Highbridge

Highbridge sits at the point where the Somerset Levels meet the coast, on the tidal River Brue a couple of miles inland from the wide sands of Bridgwater Bay. It is a modest, workaday market town rather than a tourist honeypot, and it makes no pretence otherwise: its story is one of bridges, wharves and the railway, not seaside grandeur. The name comes from a crossing that has spanned the Brue here since at least the 14th century, on the old route between Bristol and the South West, and the town that grew up around it took its identity from that bridge.

Highbridge's heyday came in the second half of the 19th century, when the Somerset Central Railway arrived and the town developed as a small industrial and shipping centre, with a canal basin, brickworks and a busy goods yard supporting trade along the Brue and out to the Bristol Channel. Much of that industry has long since gone, but the flat, drained landscape of the Somerset Levels that made it all possible still surrounds the town on every side, criss-crossed with rhynes (drainage ditches) and grazing marsh that are now better known for wildlife than commerce. Today Highbridge functions mainly as a residential and shopping town for the surrounding villages, effectively twinned with its larger neighbour Burnham-on-Sea just across the marshes, and it makes a useful, unfussy base for exploring this often-overlooked corner of Somerset.

Top things to do in Highbridge

Highbridge itself is small, but there is a genuine handful of things worth seeking out in and around the town, from its Victorian clock tower to the wetlands and coastline on its doorstep.

• The Clock Tower and Jubilee Gardens — A modern three-faced clock, topped with the town's coat of arms, stands in Jubilee Gardens close to the site of the original clock erected in 1897 to mark Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee. It remains the closest thing Highbridge has to a landmark and a good starting point for a look around the town centre.
• Secret World Wildlife Rescue — Just outside the town at East Huntspill, this well-known Somerset charity has been rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing injured, orphaned and sick British wildlife since 1984, from badger cubs to birds of prey. It is a working animal hospital rather than a conventional visitor attraction, so it opens to the public only on selected open days, but it is a much-loved local institution worth checking the calendar for.
• River Brue and the Somerset Levels — The river that gave the town its name still runs through it, with flat towpaths and drove roads leading out into the surrounding Levels. It is easy, level walking country, good for spotting herons, kingfishers and other wetland birds along the banks and rhynes.
• Apex Park — A local leisure and green space with a lake, walking routes and space to let off steam, popular with families and dog walkers from the town.
• Berrow Beach and Burnham-on-Sea seafront — A short drive or cycle away, this vast stretch of sand and dunes backing onto Berrow Golf Course is one of the best beaches in the area, with Burnham-on-Sea's distinctive low lighthouse on stilts a well-known local landmark a little further along the front.
• Brean Leisure Park — A few miles up the coast towards Brean Down, this popular family attraction has rollercoasters, a water park and amusements, making a good day-trip option if you are staying in the area with children.

Getting to Highbridge

Highbridge and Burnham railway station sits on the Bristol to Exeter main line, with regular Great Western Railway services giving a direct run of around 40 minutes to Bristol Temple Meads and onward connections south towards Taunton and Exeter or east towards London. The station is unstaffed but well used, serving both Highbridge and neighbouring Burnham-on-Sea.

By road, Highbridge lies just off the A38 and close to Junction 22 of the M5, making it a straightforward stop for anyone travelling between Bristol and Devon or Cornwall. Bristol Airport is around 40 minutes away by car, and the town is well placed for exploring the wider Somerset Levels, the Quantock and Mendip Hills, and the coast around Weston-super-Mare and Brean.

Best time to visit Highbridge

Spring and early summer bring the Somerset Levels to life, with wading birds and waterfowl active along the rhynes and the Brue, and long, mild days for walking or cycling the flat lanes around the town. Summer is the obvious choice if the beach at Berrow or the rides at Brean Leisure Park are the main draw, though this is also when the coast road and beach car parks get busiest. Autumn and winter have their own appeal for birdwatchers, as the Levels flood and fill with wintering wildfowl, and Highbridge's unfussy, practical character makes it a sensible, quieter alternative to staying right on the coast at any time of year.

Where to stay in Highbridge

Highbridge has a small selection of pubs with rooms and guest accommodation rather than large hotels, reflecting its size as a market town. Most visitors looking for a wider choice of hotels, guest houses and self-catering options base themselves in nearby Burnham-on-Sea, which has a proper seafront and a longer-established holiday trade, while still being close enough to Highbridge for its shops, station and services.

Food and drink in Highbridge

The town centre has a practical spread of everyday cafes, takeaways and pubs serving the local community rather than a food destination in its own right. The Highbridge Inn and other town-centre pubs serve classic pub food and a pint at the end of a walk along the Brue, while Bason Bridge Brewing Company, based just outside the town, is a good stop for locally brewed beer. For a wider choice of restaurants, cafes and seafront chip shops, Burnham-on-Sea is a short walk or drive away and has considerably more options.