If you're looking for a new beautiful place to visit, then a new list of the top 50 most beautiful places in the UK might include some ideas for you. What's more, there are at least a couple that won't take you too long a drive from Bristol to venture to.
The list includes the likes of Oxford and Cambridge, the white cliffs of Dover, Loch Ness in Scotland and Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland, to name a few. But, closer to home you also have destinations such as Cheddar Gorge, Tintern Abbey, Durdle Door and Castle Combe.
If you fancied a drive down to our nearby holiday hotspots in Devon and Cornwall, the list also features the Minack Theatre, Keynance Cove, St Michael's Mount and a lesser-known beauty spot - the village of Clovelly. The ancient fishing village in Devon has been ranked at number 26 in the list and is famous for being one of the UK's only privately-owned villages.
Read more: Pretty village half an hour from Bristol with an Abbey and loads of pubs
Situated two-and-a-half hours' drive from Bristol, on the side of a 400ft cliff above Bideford Bay, the write-up in Big 7 Travel's list describes it as treating residents and visitors to 'magnificent views - walk the steep cobblestone streets and take in the scenery'. It goes on to say: "While 500 people call Clovelly home, visitors do have to pay an entrance fee - every penny goes towards the village and maintaining its Elizabethan charm."
According to Devon Live, the estate of Clovelly originally belonged to William the Conqueror and remained in royal hands until 1242. The village is now owned by John Rous who inherited it from his mother, Mary Rous, in early 1983.
And the village is no stranger to featuring among polls of the best spots around. Back in 2022, the Milky Way Adventure Park in Clovelly was named the UK's top ranked amusement park on TripAdvisor and it was one of 11 categories in the platform's 2022 Traveller's Choice Best of the Best Things to Do Awards.
Prior to that, in 2021, Clovelly was named one of the UK's most Christmassy locations, voted the fifth best place in the country for a festive staycation and was the only place in Devon to make the list in a survey carried out by holiday lettings company holidaycottages.co.uk. And in 2020 it was dubbed the UK's most 'Instagrammable' place, according to Google.
Despite being perched on a 400ft cliff and with a strict ban on vehicles, Clovelly is renowned for its unique charms, including its cobbled streets, picturesque cottages, incredible views and even a friendly donkey or two. And all this surely makes it well worth a visit.
Big 7 Travel's list of the UK's Top 50 most beautiful places in full
50. Port Sunlight, the Wirral – England
49. The Dark Hedges – Northern Ireland
48. Cheddar Gorge – England
47. Belfast – Northern Ireland
46. Isle of Muck – Scotland
45. Dolgellau, Snowdonia National Park – Wales
44. Eilean Donan – Scotland
43. Oxford – England
42. Glen Nevis – Scotland
41. St. Michael’s Mount – England
40. The Orkney Islands – Scotland
39. Isle of Mull and Iona – Scotland
37. The Isles of Scilly – England
36. Brighton – England
35. Stratford upon Avon – England
34. Loch Ness – Scotland
33. Isle of Staffa – Scotland
32. The Shambles, York – England
31. Bamburgh Castle – England
30. Shaftesbury – England
29. Tintern Abbey – Wales
28. Chalcot Crescent, London – England
27. Kynance Cove – England
26. Clovelly Village, Devon – England
25. Eoligarry Beach, Isle of Barra – Scotland
24. Dunnottar Castle – Scotland
23. High Force Waterfalls – England
22. Kinbane Castle – Northern Ireland
21. Glenfinnan Viaduct – Scotland
20. Tollymore Forest Park – Northern Ireland
19. Gower Peninsula – Wales
18. The Shetland Islands – Scotland
17. Dean Village – Scotland
16. White Cliffs of Dover – England
15. Giant’s Causeway – Northern Ireland
14. Conwy Castle – Wales
13. Durdle Door, Dorset
12. Loch Lomond & The Trossachs – Scotland
11. Minack Theatre, Cornwall
10. Devil’s Pulpit, Finnich Glen – Scotland
9. Three Cliffs Bay – Wales
8. Castle Combe, the Cotswolds – England
7. Edinburgh – Scotland
6. Cambridge – England
5. Pembrokeshire Coast – Wales
4. Bath – England
3. The Lake District – England
2. Snowdonia National Park – Wales
1. Isle of Skye – Scotland
Read next:
- 'Prettiest' village in the Cotswolds with links to Japanese royals
- The secret Cotswold village half an hour from Bristol the tourists don't know about
- 7 of the prettiest villages near Bristol to visit in 2023
- The timewarp village near Bristol where Harry Potter and Downton Abbey were filmed
- £2 Bristol bus ride leads to National Trust estate in pretty village
