Fossil Hunting Campsites in Britain: Where to Camp and Hunt
· Updated
The best fossil hunting in Britain is on the beach, not up a cliff, and the richest hunting grounds are all within a short drive of a campsite. Three coastlines do the heavy lifting: the Jurassic Coast in Dorset around Charmouth and Lyme Regis, the Yorkshire coast around Whitby and Robin Hood's Bay, and the Isle of Wight, which has turned up so many dinosaurs it is nicknamed Dinosaur Island.
Pitch up near any of them and you can be sorting through ammonites on the strandline within an hour of arriving. This guide names the real hotspots, tells you what you can find at each, and sets out the fossil collecting code so your trip stays safe and legal.
It is part of our guide to coastal camping in the UK, from Camping Sites in Britain, where you can find and compare campsites, caravan parks and glamping right across the country.
The best fossil hunting spots in Britain
Four stretches of coast produce the vast majority of Britain's beach fossils, and all of them have campsites within a few miles. Here is the quick version before we go through each one.
| Location | Where | What you find | Nearby camping |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charmouth and Lyme Regis | Jurassic Coast, Dorset | Ammonites, belemnites, occasional ichthyosaur bone | Dorset |
| Whitby and Robin Hood's Bay | Yorkshire coast | Ammonites, belemnites, "Whitby jet" | North Yorkshire |
| Compton Bay and Yaverland | Isle of Wight | Dinosaur bone, footcasts, iguanodon remains | Isle of Wight |
| Kimmeridge Bay | Jurassic Coast, Dorset | Ammonites, bivalves, fish and marine reptile fragments | Dorset |
Charmouth and Lyme Regis, Dorset
Charmouth and Lyme Regis are the most famous fossil beaches in Britain, and the best place for a first trip. This is Mary Anning country, the stretch of the Jurassic Coast where she found the first recognised ichthyosaur and plesiosaur skeletons in the early 1800s. The soft, dark Blue Lias and shale here erode constantly, which means fresh fossils wash onto the beach after every tide and every winter storm.
Start at the Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre by the beach car park. It is free, the wardens run guided fossil walks, and they will show you what a real ammonite looks like before you spend an afternoon picking up pebbles. Walk east towards Stonebarrow or west towards Lyme Regis and Black Ven, and search the shingle and loose material rather than hammering the cliffs.
Whitby and Robin Hood's Bay, Yorkshire
The Yorkshire coast is Britain's other great fossil hunting ground, sometimes called the Dinosaur Coast. The beaches at Whitby, Robin Hood's Bay, Runswick Bay and Staithes cut through Jurassic mudstones and shales that are packed with ammonites and belemnites, and the scars and boulders at low tide are the places to look.
Whitby is also the home of jet, the fossilised wood used in Victorian mourning jewellery, which you can still find as light black pebbles along the strandline. Robin Hood's Bay has one of the best rocky wave-cut platforms in the country for spotting ammonites still sitting in the rock, though the golden rule is to collect only what is already loose.
The Isle of Wight, "Dinosaur Island"
The Isle of Wight is the best place in Britain to find actual dinosaur remains, which is why it is nicknamed Dinosaur Island. More dinosaur species have been found here than almost anywhere else in Europe, including iguanodon, and its Cretaceous rocks are younger than the Jurassic beds in Dorset and Yorkshire.
The two go-to beaches are Compton Bay on the south west coast, best hunted at low tide among the loose gravel and stones, and Yaverland near Sandown. Compton is also known for dinosaur footcasts, the infilled prints left in the old mudflats, which appear on the foreshore at very low tides. The island's Dinosaur Isle museum at Sandown runs guided walks if you want an expert alongside you.
Kimmeridge Bay, Dorset
Kimmeridge Bay is a quieter, more specialist spot further along the Jurassic Coast, prized for its dark, fossil-rich Kimmeridge Clay. The bay produces ammonites, bivalves and fragments of fish and marine reptiles, and it gives its name to a whole slice of geological time, the Kimmeridgian.
It sits within the Lulworth Ranges, so check the firing times before you go, as access closes when the range is live. The clay is soft and the ledges are slippery, so sensible footwear matters more here than at the busier beaches.
The fossil collecting code: read this before you dig anything
Collect loose fossils from the beach and never dig into the cliffs. That single rule keeps you safe and keeps the collecting legal. The cliffs along these coasts are actively eroding and prone to sudden landslips, and digging into them is both dangerous and, on protected stretches, not allowed. The good news is you do not need to: the sea does the excavating for you, and anything left on the beach will simply be smashed up by the next tide if nobody picks it up.
