Brixham to Babbacombe: South West Coast Path Day 40 Guide

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There are many things in life we take for granted until we don’t have them. As I’d discovered over the last six weeks, waking up in a normal bed is very much one of those things.

Eventually dragging myself out of it under protest, we all piled into the car and headed back to Brixham for breakfast. Opting for Larder, a place with promising reviews that ended up being just ok, I then left Lauren and her family to wander around the shops as I headed back to the harbour.

The sun was glinting prettily off the water as I walked alongside the rocky shore defences, past the yacht club and out of town; if I thought I’d liked Brixham when I came in yesterday, it was nothing on how impressed I was by it this morning. For the first time in weeks there was barely a breath of wind, and sheltered by the long breakwater, the water was like a millpond.

Rounding Battery Gardens up a slight hill, the view over Fishcombe Cove was absolutely idyllic. A small boat was anchored there with its owners splashing around nearby in the clear water: it takes a lot to get me swimming in the English Channel, but if anything was going to, that scene would be it.

I’d read that this section was basically an urban stroll from one town to another along the “English Riviera”; that may well be true, but it’s one of the prettiest bits of urban walking I’ve done in a long time.

After Fishcombe Cove the path climbed again as it wound through Churlston Woods. I was no further from the water than I’d been a few minutes ago, but could no longer see it; the dense tree cover hid it completely even though it was 50 yards away at most.

Leaving the woods, I arrived at Elberry Cove, a small rocky beach with the ruins of a small bathhouse at one end and attractive views over flat rocks towards Torquay on the other.

This was one of those days where I’d been able to see almost the entire distance I had to walk from the moment I set out. That can often be a bit demoralising, but given the great weather and better views, there was nothing that could drop my mood this morning.

Just ahead was pretty Broadsands Beach, which seemed to consist entirely of rocks, golden sand, and colourful beach boxes. I’d had an odd relationship with the inhabitants of said beach boxes all along the Coast Path so far; I’d raise a hand or say hi as I passed, to be greeted by nothing more than a 1000-yard stare.

It was weird behaviour, especially given how friendly everyone else had been along the way, and I experienced it here as well. I couldn’t muster up the energy to be annoyed by it, though: as it turned out, even stand-offish people in glorified chicken coops couldn’t drop my mood this morning.

On the other side of the beach, the path led under an impressive stone railway viaduct. These days it’s only used by the steam train that meanders between Paignton up ahead and Kingswear that I’d walked through yesterday. Even at steam train pace, that journey takes a mere 30 minutes. It had taken me a day and a half. No regrets.

I’d heard the train’s whistle echoing through the valleys a little earlier, and now got to see its tracks. The path climbed briskly up the hill to run at first above and then alongside the railway line, with spectacular views back over Broadsands Beach.

Just as I arrived at the next stretch of sand at Goodrington Beach, the train itself appeared behind me. It would have been hard to miss, given all the hissing of steam and blasting on the whistle. I’m a bit of a sucker for old trains like this, so I just stood and admired it as it trundled past another endless row of beach boxes and out of sight.

I quite liked Goodrington Beach, and the small Young’s Park just behind it. As touristy and comparatively built-up as some of these beach settlements had been today, it was hard not to see their appeal.

Maybe because I’d been so impressed with everywhere I’d walked else through this morning, I was surprised at how little I liked Paignton. It’s much bigger, so that didn’t help, and neither did the number of shops selling tourist tat and overpriced ice-creams.

The iron-infused red sand was an interesting change, but even stomping along above that could only hold my interest for so long. I ducked into the main part of town for a coffee, cake, and sorbet from three different stores, and was underwhelmed by all of them.

Just to cap things off, the glorious sunshine I’d been bathed in all morning chose this moment to disappear. With the wind picking up, thick grey clouds overhead, and nothing further to detain me in Paignton, I sped along the path beside the beach and out of town on the other side.

Paignton became Hollicombe, Hollicombe became Torquay, and I’m not sure I noticed where any of them started or finished. As much as I’d loved the first couple of hours of today’s walk, it was hard to get excited about the next two: the colder, windier conditions didn’t help, and neither did the several miles of hard pavement and busy roads that were now my constant companion.

All that to say, if you’re looking to do a couple of hours of walking on the English Riviera, I’d highly recommend choosing the section between Brixham and Paignton instead!

