There is so much to do in the South Devon and surrounding area...take a look at just a few of interesting places to visit in the area.
Discover the story of a family who became caught up in the extraordinary events of the English Civil War. Their history is bound up in this beautiful house, which is still the home of the Carew Pole family today.
Antony
Torpoint
Cornwall
PL11 2QA
01752 812191
Surrounded by some of the most breathtaking scenery to be found in the UK, the Cliff Railway provides a vital and non-exhausting way for locals and holidaymakers alike to soak up the peaceful atmosphere and take in the amazing views as they travel to and from the water’s edge.
Babbacombe Cliff Railway
Babbacombe Downs Road
Babbacombe
Torquay
TQ1 3LF
01803 328750
Explore 4 acres of award-winning gardens showcasing hundreds of model scenes, The village portrays English life and culture over the last 6 decades and is sure to bring to life those childhood memories.
Babbacombe Model Village
Hampton Avenue
Babbacombe
Torquay
Devon
TQ1 3LA
01803 315315
There’s something for everyone at Becky Falls, from beautiful river walks, scrambling across boulders to the children’s stamp trail – prize for every child! Not forgetting the Animal Encounter shows, Meet the Keeper Sessions and free to hire Explorer Backpacks. All shows and activities are included in the entrance fee.
Becky Falls
Manaton
Newton Abbot
Devon
TQ13 9UG
01647 221259
Tucked away in a deep wooded valley, Berry Pomeroy Castle is the perfect romantic ruin with a colourful history of intrigue. The location of the castle makes it ideal for walkers who can explore the nearby beautiful woodland or you can enjoy a light lunch, homemade cake or restorative cup of tea in the cafe.
Berry Pomeroy Castle
Berry Pomeroy
Totnes
Devon
TQ9 6LJ
www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/berry-pomeroy-castle
Spanning nearly 300 years of horticultural history, these magnificent grade 1 listed gardens are set in Devon picturesque Otter Valley, between the ancient city of Exeter and England’s Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. The superbly landscaped park combines 18th-century tranquillity has modern amenities.
Bicton Park
East Budleigh
Budleigh Salterton
Exeter Devon
EX9 7BJ
01395 568465
Spanning nearly 300 years of horticultural history, these magnificent grade 1 listed gardens are set in Devon picturesque Otter Valley, between the ancient city of Exeter and England’s Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site. The superbly landscaped park combines 18th-century tranquillity has modern amenities.
Bicton Park
East Budleigh
Budleigh Salterton
Exeter Devon
EX9 7BJ
01395 568465
Set high above the Teign Gorge on the edge of Dartmoor, Castle Drogo is a masterpiece of early 20th-century architecture.
Currently coming towards the end of a 6-year project to restore the castle roof, due to be completed for the 2019 season.
Castle Drogo
Drewsteignton
near Exeter
Devon
England
EX6 6PB
01647 433306
Coldharbour Mill is one of the oldest woollen mills in the UK, having been in continuous production since 1797. Today the rich heritage lives on as one of the finest working wool museums where visitors are not just able to relive the sights and sounds of the industrial revolution but also see craftsmen and women making traditional textiles, beautiful knitting yarn and handwoven rugs.
Coldharbour Mill
Uffculme Cullompton
Devon
EX15 3EE
01884 840960
This most evocative of country homes was built in the Arts & Crafts style and is imbued with Art Deco elegance. A light, joyful atmosphere fills the rooms, and music plays, echoing the family’s Gilbert and Sullivan connections. You can get an insight into 1920s life ‘upstairs and downstairs’ from the glamorous Saloon and the airy servants’ rooms.
Coleton Fishacre
Brownstone Rd
Kingswear
Dartmouth
TQ6 0EQ
01803 842382
A dramatic fortified manor house and small formal garden.
A rare survivor, this medieval fortress with high curtain walls, towers and a portcullis, is set in a landscape of rolling hills and orchards. Compton Castle is a bewitching mixture of romance and history. It has been home to the Gilbert family for nearly 600 years, including Sir Humphrey Gilbert – half-brother to Sir Walter Raleigh.
Compton Castle
Farmyard Corner
Compton, Paignton
TQ3 1TA
01803 661906
A Tudor house with water wheel, working mill, quay and estate. The house is perched high above the River Tamar and decorated with tapestries, arms and armour, pewter, brass and old oak furniture. Outside, explore the formally planted terraces, or lose yourself in the Valley Garden.
Cotehele
Saltash
St Dominick
Callington
PL12 6TA
01579 351346
Devon’s leading indoor air gun centre and ranges with two fantastic gun ranges with over 100 targets to shoot at. There is a twenty-meter air rifle range with a choice of either standing or sitting benches and a selection of targets.
Crackshot
1-2 Sabre Close,
Heathfield,
Newton Abbot
Devon,
TQ12 6TW
01626 242971
Visit Dartmoor prison museum and learn about life inside one of the world’s most famous and notorious jails. The museum attracts more than 35,000 visitors every year from all over the world. Some of the artefacts and documents on display will surprise you but will certainly enable you to form an opinion about prison life.