The West Dorset code, backed by the Jurassic Coast Trust and the Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre, and the general beach guidance from the Natural History Museum, come down to a few simple points.
- Search the loose material on the beach, not the cliffs. The best finds are in the shingle, scree and strandline, not embedded in the cliff face.
- Never dig into or climb the cliffs. They collapse without warning, and cliff falls have killed people on these beaches.
- Check the tide times before you go. Hunt on a falling tide so you are never cut off, and know your exit point.
- Stay away from fresh landslips and mudflows. They look tempting after a storm and they are the most dangerous ground on the coast.
- Wear sturdy footwear and take a hard hat if you plan to work near cliffs at all. Wet clay and seaweed-covered ledges are treacherous.
- Report anything important. If you find a large bone or an unusual specimen, record it at the Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre or the local museum, and offer scientifically important finds to an accredited UK museum.
Take only what you can carry, leave the rock hammers at home unless you know what you are doing, and never collect from a Site of Special Scientific Interest cliff face without permission.
What you can actually find
Most of what you will pick up is marine, because all four coasts were once warm seas. Ammonites are the prize: coiled shells that range from thumbnail size to dinner-plate fossils weighing several kilos. Belemnites are the other everyday find, the bullet-shaped internal shells of squid-like creatures, and you may also spot the curved gryphaea oyster, nicknamed the devil's toenail.
Beyond those, you can turn up fossil wood, crinoid stems, bivalves and, with luck, the odd vertebra or bone from an ichthyosaur or plesiosaur on the Dorset beaches. Actual dinosaur bone is realistically an Isle of Wight find. A cheap field guide or the free Fossil Explorer app from the Natural History Museum will help you tell one from another on the beach.
Camping near the fossil beaches
You do not need a specialist "fossil campsite", you need an ordinary coastal site within striking distance of the right beach. For the Jurassic Coast, base yourself in west Dorset near Charmouth, Lyme Regis or Bridport, and browse our Dorset campsites to compare pitches, prices and dog rules. Many sites here sit on the South West Coast Path, so you can walk to the fossil beaches instead of fighting for a car park space in summer.
For the Yorkshire coast, look at sites around Whitby, Robin Hood's Bay and Scarborough in our North Yorkshire campsites. For the Isle of Wight, aim for the south of the island near Compton and Sandown. Wherever you pitch, our guide to choosing a site for beach camping covers the practical stuff, and if you fancy walking between coves and fossil beaches, our guide to Britain's coastal pathways maps the routes. You can also search every coastal county from our full campsite listings.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the best fossil hunting in the UK?
Charmouth and Lyme Regis on the Jurassic Coast in Dorset are the best all-round fossil beaches, thanks to fast-eroding cliffs that constantly release ammonites and belemnites onto the shingle. The Isle of Wight is the top spot specifically for dinosaur remains.
Can you keep fossils you find on the beach?
Yes. Under the West Dorset and Jurassic Coast collecting codes, you keep loose fossils you pick up from the beach on National Trust and parish land. You must report scientifically important finds and offer them to an accredited UK museum first.
Do you need a permit to hunt fossils on the Jurassic Coast?
No permit is needed to collect loose fossils from the beach as a casual visitor. You must follow the fossil collecting code, and you must not dig into or hammer the cliffs, which are protected and dangerous.
Is fossil hunting safe for children?
Yes, provided you stay on the open beach, keep well back from the cliffs, and check the tide times. Search the loose shingle rather than the cliff base, hunt on a falling tide, and avoid fresh landslips, which are the main hazard.
What is the best time to go fossil hunting?
Winter and early spring are best, because storms and rain erode the cliffs and wash fresh fossils onto the beach. Whenever you go, aim for a falling tide, ideally in the two hours around low water, on a wide, safe beach.
Are there dinosaur fossils in Britain?
Yes. The Isle of Wight is the richest dinosaur site in Britain, with iguanodon and many other species, which is why it is called Dinosaur Island. Full dinosaur bone is rare in Dorset and Yorkshire, where marine fossils dominate.
The short version
Base yourself in Dorset for Charmouth and Lyme Regis, North Yorkshire for Whitby and Robin Hood's Bay, or the Isle of Wight for real dinosaur bone. Collect loose fossils off the beach, stay clear of the cliffs and landslips, and check the tide before you set off. Start with our guide to coastal camping in the UK, then pick your pitch from our campsite listings.
