BRIXHAM map ref SX 950550

Accommodation in Brixham Self-catering Accommodation Bed and Breakfast Accommodation Hotel Accommodation Camping and Caravanning

Accommodation in Brixham Self-catering Accommodation Bed and Breakfast Accommodation Hotel Accommodation Camping and Caravanning

English Riviera TIC The Old Market House, The Quay, BRIXHAM. Tel: +44 1803 852861

Brixham is a picturesque fishing town built upon a limestone outcrop at the southern end of the cresent that forms Torbay.

Brixham is the least commercialised part of The English Riviera and Torbay, built around the busy harbour.

The narrow streets of the town lead you through a fine array of colour-washed houses to the bustling harbour, surrounded by shops selling tourist memrobilia and refreshments, as well as locally caught fish.

In 1851 Brixham had one of the largest fishing fleets in the UK; but this has now dwindled to a much smaller scale.

The Brixham Museum features many displays of the rise and fall in the fortunes of the Brixham seafaring community.

The museum has many photographs of local wrecks and sea rescues, as well as the lifesaving equipment used throughout the years.

Brixham's seafaring link is emphasised by the presence of a replica of Sir Francis Drake's 16th - century ship, The Golden Hind. (Drake did visit Brixham in 1588 in the captured galleon Capitana.

At the southern end of Brixham's inner harbour there is a statue of Prince WIlliam of Orange.

William landed in Brixham in 1688 to claim the British throne from James II.

Berry Head

A short walk past the harbour towards the promontory of Berry Head will bring you to some fine beaches. Many of the beaches are small and pebbley, but St Mary's Bay has a large sandy beach, with an adjacent swimming pool, plus shop and facilities. To the east of Brixham is Berry Head Country Park.

Berry Head has stunning cliff top walks, with vast colonies of seabirds and stunning views. The underlying limestone topology of the area creates an environment ideal for several rare species of flora.

The country park was once the sight of an iron-age promontory fort complete with defensive earthwork embankments - typical of many promontory forts in the south-west. The most notable historical feature visible today is the huge Napoleonic fort built to defend Torbay from the French - unfortunately the construction of these Napoleonic fortifications destroyed all traces of a Roman encampment that had existed on the headland.

At the tip of Berry Head is the Berry Head Lighthouse. The lighthouse has an distinction of being the smallest in the UK (only a few feet high) and the highest lighthouse in the UK, being 67m (191 ft) above sea level.