Dartmoor Prison Museum
HMP Dartmoor
Princetown
Devon
PL20 6RR
01822 322130
One of the most beautifully located fortresses in England. For over 600 years Dartmouth Castle has guarded the narrow entrance to the Dart Estuary and the busy, vibrant port of Dartmouth. It offers stunning views of the estuary and out to sea and offers a great day out.
Dartmouth Castle
Castle Rd
Dartmouth
Devon
TQ6 0JN
0370 333 1181
This tour makes a great day out which Includes a steam train, riverboat and bus, visiting the quaint towns of Paignton, Dartmouth and Totnes.
Dartmouth steam railway & river boat company
Steamer Quay
Steamer Quay Road
Totnes
TQ9 5AL
01803 555872
On the edge of one of the UK’s most beautiful landscapes, hidden on the borders of Dartmoor National Park, Dartmoor Zoo boasts a wonderful 33 acres of woodland. Celebrating a wide range of exotic and native animals, including the biggest variety of Big Cats in the South West of England. From Tigers to Tortoises, you’re bound to find some of your favourites.
Dartmoor Zoological Park
Sparkwell
Plymouth
Devon
PL7 5DG
01752 837645
The Eden Project is nestled in a huge crater. Here, massive Biomes housing the largest rainforest in captivity, stunning plants, exhibitions and stories serve as a backdrop to our striking contemporary gardens.
Eden Project
Bodelva
Cornwall
PL24 2SG
01726 811911
A warm welcome awaits you at The Garden House, a garden steeped in history set in a tranquil Devon valley. The 10-acre garden is several gardens in one, with a beautiful walled garden surrounded in ruins of Buckland’s medieval vicarage, bulb meadow, cottage garden, South African garden, quarry garden and acre glade. Discover hidden treasures along its countless pathways and enjoy the sights, fragrances and abundance of plants.
The Garden House
Buckland Monachorum
Yelverton, Devon
PL20 7LQ
01822 854769
The beloved holiday home of the famous and much-loved author Agatha Christie and her family, you can take a glimpse into their lives. This relaxed and atmospheric house is set in the 1950s, when Agatha and her family would spend summers and Christmases here with friends. The family were great collectors and the house is filled with archaeology, tunbridgeware, silver, botanical china and books.
Greenway House
Galmpton
Greenway Rd
Kingswear, Brixham
Devon, TQ5 0ES
01803 842382
Kents Cavern is one of the most important Stone Age sites in Europe and one of Britain’s best showcaves! On your visit you’ll go back to a time when the cave was home to ancient humans, sheltering from extreme weather, making fires, shaping tools and hunting Ice Age animals. As you walk through the extensive labyrinth of caverns, you’ll be surrounded by 400 million year old rocks and spectacular stalagmites and stalactites.
Kents Caves
Ilsham Road
Torquay, Devon
TQ1 2JF
01803 215136
With acres of glorious garden and park, surrounding a spectacular Gothic Revival house, Knightshayes is the complete country gentleman’s dream.
Knightshayes
Bolham
Tiverton
Devon
EX16 7RG
01884 254665
Discover two sides of Victorian life: from the kitchens, nurseries and servants’ quarters, which offer a thrilling glimpse into life ‘below stairs’, to the luxurious family areas, elegant dining room and spacious bedrooms which reveal the comforts of ‘upstairs’ living.
Lanhydrock
Bodmin, Cornwall
PL30 4AB
01208 265950
The Mayflower Museum, set over three floors explores the story of the voyage of the Pilgrims and their journey aboard the Mayflower to the New World.
Mayflower Museum
3-5 The Barbican
Plymouth
Devon
PL1 2LR
01752 306330
Morwellham is an award-winning attraction which forms part of a World Heritage site, featuring historic port, village, copper mine and railway just four miles west of Tavistock and bordering the beautiful River Tamar.
Morwellham
Morwellham Quay
Tavistock
Devon
PL19 8JL
01822 832766
A superb landscaped park, fallow deer, woodland and coastal walks and marvellous view, combine to make Mount Edgcumbe one of the most spectacular attractions in the West Country at any time of the year. One of only three Grade I Listed gardens in Cornwall.
Mount Edgcumbe
Cremyll
Torpoint
Devon
PL10 1HZ,
01752 822236
The National Marine Aquarium is the largest public aquarium in the UK welcoming 300,000 visitors per year. The awe-inspiring exhibits, featuring marine animals from near and far, provide an environment that intrigues, inspires and motivates all visitors to engage with the conservation messages and hopefully do their bit to help protect the marine environment.
National Marine Aquarium
Rope Walk
Coxside
Plymouth
PL4 0LF
0844 893 7938
Visit the remains of the largest castle in Devon, in a stunning setting on a wooded spur above the rushing River Okement. Begun soon after the Norman Conquest as a motte and bailey castle with a stone keep, it was converted into a sumptuous residence in the 14th century by Hugh Courtenay, Earl of Devon, much of whose work survives. After the last Courtenay owner fell foul of Henry VIII in 1539, the castle declined into a ruin.
