Dorset Dating: Meet Singles Along the Jurassic Coast

Love in a county of small towns

Most of Dorset lives in places you could walk across in twenty minutes. Weymouth is the largest town in the west, Dorchester is the county town, and the rest are market towns and harbour villages strung along the A35, the A37 and the lanes in between. Bournemouth and Poole, in the far east, have their own council and a very different pace, though plenty of people still think of them as Dorset. For everyone else, the problem is the same: in a town where you already know most faces, meeting someone new means looking a bit further out. That is what Dorset dating on a regional site is good at.

Weymouth, Portland and Dorchester

Weymouth has the clearest group of members anywhere in the county, and it pairs naturally with Portland to the south and Dorchester up the A354. Dorchester itself is Thomas Hardy's town, with the water meadows by the Frome on one side and Maiden Castle on the hill to the south west. Together these three make the easiest search in Dorset to start with.

West Dorset and the Devon border

Bridport, West Bay, Beaminster and Lyme Regis look out over the most dramatic part of the coast, and their members often include Axminster and Seaton across the border in Devon. The roads are slow and hilly, so a date here is usually a short drive rather than a quick bus ride.

North Dorset and the Blackmore Vale

Sherborne sits right next to Yeovil, and many members there search into Somerset as easily as into Dorset. Shaftesbury, Gillingham, Sturminster Newton and Blandford Forum share the Blackmore Vale and the chalk downs around it, a part of the county that is mostly farms and villages.

Wimborne, Purbeck and the east

Wimborne Minster, Wareham and Swanage sit close enough to Poole and Bournemouth that members there usually include the conurbation in their search. Purbeck itself feels like an island, reached past Wareham through heath and chalk.

Who you will meet in Dorset

Dorset is a smaller group on Westcountry Singles than Devon, Somerset or Cornwall, with members spread right across the county rather than gathered in one town. People in their late forties and early fifties are the biggest group, followed by those in their late thirties and early forties. Dorset also has a noticeable share of members in their late fifties, sixties and beyond, more so than Bristol, and very few under thirty-five. If you are over 40, our sister site Mature Westcountry Singles is worth joining too, and a generous search distance will help in a county this spread out.

First dates on the Jurassic Coast

Few counties give you a better backdrop for a first meeting. Walk Weymouth's seafront and round the harbour to the Nothe gardens, or head out to Portland Bill to watch the sea. The long shingle of Chesil Beach runs west from Portland, and the Cobb at Lyme Regis is a classic place to meet and stroll. Lulworth Cove and Durdle Door are wonderful but packed in summer, so save them for a quieter month. Inland, the earthworks of Maiden Castle give you a proper walk and a lot of sky, Gold Hill in Shaftesbury is short and steep, and the streets around Sherborne Abbey or Wimborne Minster suit a coffee. Pick somewhere with people around, go in daylight and travel separately. There are more ideas in our South West first date guide, and the essentials are on our safety page.

Farming Dorset, and meeting anyone at all

Away from the coast, a lot of Dorset is dairy and arable land, and those who work it can go days without meeting anyone new. Our country dating page is written for farmers and rural singles, and singles near me explains how to set a search that suits village life.

Towns to include in your search

• Weymouth
• Portland
• Dorchester
• Bridport
• Lyme Regis
• Beaminster
• Sherborne
• Blandford Forum
• Shaftesbury
• Gillingham
• Sturminster Newton
• Wimborne Minster
• Wareham
• Swanage
• Poole
• Bournemouth