This episode features Weymouth with its beautiful golden beaches and historic harbour. We visit the town's oldest ice cream parlour and meet Fulvio and Aimee Figliolini, the father and daughter team carrying on the Rossi tradition. The ice cream is handmade the same way now as it was in 1937 when Aimee's great-grandfather first opened the parlour, and it's a favourite with locals and visitors alike.

A few miles outside Weymouth lie Bennetts Water Gardens. Originally a clay pit, the gardens were transformed in the mid-fifties by Norman Bennett. With over 300 varieties of water lily, it's like walking into Claude Monet's masterpiece The Water-Lily Pond.

We then head east to The Blue Pool Nature Reserve on the Isle of Purbeck. Set in 25 acres of heath, woodland and gorse, this former clay mine's waters glisten turquoise in the sunlight. It's home to wild ponies, pigs, grass snakes and even Walter the resident peacock, who visits the tea room each day for his breakfast scone.

On the western end of the Fleet Lagoon, visitors can walk among hundreds of nesting swans with their fluffy cygnets. Abbotsbury Swannery is the only managed colony of nesting mute swans in the world and we visit on the day of the Summer Fair.

At the Dorset Heavy Horse Farm, Richard Street and his daughter Taya look after their family of heavy horses. Known for their size and strength, these magnificent gentle giants were relied upon for their pulling power before mechanisation took over. Keen to keep these declining breeds alive, Richard and Taya spread awareness while providing families with a wonderful day out. We see one of their largest residents get new shoes. His feet are so big, the shoes have to be specially made.

This episode begins in the market town of Shaftesbury in the north of Dorset. Offering stunning views over the Blackmore Vale, this picturesque hill-top town is where you'll find Gold Hill. We visit on the day of the annual Gold Hill Cheese Race to watch competitors of all ages sprinting up the cobbled street carrying large replica cheeses - all hoping to be crowned King or Queen of the hill.

Dorset's wildlife is rich and varied. In late spring, the county's shallow warmer shores attract an endangered and extremely rare species: the native Spiny seahorse. Experts take us on a dive to show us the seahorses in their natural habitat, and we explore the pioneering work being done in Studland Bay to protect the sea grass forests, where one of Britain's largest seahorse colonies lives.

One way to see the stunning Dorset coastline is from the water, and afternoon tea on the Dorset Queen offers the chance to do just that in style. Or, if you don't fancy a cream tea, the county also hosts the World Nettle Eating Contest, where competitors race to eat as many stinging nettles as they can in half an hour.

Dorset offers all sorts of accommodation, from luxury hotels to campsites and even luxury treehouses. In a woodland retreat near Beaminster, Guy Mallinson has designed and built three unique treehouses. The woodland surroundings ooze tranquillity, while touches like hot tubs, pizza ovens and revolving wood burning stoves make this a luxurious place to stay.