Tide Times

Good Beach Guide. Blue Flag & Seaside Award winner 2019.

Just a short walk from the picturesque Brixham harbour and the long breakwater, this gently sloping small, pebble beach is a real delight. With its calm warm waters, it is a popular spot for scuba diving with stunning underwater landscapes and an array of fish, seahorses and seagrass on display. 

The beach is also close to this quaint fishing town’s shops, cafes and thriving fish market.

Shoalstone Seawater Pool is a ten-minute walk away from Breakwater Beach. It is one of only a few remaining Lidos in the country and was built on a natural rock pool and opened in 1896. There is no entry charge to use the pool and there is a picnic area to bring your own food and drink.

Blue Flag & Seaside Award winner 2019, Good Beach Guide

A mile from Torquay Harbour, Meadfoot Beach can be easily accessed by car or on foot.
Wheelchair users are able to access the beach via a slope onto the  promenade and a slipway. With ample car parking facilities within  walking distance of the beach this is a very popular location for locals  and visitors returning to the English Riviera.

There is a grandeur about Meadfoot, with its’ elegant curve, echoed in the beautiful crescent of the Osborne Hotel,  which overlooks the beach. There’s a historical link to the area too as  Charles Darwin, author of ‘On the Origin of the Species’ stayed here in  1861 with the spectacular sea views as an inspirational backdrop.

From your reclined deckchair you can take in the majestic and  uninhabited island, Thatcher's Rock, with the breathtaking coastal  headland of Berry Head and Brixham in the distance.

It’s also a popular spot for fishing with some great rock pools  exposed during low tide. You might see some paddle-boarders and divers  in the waters as well. The divers are often out at the south end of the  beach and organised by Dive Torquay.

This area is perfect for a shoreline dip or a more energetic swim  along the rugged coastline for keen wild swimmers. The Blue Flag  Award-winning beach is a safe spot for adults and accompanied children  as the beach is supervised during the peak months of July and August  with onsite services including a first aid and lost child centre,  warning flags and patrol boats.

The colourful and contemporary beach chalets located on two levels at  the south end of the beach can be hired throughout the year and the  upper tiered chalets have their own balconies providing you with  additional privacy and comfort. On the promenade the newly refurbished Meadfoot Beach Café serves delicious home cooked food with a view of the crescent shaped beach.

Good Beach Guide & Seaside Award winner 2019

Goodrington is one of the most popular beaches in South  Devon, with both locals and holidaymakers drawn to the beautiful sandy  beach and brightly coloured beach huts.

Youngsters and the young at heart will love the water adventure park at Splashdown Quaywest with its exciting flume rides and the daring Devil’s Drop attraction  with a 15-metre vertical drop. Goodrington Sands is great for other  water sport activities too and you can hire various water craft here.  The Seashore Centre run by Reach Outdoors in partnership with Torbay Coast and Countryside Trust is the place to  visit if you’re interested in sunset kayak trips, coasteering, rock  pooling and snorkelling.

Just along from Goodrington Sands you’ll find Youngs Park,  an established park land and a natural habitat for swans, geese and  wild birds. The family attractions include bumper boat and swan boat  rides on the manmade lake, crazy golf and amusement arcades. This is a  great spot for family picnics or if you’re looking for a family run, dog  friendly venue visit Cantina Kitchen and Bar, which offers a warm welcome, great food and a lovely outdoor seating  area to enjoy the coastal views and mild English Riviera climate.  

Dog walkers can use the North Sands beach all year round  and there are some delightful scenic routes to explore by foot. From  Youngs Park and the sheltered promenade follow the winding slopes  amongst Rock Walk Gardens uphill towards Roundham Head with its  extensive and impressive views from the headland across the Bay towards  Torquay.

During the summer season look out for the charming steam  train running along the back of south sands beach to provide a touch of  nostalgia to add to your holiday memories.

Elberry Cove, also known as Elbury Cove, is a shingle beach surrounded by woodland and fields, that lies between Brixham and Paignton in Devon, England. It is important for its eelgrass beds, breeding grounds for native seahorses, as well as mussels that are farmed in the waters nearby. 

It is on the South West Coast Path.

The coast around Elberry Cove is generally sheltered from the wind so is popular with water skiers. A ski lane is provided in the summer months.

At its eastern end are the ruins of Elberry bathhouse, which was built for Lord Churston in the 18th century, when seawater bathing became fashionable after George III took a dip at Weymouth. Standing three stories high, with the ground floor being flooded when the tide rose, the lord could swim into the sea through a gated doorway, preserving his dignity. The buildings also held a "hot-bath" room where seawater was heated and pumped in.

The cove features in one of Agatha Christie’s novels, The ABC Murders, as the setting of Sir Carmichael Clarke’s untimely death.

Good Beach Guide. Blue Flag & Seaside Award winner 2019

Nothing says South Devon more than this delightful sandy  red beach, surrounded by rolling hills and magnificent views across the  Bay.

Nestled between the towns of Paignton and Brixham,  Broadsands’ gently sloping gradient makes it a popular choice for  families with children. This beach is a hidden gem and a great  alternative to the busier main beaches of Torquay and Paignton offering  the traditional seaside attractions. The surrounding idyllic rural  landscape creates a relaxing feel and a sense of getting away from it  all. The pretty pastel coloured beach huts and traditional seaside deck  chairs truly enhance this tranquil and charming location.

The vast parkland area directly behind the beach is a  perfect spot for ball games such as football, rounders or cricket.  Within a short walking distance from the beach at the south end there is  a nine-hole pitch and putt course with spectacular sea views from every  hole.

The beautiful long sandy beach is a designated windsurfing  area and with some sailing boats able to launch from the slipway this is  the perfect place to test the water if you are looking for gentle and  leisurely water-based pursuits.

The long promenade with its level walk-way to both ends of  the beach leads to stunning grassed verges and even more spectacular  view points along the coastal path.  You’re very likely to see the steam  trains crossing Brunel’s remarkable viaduct from here too.

Good Beach Guide & Seaside Award winner 2019

The beach at Paignton has everything you could possibly want from an English Riviera family seaside holiday with crazy golf, donkey rides, endless sand and shallow clear waters for safe swimming.

There’s so much to do here you’ll be spoilt for choice.   There really is no better place to admire the spectacular coastal  scenery that the Bay has to offer than out on the still water so why not  hire a pedalo for some gentle, leisurely exercise or visit the nearby  harbour which offers mackerel or wreck fishing trips as well as  sightseeing excursions.

Paignton’s iconic pier sits grandly in the middle of the  beach and there’s an abundance of traditional seaside amusement arcade  games to entertain all the family including nostalgic coin push, toy  grabber and fruit machines from yesteryear to the latest video games.  The end of the pier attractions includes outdoor bouncy slides,  trampolines, and bumper car rides to keep the younger children amused.  Why not capture your holiday memories with a family photo in one of the  giant deckchairs?

There are plenty of beachside kiosks selling an array of  snacks including locally sourced shell fish and seafood as well as many  holiday goods including inflatables.  Taylor's Seafront Kiosk is Paignton’s oldest seaside Victorian kiosk.

The vast beach esplanade is lined with attractive Victorian  shelters if you’re looking for some temporary shade from the sun  sitting with an ice cream in hand people watching.

The day isn’t complete without a play session for the children at the Geoplay Park,  a free adventure playground on nearby Paignton Green which boosts  separate play areas for toddlers, juniors and teens as well as telling  the story of the area’s geological time periods in history.