A Cruise Guide To Portland In Dorset For Passengers

With more cruise ships coming to Portland and the industry opening up again a passenger cruise guide to Portland, I felt was needed.

Firstly where, is Portland?

Portland is located on the south coast of the UK and is in the middle of the World Heritage Jurassic Coast.

The island.  As it’s referred to locally as an ‘island’.  It is in fact connected to the mainland via Chesil Beach which is and 16mile long pebble beach thrown up in storms 5,000 years ago.

Portland is known for its quarries and its Portland Stone.  The preferred stone of choice for many iconic buildings in London.

St Paul’s Cathedral, Buckingham Palace, great shopping streets like Regent Street are all Portland Stone. As is the Bank of England, Whitehall and its most hallowed use is for the Cenotaph war memorial.

The Romans referred to it as being ‘the Isle of Slingers’.  Who’s residents pelted them with stones from the high cliffs that aided their fight against them.

3 Castles To Check Out In The Cruise Guide to Portland

There are several castles on the island as its defensive suitability was recognised by different rulers. Including Henry VIII who built a fort at Castletown close to the current cruise port.

In more recent times Portland and its man-made enclosed harbour built during the Napoleonic period.  This made it the largest enclosed man made harbour in the world. It has been a key Royal Naval dockyard. One of three such places like Portsmouth and Plymouth which it sits between both of them geographically on the South coast.

A key target during the second World War with many raids being carried out on it during the conflict. Some civilians were buried at St George’s church.

A VC was one in its defence and Jack Mantle is buried at the cemetery just above the current port in the Royal Naval cemetery.

However, when the fighting tide turned it was a primary point for the embarkation of many hundreds of thousands of US and Allied troops for D Day in June 1944.

The whole of the harbour that you can view from the cruise port would have been almost solid with ships of all types ready for the call to arms on June 5^th.  And, by the morning of June 6^th it was almost empty!

A short potted history but what can visitors expect to see and experience now?

D Day Was One Of Its Greatest Days

Following on from its D Day history just outside the Port is the Castletown D Day Centre.  A museum dedicated to the US and local involvement in that key event in Portland’s history.

Vehicles, full size Spitfire model, guns and artefacts from the period help to tell the story. Two giant items on show from the museum are two Mulberry harbour units. These 2,000 tonne concrete caissons were  built to be part of a floating harbour for the invasion.

Cruise Ship Guide to Weymouth

 A ferry boat service operates in the summer from Weymouth and will bring passengers to and fro dropping them at the Portland Marina and D Day centre. Close to the museum is the castle built by Henry VIII, Portland Castle.

Behind it a cycle and footpath will take you to Portland Marina and the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy.  Here the only battles are sailors fighting for medals in their various sailing craft around the huge enclosed harbour.  It was the location for the Olympic sailing events for London 2012.

Above the port is the Verne Citadel once a fortification built to help defend from a possible French invasion. Now a major part of it is a prison.  The formidable gate on the hillside indicates its entrance. Although you can safely enter through there to access the Jailhouse café.

A charity run facility which offers training for former prisoners.

Where Get The Best Views From Portland

However, the views from its gardens are probably the very best on Portland. It’s elevated position offers great views back to the cruise terminal itself.  And more recently offered views of many of the cruise ships that were anchoring due to the Covid lock down.

 

Above: During Covid-19 these were the scene in Weymouth Bay.

A cream tea, morning coffee or light lunch certainly worth stopping off there.

3 Lighthouses At Portland Bill

At the furthest point on Portland is the iconic Portland Bill Lighthouse. Here not one but three lighthouses can be seen. The 100foot high red and white one still is use today is the most famous.

The former ones are located nearby. One is now the home to an RSPB bird sanctuary  and the third light can be seen high on the hill to the north.

Tidal flows around Portland Bill create very dangerous sea conditions.  With a submerged sand bank the lighthouse has been very important in keeping mariners safe.

Scattered around the lighthouse there are many small wooden beach style huts these are often handed down within families.  They are treasured as places to come and sit and enjoy the views in summer or at times of storms.

The rusty crane was used to load stone and lower small fishing boats into the sea. With the Lobster Pot Café again another place to take lunch or tea watching the ships and sometimes small boats navigate around ‘The Bill’,   as it’s referred to by the local people. The Pulpit Inn is located there and is the counties most southerly pub too.

Traces of early human occupation nearby have been recorded and go back to Mesolithic times.

Know Your Tophill Or Underhill ?

With several villages on the island the main one on the top of is called Easton. With Weston and Southwell too. This whole area is referred to by the locals as ‘Tophill’.

Whereas ‘Underhill’ applies to the areas of Fortuneswell, Chiswell, Castletown and Chesil.

Exploring by foot is a popular with many well signed footpaths that encompass and criss cross most of Portland. The Chesil Beach is a site for rare little Terns and bursts into a dazzzling pink display in late spring.