After a brief dip inland at Hollicombe, the path stuck rigidly to the coast, finally leaving noisy Torbay Road to pass Princess Pier and Torquay Harbour. The one upside of all this urban walking is that, well, there hadn’t been much up: the nine miles I’d walked since breakfast had been one of the longest flat sections of trail in weeks.

That changed somewhat just after the pedestrian bridge across the harbour, with a climb up the road at Beacon Hill before turning right onto a footpath beside the cliff, through an open area with the amusing name of Daddyhole Plain, and dropping back down to a path behind Meadfoot Beach.

After half a mile of narrow pavement along Meadfoot Sea Road, the path continued through a small carpark and up a small wooded cliff. It briefly joined the road again at Ilsham Marine Drive, then left it to loop around Thatcher Point. I stopped briefly here to admire Thatcher Rock just offshore, either a small island or a very large rock depending on your point of view.

After another short walk along the road past Hope’s Nose, and a longer stint on a raised dirt track above it, I dropped down along a small lane and into the woods below. Instantly it felt like a completely different place, much more of a countryside vibe than the sandy beaches and busy streets I’d been walking along the rest of the day.

These last couple of miles today were lovely, all dirt trails, pretty woodland, and scenic views over the bays and coves below. The path joined a small lane at Anstey’s Cove beside a carpark, before heading back into the woods and then emerging onto a grassy common at Walls Hill where many, many Extremely Good Boys and their owners were out for a walk.

The path then dropped quickly back down towards sea level, passing first Babbacombe Beach and then Oddicombe Beach, where I stopped my watch beside the bottom of the cliff railway.

Somehow I’d managed to pass above Lauren and her family while they were walking/hopping in the other direction (there are a couple of different parallel trails, as it turns out!), so we reunited back at Babbicombe Beach, redid the short section back to the cliff railway together, and then took the last ride of the day up to the top.

It had been a shorter day than usual today, and an easier one as well. While I hadn’t loved those couple of hours slogging my way between Paignton and Torquay, everything either side of it had been fantastic, so the walk was still a winner in my books.

Ignoring a new and exciting knee pain that I seem to have developed somewhere in the last 24 hours, we headed out for dinner at the nearby Babbacombe Inn. It was extremely busy on this Friday night, with no inside tables and sign on the counter saying there’d be at least an hour’s wait for food.

In the end, this was one of those times you set your expectations low and have them greatly exceeded. Our meals came out in 20 minutes, they were all delicious, and the breeze even died away so we didn’t even have to sit there shivering as we ate them.

With a full belly, a second night in a proper bed to look forward to, and a Tesco on the way home where I could top up my supply of Jelly Tots, I really couldn’t have been happier.

Planning

Started at: Airbnb in Babbacombe (0.6 miles/0.9km off-trail)

Finished at: Airbnb in Babbacombe (0.6 miles/0.9km off-trail)

The two-bedroom place we stayed in Babbacombe no longer seems to be on Airbnb, which is a bit of a shame: it would have been a good place to base yourself for two or three days if you’re walking as a group.

It was close to the path right where it went past the cliff railway, fully self-contained, and had a good sized kitchen and living/dining area and a couple of bathrooms. If you didn’t feel like making anything beyond a cup of tea, it was a short walk to several nearby pubs and restaurants.

Since it’s no longer available, I’ve got other suggestions for places to stay in the area in the accommodation section below.

Transport and Parking

Given that basically the entirety of today is an urban walk between good-sized towns and villages, you won’t be surprised to hear that public transport is some of the best anywhere along the South West Coast Path.

The number 12 bus leaves from Town Square in Brixham, just back from the harbour, and has stops on or near the path all along its route. You can easily get on or off the trail at Broadsands, Goodrington Beach, Paignton, and anywhere between there and Torquay harbour.

If you want to continue on to Babbacombe by bus from there, the number 22 runs from Paignton up through Torquay and past the harbour before crossing to the other side of the headland. You can easily join or leave the path near Anstey’s Cove or Walls Hill, although in reality you’re never far from the bus route anywhere along this section.

The number 12 service runs every 12-15 minutes throughout the day Monday through Saturday, dropping back to every 20-30 minutes on Sundays, bank holidays, and very early or late in the day.

