Activities in Yeovil

The largest naval aviation display in Europe, Fleet Air Arm Museum is simply huge and located around five miles north of Yeovil. Spanning military and civilian aircraft, the collection is spread across four halls and includes dozens of aircraft including Concorde, WW1 and WW2 fighter planes and aircraft dating back to 1912. Impressively, they’ve also recreated 70s aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal which you access via a simulated helicopter ride. The museum has a huge shop, adventure playground and two cafés on site, and is open Wednesday to Sunday from November to March and daily during the summer, with cheaper advance tickets available online.

If it’s a trip down memory lane you’re after, they don’t come much more nostalgic than checking out Montacute House. Billed as the only museum of its kind in the UK, the action-packed museum is a definitive collection of toys, books, jigsaws and general paraphernalia related to TV and radio programmes. Covering virtually everything in TV and radio pop culture from Westerns to Dr Who, the time capsule museum is also home to a huge range of vintage TVs and radios dating back to some of the earliest incarnations. And located on the western edge of Yeovil, the museum is less than five minutes from our Yeovil Airfield Hotel.  

Overlooking a grand lake, Sherborne Castle is a beautiful castle first built by Sir Walter Ralegh in 1594. The castle and the Capability Brown-designed grounds overlooking Sherborne Lake make for the perfect picnic spot when the sun is shining with over 40 acres to discover. And there’s plenty to discover inside the house too, with rooms full of art, historic furniture and original pieces dating back centuries. As well as a Tea Room and gift shop, you can also sample and buy some of the Sherborne Castle Wines. The castle is open from mid-April to the end of October daily, but closed on Monday and Friday.

Home to the UK’s biggest collection of cars and motorbikes from the late 1800s onwards, the Haynes International Motor Museum is a sprawling collection of petrol engines with over 400 cars and bikes on display. With 19 permanent exhibitions covering everything from supercars to some of the first cars ever made, the museum is an interactive experience, with tours, talks and activities along the way, as well as specially designed tours for toddlers, children and teenagers. The museum also boasts its own go-kart track with 200cc and 120cc karts open daily, the 750 café open for breakfast, lunch, drinks and snacks and the museum shop selling a wide range of car-related memorabilia and gifts.

Steam train enthusiasts will love the Yeovil Railway Centre where you can get up-close-and-personal with a range of historic steam engines, ride aboard the Lord Fisher train and even learn how to drive one yourself. Located at the Yeovil Junction Train station to the south of Yeovil, the centre is open regularly throughout the year but it’s best to check their website for the latest updates and opening times. As well as the full-sized engines, the centre has a mini train ride, an art gallery and shop with plenty of model railway items if you’re looking to add to your collection or get started.

Gardens don’t come much more picturesque than Tintinhull Gardens, a stunning 17th-century house and grounds replete with carefully manicured hedges, stylish borders, pristine lawns, fruit and vegetable patches and shimmering water pools. Just a short drive from our Yeovil Airfield Hotel, the gardens and tea rooms are closed during the winter, opening again from the end of March until October, while if you get lucky, you can also explore several rooms in the house which open sporadically throughout the year.

On the southern edge of Yeovil, Ninesprings Country Park is a relatively modern park that was designed and opened in 2002. The park has five different areas to explore spanning gentle riverside walks, woodland paths, gently rolling hills, open grassland and the Valley Gardens, a criss-crossing network of paths and bridges around a series of natural springs. The dog-friendly park also has a modern playground, visitor centre and popular café open for breakfast, lunch, drinks and snacks.