Okehampton Castle
Castle Lodge, Okehampton
Devon, EX20 1JA
01837 52844
Tucked away on the cliffs above Salcombe is this hidden paradise: a subtropical garden, bursting with colour, filled with exotic and rare plants and surprises around every corner, which surrounds the seaside home of scientist and inventor Otto Overbeck. The views from the garden over the estuary and coast are truly breathtaking.
Overbeck’s
Sharpitor
Salcombe
Devon
TQ8 8LW
01548 842893
The historic paddle steamer Kingswear Castle is the last remaining coal-fired paddle steamer in operation in the UK today and is running on her home waters of the River Dart once more. She runs 1¼hr Dartmouth River Cruises and cruises between Dartmouth and Totnes so that passengers can now journey on her as part of the famous Round Robin excursion.
Paddle Steamer Kingswear Castle
Kingswear Signal Box
The Square
Kingswear
TQ6 0AA
01803 555872
Paignton Pleasure Cruises run a variety of different boat trips in and around the shores of Torbay, with a multitude of cruises leaving and arriving from Paignton, Torquay and Brixham.
With Wildlife Cruises, Fishing Trips, Evening Cruises, Sunset Cruises… there is something for everyone.
Paignton Pleasure Cruises
Roundham Road
Paignton
Devon
TQ4 6DW
01803 529147
With over 2,500 animals across 80 acres, Paignton Zoo is one of the South West’s most exciting visitor attractions. .
The Zoo is laid out so you can get up close to some of the animal wonders of the world across our specially designed habitats.
Paignton Zoo
Totnes Road
Paignton
Devon
TQ4 7EU
01803 6975007
Plant World Gardens is one of the floral delights of Devon. Located between Torquay and Newton Abbot, the Garden is laid out to represent the five continents of the world. Our inspirational gardens contain countless rare and exotic plants seldom seen outside their native lands.
Plant World Gardens
St Marychurch Rd
Newton Abbot
Devon
TQ12 4SE
01803 872939
Set sail with Plymouth Boat Trips, the South West’s premier cruising, ferry and fishing company. From sight-seeing cruises, private charters and party nights to connecting ferries and fun packed fishing trips – there’s something for everyone.
Plymouth Boat Trips
2-5 Commercial Wharf
Barbican
Plymouth, Devon
PL1 2NX
SatNav: PL1 2LR
01752 253 153
The Plymouth Distillery is the oldest working distillery in England. It has been making Plymouth Gin according to the original recipe since 1793. Every year thousands of visitors come to experience the unique character of Plymouth Gin Distillery and sample the acclaimed gin. The tour options include a classic Plymouth Gin Distillery Tour or an enhanced Gin Connoisseur’s Tour.
Plymouth Gin
Black Friars Distillery
60 Southside Street
The Barbican Plymouth
PL1 2LQ
01752 665292
Powderham Castle enjoys a unique, picturesque setting within an ancient deer park beside the Exe estuary, just south of Exeter. Over 600 years of history can be discovered within the walls of one of Devon’s oldest family homes.
Powderham Castle
Kenton
Exeter
Devon
EX6 8JQ
01626 890243
Set in 90 acres of parkland within Dartmoor National Park, the River Dart Country Park is one of Devon’s best-loved family tourist attractions. The park is packed with activities, so get here early for a great day out!
River Dart Country Park
Ashburton
Devon
TQ13 7NP
01364 6525113
The new state of the art, innovative brewery sits amongst the Devon countryside looking towards the Salcombe Ria. The brewhouse is a unique concept built on the site of a decommissioned water reservoir. Visitors are welcome for tours or brew days for those interested in learning and sampling the ales.
Salcombe Brewery
Estuary View
Ledstone
Kingsbridge
Devon
TQ7 4BL
01548 854888
The multi-award winning South Devon Railway is one of Devon’s and the West Country’s best-loved tourist attractions and is the longest established steam railway in the south west.
South Devon Railway
Dartbridge Road
Buckfastleigh
Devon
TQ11 0DZ
01364 644370
Stover Country Park contains over 114 acres of woodland, heathland, grassland, lake and marsh and a substantial variety of wildlife. It is a site of special scientific interest meaning it is protected by law to conserve its wildlife and geology
Stover Country Park
Newton Abbot
Devon
TQ12 6QG
01626 835236
Woodlands Family Theme Park is the largest theme park in Devon, a fun filled family day out for everyone. From little kids to kid-ults there’s something for anyone and everyone! With one of the largest and best indoor play areas in the South West, amazing water rides, a zoo farm and much more.
Woodlands Leisure Park
Blackawton
Totnes
Devon
TQ9 7DQ
01803 712598
Moor View Touring Park, California Cross, Modbury, South Devon. PL21 0SG