We visited Stonehenge as part of our trip to Dorset, and for this particular part of our trip, we’ve put together a separate post as there is quite a lot to see and quite a few photos we’d like to share from our trip to Stonehenge…
Stonehenge with the Slaughter Stone in the foreground
As our visit was during a weekday, it was not too busy- however we would recommend buying tickets in advance online here. When we were booking tickets we found out that National Trust members get free entry- potentially because the land around Stonehenge belongs to the National Trust, whilst English Heritage manage the visitor center and the attraction itself. Otherwise, tickets are around £23 for adults and £14 for children (without a donation)- and there are also family tickets available.
There is a free car park for visitors, and after walking through the ticket desk, there is a very well-sized shop, a cafe, visitor center and a special exhibition as well… you can visit these either before or after your visit to the stone circle itself.
The special exhibion is certainly worth a visit- when we visited, there was an exhibition on visitors’ photographs of stonehenge over the last century or so, from family portraits, to musical festivals and more recently selfies. We found the exhibition to be incredibly interesting- from the changing perceptions, fashion to the actual photo styles themselves.
Model of the first Stonehenge c.3000BC
Model of the stones c.2500BC
Model of Stonehenge as it stands today
The visitor center is also very interesting- here you can see various artefacts, such as jewellery pieces, pottery, tools, and you can also see some Neolithic houses which give you an idea of how people may have lived whilst working on the stone circle. As we visited during Covid-19, we weren’t able to go inside the houses unfortunately, but you can see here what the inside is like.
Neolithic houses
The road to the stone circle
Getting to the stone circle
From the visitor center you can then either walk to the stone circle through the surrounding fields (which takes about 20-30 minutes depending on the route) or get a shuttle bus which takes only 5 minutes.
We decided to get the shuttle bus to the stone circle, and then walked back afterwards through the surrounding landscape- and we would certainly recommend at least walking one way (providing the weather is not too bad!)
The surrounding fields are beautiful, and offer a great opportunity to take in the sights and views of the countryside. You can also see some of the other barrows and ridges in the area. You get a map upon entry to Stonehenge of the stone circle and surrounding landscape, and you can see the various paths you can take and the access gates to the National Trust land. A word of warning though- do look out for the numerous cows that graze on the land and be sure to close the gates behind you!
The landscape around the stone circle
Barrows
The Heel Stone
And last but not least… the Stone Circle itself
Once you arrive at the stone circle, there is a clockwise route which you follow. You can buy a guide book on entry back at the ticket desk and read that as you walk around, or you can walk around and go through an audio tour at the various audio tour stops. We found the audio tour to be very easy to follow and informative- plus there is an option to hear more detail on certain parts of the circle or stones. It took us around 60-90 minutes to walk around- but this would depend on how busy it is and how frequently you stop for photos.
Today, you can mostly just see the ruins- but Stonehenge would have looked very different when it was first built, and it is incredibly impressive that some of the stones still stand almost intact. The circle has an outer circular ditch, which is believed to be one of the oldest parts from around 3000 BC. As this was made from chalk, it would have been white. The Avenue can also be seen- this consists of twin parallel banks and ditches running from the field to the north-east of Stonehenge right to the Heel Stone.
You can also see various other stones and holes outside the stone circle- such as the Aubrey Holes and the Heel Stone. The stone circle itself is a later addition and has a number of stones standing upright, believed to be brought to the site in around 2500BC, with some stones having since been displaced or removed. The circle as it stands today is believed to have been completed in around 2200BC, but was restored in the 20th Century.
From the various artefacts and remains that have been found here, it is most likely this was a burial ground, as well as a place of worship- there are however no written records this this is based on assumptions and is subject of much debate… To find out more about the history of Stonehenge and the various stories that surround the site, click here.
Arrow marking midsummer sunrise
The Audrey Holes
The Avenue
Sarsen Trilithons
As you can see from the photos- there is a lot to see and explore here, and in summary- Stonehenge is certainly worth a visit!
To read more about what else we would recommend to do near Stonehenge and in Dorset, read our main blog post here.
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