The number 22 runs slightly less frequently, but still every 15-20 minutes most of the day Monday through Saturday, and somewhat less often on Sundays, bank holidays, and very early/late services.

There are also train stations near the path in both Paignton and Torquay, with regular services to Exmouth. The historic steam train I mentioned earlier also departs from Paignton, heading south to Kingswear: it’s obviously aimed at tourists and priced like it as well, but the option is there if you want it.

If you wanted to leave a car somewhere and take a bus back to it later in the day, there are plenty of places to do so.

Brixham has several carparks, including all-day options at Shoalstone and Breakwater beaches beside the trail where it enters town from the east. As long as you’re happy to park well back from the town centre and harbour, you should also be able to find free on-street parking in residential areas.

There’s also a small free carpark at Fishcombe Cove, and a convenient if not cheap long-stay carpark at Broadsands Beach. You might be able to find free on-street parking on the streets behind the beach, but it’ll fill up quickly at popular times.

You’ll find a small and reasonably-priced long-stay carpark at Goodrington Beach, and a range of different options in or just outside Paignton. Many are short-stay only, but not all: Victoria carpark near the beach has long-stay parking, as does Preston Gardens, the APCOA carpark beside the train station, and a few others.

It’s much the same story in Torquay, with several different carparks, some of which offer (pricey) all-day parking. Options close to the path include Abbey, Harbour, and Beacon Quay carparks, but before choosing any of them, try for a spot in the free parking lot at Daddyhole Plain.

There’s also paid all-day parking at Meadfoot Beach, but it’s cheaper at Kilmorie just down the road: the Coast Path literally runs through this carpark, so it’s convenient as well. Finally, there are long-stay parks at Anstey’s Cove, Walls Hill, and in Babbacombe.

Waymarking and Navigation

Since most of the day is spent simply walking along the coast between towns and villages around Tor Bay, it’s relatively difficult to get lost. There are a few places where the path briefly detours inland, but those are well-marked and usually pretty obvious.

You’ll need to make slightly more effort to look out for signs during the last part of the day between Torquay and Babbacombe, but even then, with the sea on your right and a hill or cliff on your left, you’ll never really end up too far off course.

I used AllTrails as my main navigation app for the entire South West Coast Path, and it worked well throughout: you can find the Brixham to Babbacombe section here. The app is free to use, although I pay a couple of pounds a month for a subscription so I can download maps to my phone in advance.

Phone Service

Today was one of the rare days on the Coast Path where I had no issues with phone service at all. Being so close to towns the entire day, I had signal with O2 whenever and wherever I needed it.

Facilities

I usually go into detail here about places to find food and drink throughout the day, since there are often relatively few places to do so. That was not the case today: for most of the day, you couldn’t walk for 20 minutes without passing a cafe, restaurant, or pub.

The only slight exception is the last bit between Meadfoot Beach and Babbacombe, but even then there are still a few places on or close to the trail. None of the places I ate or drank at today stood out, so I’m not going to recommend anywhere in particular, but at least you won’t have trouble finding somewhere!

Accommodation

If you were planning to stay in a campsite on this section, you’re out of luck: it’s caravan parks and holiday resorts as far as the eye can see all around Tor Bay. The only real option is to continue on to Orchard Organic Farm, four miles further down the path and then half a mile inland at Higher Gabwell. They have a few tent pitches available, with discounted rates for walkers.

Be warned, though: this section of trail has a lot more up and down than anything else you’ll walk today! If that sounds like too much, you could also take the number 11 bus from Babbacombe to Maidencombe Cross and back again the next day: from there, it’s less than half a mile to the campsite.

If you’re not planning to sleep in a tent or the lack of campsites has put you off, there are unsurprisingly many alternatives all around the bay. The hard part may be finding somewhere affordable during summer if you’re like me and don’t book anything until the last minute.

Much and all as I didn’t love Paignton, that wouldn’t have stopped me from staying there overnight: it’s where you’ll find the bulk of the affordable accommodation. Start with the ibis, Travelodge, or Mecure chain hotels, the Three Palms, or one or the other of these two B&Bs.

Torquay has a few good options as well, including Abbey Sands Hotel and Green Corner Villa near where you come into town, or the Hampton near the harbour. In Babbacombe, start with the Buccaneer Inn or Babbacombe Palms.