The walk from Portland Bill up the west cliff path and back to back an area around the Heights Hotel.

On the way passing some very sheer cliffs.  Great for bird watching and some former military gun emplacements at ‘Blacknor’ for instance too. Human climbers can be seen here as well and it is possible to camp out overnight hanging from the cliffs…Yes really!

Once at the hotel here you can take in the stunning views of the 16 mile long Chesil Beach. Nearby are located a set of Olympic rings carved from Portland Stone to indicate it was a venue for the games.

A former quarry opposite the hotel called ‘Tout Quarry’ is a giant sculpture park and nature reserve.  Where artists can come and carve out works. Leading artists such as Sir Anthony Gormley have left work there.

St Paul’s Cathedral Started From Here

St George’s Church is linked to St Pauls Cathedral by Thomas Gilbert.  Aiding Sir Christopher Wren to choose Portland stone for its construction in London. Gilbert is buried in the church at Portland.

The interior is very well preserved with its two pulpits, box pews and galleries which are all surviving. The extensive churchyard has recently been repaired and is a treasure trove of fabulous headstones and memorials.

Many tell tales of murder, piracy, touching stories and even adventure. Inscriptions carved to people like Mary Way and William Lano. Killing of  two residents by a Royal Naval press gang.  A warder at one of the two prisons as was murdered by a convict in the 1860’s and his grave is there too.

Footpaths on the eastern side take you through some former quarry workings and to places like Pennsylvania Castle.  Now a luxury rental home.  Built in the late 1790’s by John Penn, Governor of Portland and a grandson of William Penn who was the founder of Pennsylvania in the USA.

Castles abound!  Rufus Castle built in the 11^th century built by William Rufus II which overlooks Church Ope Cove. Registers as the oldest castle on Portland. Taking the steps down to the cove pass what’s called the ‘pirate’s graveyard’.

Just a short walk to Portland Museum (Avice’s Cottage) housed under a thatched roof and donated to the town by Dr Marie Stopes.  Exploring digitally the castle and local history there too.

A Mix Of Pubs, Cafes And Independent Shops

Easton has a number of cafes, small independent shops and two supermarkets located mainly around a small square. Checking out some pubs such as the George Inn and The Punchbowl with well worth visiting White Stones Art Café . Having a nice garden with under cover seating at the rear.

Today there are still two major companies working on the ‘island’ in the Portland stone business. Choosing mining rather that quarrying the stone nowadays.

Giant hewn rough blocks are exported all over the world as well as finished and polished examples for memorials. Leading to that very same stone being used on the Cenotaph in London in 1920. And they are still providing gravestone blanks for the Commonwealth War Graves centre and museum in places like Arras in the Pas de Calais. 

Scatted around in Underhill are numerous cafes and small restaurants. Additional to those are the Cove House Inn at Chesil Cove and The Little Ship pub. Theses are both located on or just behind the beach and sea wall at Chesil Cove.  Battered at times by the sea the Cove House Inn is ans has to bea sturdy stone building.

Quiddles café at Chesil Cove offers some terrific seafood as do most eateries in the area being a prime seafood paradise. Locally caught, Portland Crab being popular on many menus.

Frontline Coffee, Taylor’s Mobideck, the Boat That Rocks and the Sailing Academy all have great places to sit, eat and take in the harbour activities and marina views.

An active community farm project called Fancy’s farm offering a flock of rare breed Portland Sheep to see. Here too, rare breed Horses Goats, Donkeys, Pigs, Chicken, Ducks and even some Wallabies. Plus, Oscar the Barn Owl!

The Cruise Guide To Portland…Ideas  For Nearby Visits

In an effort to travel further afield try the regency town of Weymouth.  Noted for its pretty fishing harbour, marina and lovely soft sandy curved beach. A lifting road bridge, raised on the even hours during the day is a  spectacle for visitors. Sea Life have a facility in Weymouth and it was their very first one.

Heading east to Lulworth Cove, Durdle Door that are big draws on this part of the coast.  Dorchester to the north,  the county town and where famous author Thomas Hardy worked.

Royalty has links to the town with Prince Charles village of Poundbury located just on the western edge of Dorchester.

Along at the western end of Chesil Beach is the small port and resort of West Bay and the town of Bridport.

Housing the world’s  largest collection of tanks in the world is Bovington Tank Museum.

Changing from the military to Monkeys.  Swinging from ropes and bars at nearby Monkey World which is a wildlife park where primates and monkeys are rescued and rehabilitated.  They live in huge enclosures now in a Dorset forest.

Abbotsbury Swannery the only managed swan colony in the world where some 400 swans come and go from its site located 8 miles west of Weymouth and just behind Chesil Beach.

Boasting a fine and very extensive sub-tropical garden too.