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A new map has been produced to help those looking for holidays in Dorset to explore one of the county”s tourist attractions.

A total of 20,000 maps of the Isle of Portland have been distributed and are available from places such as the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy, the Tank Museum and Portland Marina, the Dorset Echo reports.

A bus advertising the island has also hit the road in the area in order to promote the island”s attractions, businesses and natural offerings.

"The new Portland Visitor Map has been a fantastic addition to our services and our customers really appreciate the clear simplicity of the map," visitor services manager at Weymouth and Portland Borough Council Lindy Parmley told the news source.

She added that it is a useful resource for visitors who will be travelling to the island during the times when its Lighthouse Visitor Centre is closed.

The Isle of Portland is connected to the mainland by Chesil Beach and will host the sailing events for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

The finishing touches have been added to Europe”s first artificial surf reef in Dorset.

According to the Daily Telegraph, the project is due to open next month in time for the start of the surfing season, something that may increase the number of people searching for holiday homes in Dorset.

The £1.4 million project will double the height of waves and increase the number of good surfing days through the use of sandbags fixed to the seabed 225m off the shore.

It is designed to produce a grade five wave – compared to the grade eight Hawaii Pipeline – and is one of four artificial reefs worldwide, with the remaining three located in Queensland, Western Australia and New Zealand.

"Body boarders have already been surfing the hollow, powerful barrels that it was intended to produce," Paul Clarke of Bournemouth Surfing Centre told the news source.

In related news, five of the UK”s top surfing professionals are currently promoting conservation work underway in Cornwall.