Cheddar Gorge (England)

Advantages: Show caves, and great scenery.
Disadvantages: Expensive, and at peak times very congested.

People have been visiting Cheddar in Somerset for hundreds of years to see the picturesque limestone gorge in the southern part of the Mendip Hills. Here are the highest inland cliffs in the country, which can be viewed from either the public road at the base of the gorge or the footpaths along the cliff tops. The Mendip Hill area has been designated An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The commercialism of Cheddar has detracted from that, but ...
...Buses run from there to Cheddar (enquiries tel: 0870 6082608). We travelled by car, and found that the roads were well sign posted to the Cheddar Caves and Gorge from the M5 Junction 22. When we arrived, we first drove the length of the Gorge to decide where we wanted to park. When were there, midweek at the end of September, there was a choice of parking spaces available to visitors arriving throughout the day, at both the top and bottom ends ... Read review

Advantages: Goughs cave scenery was the only one
Disadvantages: Parking, commercialism, people, ruined natural beauty.

...camping only 13 miles from Cheddar with four days to accommodate a drive to the gorge before making our way further west. I was looking forward to seeing this apparently wonderful designated area of outstanding natural beauty. We approached Cheddar from the South and village end through the Somerset levels, very flat land. The other route is from the North through the Mendip hills which lie south of Bristol and for 1000 years have been grazed by ...
...natural beauty. Cheddar village itself is on the site of a Saxon palace of the Kings of Wessex and was for a time the capitol of the royal hunting forest of Mendip. I suggest that you get there early, before 10am as it seemed to get very busy indeed. We parked in the gorge itself which costs £3 for the day. On entering the village the gorge is not visible and the outskirts of Cheddar are very much like normal Somerset villages. As we entered the ... Read review

Advantages: Lovely place, very picturesque, plenty to see
Disadvantages: Closes too early

...we decided to go to Cheddar for the day and explore the caves. Myself nor my other half had ever been to Cheddar, though we had seen some pictures but we were still unprepared for the breathtaking scenery that greeted us upon arrival. *~*~*~*~* THE GORGE *~*~*~*~* Cheddar Gorge was described by 12th Century Historian as being one of the four wonders of England. The Gorge splits the Mendip Hills from top to bottom and is truly breathtaking upon ...
...and though we went to Cheddar primarily to see the caves, I would go again just to explore the Gorge further. As well as driving through the Gorge ourselves, we also took the open-top bus tour, gaining a much better view and commentary from a guide pointing out the various landmarks and points of interest. *~*~*~*~* THE CAVES *~*~*~*~* The caves which are open to the public are: GOUGH’S CAVE and COX’s CAVE (Cox’s cave includes the Crystal Quest). ... Read review

Advantages: Great scenery, Mysterious caves, Photography allowed, Good value.
Disadvantages: Hard on the feet

My girlfriend lives near Cheddar and we finally got round to visiting the Gorge and caves the other Sunday. Cheddar Gorge is a natural phenomemon created by melting glaciers in the last ice age, the limestone cliffs are the highest and most impressive in Great Britain. Since their discovery in the late 1890's the caves of Cheddar Gorge have made Cheddar a very popular tourist destination not just for the British but also for visiting foreigners. ...
...and the A38 runs through Cheddar but whatever direction your coming from Cheddar Gorge is well signposted by way of 'brown signs'. Buses 673 and 674 travel daily from Temple Meads, Bristol to Cheddar if you rely on public transport. Arriving at Cheddar Gorge is an eerie experience if you haven't visited before, one minute your driving through flat country lanes then suddenly the land becomes littered with rocky outcrops and then the road goes on ... Read review

Advantages: Spectacular scenary, amazing history
Disadvantages: Tough on the legs so take your time

...I'd share my views on Cheddar Gorge. I have quite a hectic social life, I'm 25, I manage a band and am out partying most nights of the week ...so I wanted a short relaxing break and Somerset seemed as good as anywhere. As Cheddar Gorge is quite a well known attraction, my boyfriend and I thought we'd spend a few hours there and I'm so glad that we did. I love places with history and studied Geology as a student so a visit to the caves was quite ...
...spent about 4 hours at Cheddar Gorge which was enough to see all the sites, get something to eat and have a leisurely game of golf in the sun. It's a lovely part of the country with an amazing history and I couldn't wait to get home to tell my mum that she had to go again! Highly recommended! ... Read review