Wimborne is a small town in Dorset, England. The Minster, which is a beautiful large church, has existed for over 1300 years and is recognised for its unusual chained library (one of only four surviving chained libraries in the world).

Get in

5 miles north of Poole

See

• 1 Wimborne Minster, Church House, High St, BH21 1HT, ☏ +44 1202 884753. M-Sa: 9:30AM - 5:30PM, Su: Mornings for Services / Afternoons 2:30 - 5:30PM. For over 1300 years Wimborne Minster has been a living centre for pilgrimage, prayer, mission and worship. The foundation goes back to c.705AD when Cuthburga, sister to Ina, King of the West Saxons, founded a nunnery on the site.500 nuns are reputed to have lived at Wimborne, many of whom followed St. Boniface to the then pagan Germany, as missionaries.  
• 2 Tivoli Theatre, West Borough, BH21 1LT, ☏ +44 1202 885566. Built in 1936 as a theatre and cinema. It features a wide variety of Art Deco features, including original chrome and Bakelite door handles.  
• 3 Wimborne Model Town, King Street, BH21 1DY, ☏ +44 1202 881924. Located on the outskirts, is one of the largest and most established model towns in England. It depicts Wimborne at the time it was made, in the 1950s. It is at 1/10 scale, so the model of the Minster is several feet high. The shop windows accurately show the goods the shops were selling at the time. The exhibition also includes a model railway based on Thomas the Tank Engine, which was opened by Christopher Awdry. Children are invited to complete a quiz sheet (there are several, graded by age).  
• 4 Priest's House Museum, 27 High St, ☏ +44 01202 882533, museum@priest-house.co.uk. Mon - Sat 10:00am - 4:00pm. 23– opposite the Church of Wimborne Minster. 10 galleries on East Dorset archaeology, costume and more, including period rooms, plus a tea-room. (updated May 2020)

Do

• Wimborne Folk Festival. 

Sleep

• 1 Kings Head Hotel (Old English Inns), The Square, West Borough, BH21 1JG, ☏ +44 1202 880101. 

Go next

Routes through Wimborne Minster

Dorchester ← merges with at Bere Regis ←

W  E

→ New Forest → Southampton