Weston-super-Mare

Weston-super-Mare lies by the Bristol Channel, 20 miles (32 km) south-west of Bristol, between two hills. Worlebury Hill dominates the town to the north, and Brean Down forms its southern border. North Somerset Council is the unitary authority, and Weston-super-Mare Town Council covers the parish.

The sea here behaves unusually. The tidal rise and fall can be as great as 14.5 m (48 ft), and the low tide mark in Weston Bay is about 1 mile (1.6 km) from the seafront. Plan time on the beach around the tide tables, because the water can be a long walk away. North Somerset Council bought Birnbeck Pier in July 2023 and is restoring it, so the pier and its buildings are closed to the public while work continues.

Brean Down, the headland to the south, is owned by the National Trust and extends 1.5 miles (2.5 km) into the Bristol Channel, with Brean Down Fort at its seaward end. The present railway station opened on 1 March 1881. In November the Weston-super-Mare Carnival is free to watch, a two-hour illuminated procession from 7pm on Friday 13 November 2026.

For a stay, the town gives you a seafront, with Worlebury Hill on one side and Brean Down on the other. The Mendip Way footpath starts at Uphill, on the southern edge of the town, and runs about 50 miles to Frome. On the far side of Brean Down, along Bridgwater Bay, is Burnham-on-Sea.