National Trust - Little Dartmouth

The cliffs here drop sheer into the sea, and on a clear day you can see right across Start Bay towards Start Point lighthouse. Little Dartmouth is a proper working hamlet - a scatter of stone cottages and farm buildings where the South West Coast Path threads through, and the National Trust owns much of the land, keeping it from the sort of development that's swallowed up other Devon headlands.

There's no visitor centre or tea room, which is part of its charm. What you get is raw coastline: dramatic red sandstone cliffs, a scattering of rock pools if you make it down to the beach at low tide, and genuine quiet. The walk from Paignton takes effort - it's a solid few miles along the Coast Path - but that's why it stays unspoilt. Day-trippers don't typically venture this far.

Historically it matters too. There's a fort from the English Civil War tucked away here, and shipwrecks pepper the records. But honestly, most people come for the views and the walking rather than for a history lesson.

Families with young children might find it a bit much for a full day, unless they're keen walkers. Proper hikers and anyone after dramatic coastal scenery will get several hours out of it easily. Go early in the morning if you want any parking near the entrance.

It sits between the caravan parks clustered around Paignton - South Bay and Waterside are the closest - making it a natural half-day or full-day walk if you're based in that area for a week. Free to visit, as National Trust land tends to be, though the nearest car park might ask for a small fee.