a ruined fortress built by William the Conqueror in the 11th century, standing on a steep hill above the village on the Isle of Purbeck. It was one of the earliest English castles built partly in stone, and it was added to over the 12th and 13th centuries.

Tip: The car park fills up quickly in busy periods, so consider an alternative car park or arrive in the afternoon, when it tends to be quieter.

Durdle Door is a natural limestone arch on the Jurassic Coast near Lulworth in Dorset. It is privately owned by the Weld family of the Lulworth Estate, but open to the public. The arch formed as the sea eroded a band of hard Portland limestone, leaving the small headland that includes it. UNESCO teams monitor both the arch and the adjacent beach.

Maumbury Rings is a Neolithic henge close to the centre of Dorchester, in the south of the town. The Romans later adapted it as an amphitheatre for the people of Durnovaria, as Dorchester was then called. During the English Civil War it was remodelled again as an artillery fort guarding the southern approach to the town.

Tip: Red markings in the Waitrose car park, about 800 metres north-east, show where timber posts of a large Neolithic enclosure stood.