Our local and one of our favourite beaches - just a 20 minute walk from the house (see walk section for directions). It’s a mix of sand and pebble, with the excellent Meadfoot Beach Cafe for breakfast, light lunches and ice-cream. For paddleboarders and kayakers; head round the western end of the beach to explore some interesting coves and rock formations.

Park in Babbacombe and take the cute cliff railway down to this picturesque red sand and pebble beach. There’s a restaurant (‘Three Degrees West’), a place to hire kayaks, canoes etc and pleasant walk round the bay to the Cary Arms pub

A very picturesque little cove with a cafe serving drinks and light meals. The only part of the beach that is officially accesible is quite small and pebbly. There is a larger, more sandy section at the northern end of the cove but this is not officially open to the public due to rock falls damaging the access path/bridge. However some people do choose to ignore the warnings and clamber over the rocks to the beach at low tide. It’s a 5 minute drive from a house; there’s a car park and then a steep walk down to the cove.

One of our favourite beaches! Convenient parking, wonderful golden sand, colourful huts, good ice cream and a picturesque backdrop of the viaduct with the steam train passing by. It’s a 25 minute drive from the house.

Great for kids and a section is dog friendly year round. Conveniant parking, a childrens’ playground, crazy golf, boating lake and a nice nearby restaurant called Cantina. During the summer season the local steam train can be seen running along the back of the beach. A 20 minute drive from the house.

Our favourite restaurant - glorious on a sunny day eating on the beautiful terraces overlooking the bay. Its a gastro pub with excellent seafood, and part of a spa hotel where you can book treatments too. Dog friendly. It’s a 10 minute drive (including a very steep section down to the car park) or a beautiful 1.5 hour walk along the South West Coastal path to Babbacombe - see the walks section for directions

There’s one in Torquay Harbour and another across the bay in Brixham. Great for kids and anyone with dietary requirements, we love the huge selection of freshly-caught local seafood, the unlimited chips and it’s easy to book online. Dog friendly.

We might be biased, but we think the best cream tea in Devon! Book well in advance and starve yourself beforehand. It’s a 10 minute drive to Babbacombe or a beautiful 1.5 hour walk along the South West Coastal path - see the walks section for directions

Great for takeaway or eating in. Check website for opening times.

A lovely deli and café in Wellswood, great for foodie gifts as well as delicious lunch options

If you get the ferry accross to Brixham, then this is another great option for fish and chips or something a bit fancier

On calm days this ferry runs regularly, and takes you across the bay to Brixham. Book tickets down at the harbour. Dog friendly.

If you get the ferry across to Brixham, there is a lovely walk up to Berry Head; a National Nature Reserve with an iconic lighthouse and Napoleonic Fort. It’s surrounded by water on three sides and offers exceptional views across Torbay and beyond. When you reach the top, grab a well earned ice-cream at the Guardhouse Cafe!

If you like animals then Pennywell Farm is well worth a visit, about 40 min drive from the house. Lots of cute animals to pet to and feed plus loads of other activities like a maze, bouncy castle, miniature train ride and a daily PIG RACE!! Book in advance during school holidays.

With over 2000 animals across 80 acres, it’s an impressive zoo. Only a 20 minute drive away.

The Dartmouth Steam Railway and River Boat Company offer many routes between Torquay, Paignton, Brixham, Dartmouth and several other locations in the area - including one of the finest steam train trips in the country linking Paignton with Dartmouth. The picturesque route takes you along the coast, through woods and across 3 viaducts.

In the cellar you’ll find table tennis, darts, table football and a keyboard - have fun! But please keep darts out of the reach of children and turn off the lights and heaters when you leave - thank you.

Ideal for a rainy day, these prehistoric caves are only 5 minutes drive away. They’re fascinating and great for kids, with a woodland trail and activities included in the ticket price

There’s a Hollywood Bowl 10 pin bowling alley by Torquay harbour, about a 15 min walk / 5 min drive from the house.

The ‘New Central Cinema’ is on Union Street in the centre of Torquay, less than a 10 min drive / half hour walk from the house

What English seaside town would be complete without amusement arcades?! Torquay has it’s fair share and whilst we can’t claim they are particularly nice, our children love them on rainy days. There are lots to choose from around the harbour (and also on Paignton pier) but we usually go to ‘Golden Palms’ on the far side of the harbour

This 20 minute walk takes you down to a lovely pebble and sand beach. At the top of the driveway take the stepped path down to Middle Lincombe Road then turn right, cross the road and and take the next set of steps down to Lincombe Drive. At the bottom of these steps turn left and walk for about 200 yards until you come to the entrance to a woods on the opposite side of the road. Head through the ‘kissing gate’ and follow the path through the woods (always taking the most downhill route where the path branches) down to Meadfoot Sea Road where you will find the beach. We can’t get a google maps link for this one, so good luck!

This 1.5 hour walk takes you along sections of the picturesque South West Coastal path to the neighbouring town of Babbacombe. Here you will find some great places to visit such as Oddicombe beach, The Cary Arms and Angels Tea Rooms. First head down to Meadfoot Beach - see other walk for directions. Then either walk along the beach or along Meadfoot Sea Road to the Kilmorie car park at the eastern end of the beach. Take the steep footpath from the car park up to Ilsham Marine Drive, then walk uphill along the road until you see a footpath on your right. Follow this footpath for wonderful views over Thatcher Point. The path will eventually lead you back to Ilsham Marine Drive which you will follow uphill until you reach a raised section of footpath on the left hand side of the road. At the end of this footpath cross the road and turn right onto another section of the South West Coastal Path which will lead you along the coast, through a woods and eventually come out at Ansteys Cove car park. Turn right and walk a short distance along Ansteys Cove Road before taking the stepped path on the right hand side signposted for Babbacombe Downs. Once you reach the downs you can either stay to the right hand side and look out for the path that takes you down through the woods to the Cary Arms pub (well with a visit) - from here you can walk around the bay to Oddicombe beach. Alternatively head inland from Babbacombe Downs, past the cricket ground towards Walls Hill car park, then follow Babbacombe Downs Road round to a lovely promenade and stretch of grass overlooking the bay - from here you can take the Cliff Railway down to Oddicombe beach.

The scenic walk to Torquay harbour takes about 25 mins from the (oddly-named!) ‘Daddyhole Plain’ lookout point. So first you need to get to Daddyhole Plain; this is either a 4 min drive or 20 min walk from the house. We usually drive as there is free parking and the walk is just along roads. Once at Daddyhole Plain head south towards the National Coastwatch look-out station, then head through a small stone archway onto the South West Coast path. You then simply follow the stepped path round the coastline, enjoying wonderful views across the bay. About 10/15 mins into the walk, at the bottom of a set of steps, you will come to a cross-roads. The path to Torquay Harbour is to the right but it’s well worth taking a short detour to the left first, to enjoy an excellent view of an arched rock formation known as ‘London Bridge’. Eventually the path takes you past The Imperial Hotel and out onto Beacon Hill Road. Simply turn left and follow the road down to the harbour.