Exercise Tiger Memorial

The Exercise Tiger Memorial sits quietly on the Devon coast near Kingsbridge, marking one of the war's most tragic rehearsals. On 28 April 1944, a German attack on an American landing exercise went catastrophically wrong - nearly 750 soldiers and sailors died in the waters off Slapton Sands, many of them never making it off the beach alive. Today, a tank pulled from the seabed and a simple stone memorial stand as a sobering reminder of what happened here.

It's not a cheerful spot, but it matters. The memorial feels genuine rather than polished - just a few moments with the facts of what occurred will hit you properly. You can walk along the beach where it happened, which adds weight to the visit. There's nothing flashy to see, no museum attached, just the tank and the stone. Most people allow 20-30 minutes here, though walkers often extend this into a longer stretch along Slapton Sands itself.

Families with older children will find it worthwhile, particularly if they're studying the war years. Younger kids may not get much from it. The nearby caravan parks at Start Bay and Wilton Farm are well-positioned if you're making this a proper coastal trip - you could combine it with walks around the Slapton Ley nature reserve or down to Torcross village. Free to visit, accessible year-round, though winter weather can be fierce along this stretch of coast.