If you do like to be beside the seaside, then Minehead parkrun is a good one to choose. You can run up and down the prom, admiring the view across the Bristol Channel to Wales as you do so.

Getting There

Minehead parkrun takes place on Minehead prom. The start is centrally located, opposite The Beach Hotel. By car, exit the M5 at Bridgewater then take the A39. The No 28 bus stops opposite the start.

Parking

The Station Pay & Display Car Park is opposite the start. Parking costs £1.50 for an hour. Further details can be found here.

Toilets

There are toilets available in The Beach Hotel. This isn’t one of those occasions when you sneak into a hotel to use the loos. Parkrunners are welcome here and post run refreshments are available here too.

Course

There’s probably a simple way to describe the course. And this probably isn’t it. You run along the Prom heading north west, turn by the giant hands and run in the other direction, past the start to the second turning point (by the children’s play area) and then run back to the start. Repeat. Then repeat a third time, but this time, when you reach the start, you stop. This adds up to 2.5 laps in total.

Terrain

The entire route is paved.

Shoes

Definitely trainers.

Difficulty

Run Britain rankings for UK parkruns places Minehead as 262nd fastest out of 706. It has a total elevation of 35 metres. Its flat, paved route makes it an easy run. But those 5 x 360 degree turns obviously detract from a fast time.

Fun Factor

This is a lovely, flat, scenic run. In fact, the course website claims it to be one of the most most picturesque parkruns in the country. Plus you can stay on in the resort town of Minehead and make a day of it.

Nearby Attractions

The run takes place slap bang in the centre of Minehead, so there’s plenty of other facilities here too. Apart from the beach, there are bars and restaurants, crazy golf and amusements. In addition, Minehead is renowned for being the home of Butlin’s. If you’re not staying here, it is possible to purchase a day ticket which gives you access to the attractions and entertainment for upwards of £13, depending on the date.

Minehead marks the start of the South West Coast Path. The path, voted ‘Britain’s Best Walk’, is a 630 mile long trail round the coast of the south west peninsula, starting in Minehead and ending near Poole (or vice versa, depending our your point of view).

One of my favourite things to do here is to take a steam train ride on the West Somerset Railway which runs for a 20 mile stretch between Minehead to Bishops Lydeard.

To be honest, on this occasion, we didn’t do any of this, we headed straight to Watchet Music Festival to watch the Wurzels. And that’s good too! Watchet Festival is taking a break for 2023, but hopefully will be back next year.

Where we Stayed

There are plenty of accommodation options in Minehead, not least the aforementioned Butlins. We opted to stay further afield (9 miles away) in Watchet, so we could tumble home after the festival…