Hooken Cliffs

The cliffs here rear up from the shingle beach with real drama - red and gold sandstone layers stacked like a geological cake, with the sea doing its slow work at the base. You get proper views across Lyme Bay from the top, and on a clear day you can see right along the coast towards Portland. It's the kind of place that makes you understand why this stretch of Devon is called the Jurassic Coast.

Walkers will get the most from Hooken Cliffs. The approach from Seaton is straightforward enough, and the clifftop path gives you those exhibition views without requiring scrambling skills or specialist kit. You're looking at maybe an hour to two hours depending on how long you linger and whether you poke about on the beach below. The shale and fossils underfoot are genuine - find a piece of ammonite if you're lucky.

It's free to visit and there's no ticketing nonsense. Go when the light is good - late afternoon throws the cliff face into proper relief and makes the colours sing. High summer gets busy with families, so spring or autumn feels less crowded.

Based at Beer Head Holiday Park, just half a mile away, you've got a solid clifftop walk waiting for you. It pairs well with Seaton itself and the nearby beer quarry mines if you're after a fuller day out. Oakdown, three miles inland, works as a quieter base if you want easier access to the wider Jurassic Coast trails without staying right on the cliff edge.