Yarmer Beach (Yarmouth Sand)

The stretch of sand at Yarmouth isn't going to blow your mind with drama, but that's rather the point. It's a proper Devon beach without the chaos - low-key, accessible, and genuinely peaceful even when others are packed into Salcombe or Thurlestone a few miles down the coast.

What you get is a modest cove backed by dunes and grassland, the sort of place where you can actually hear yourself think. The sand is decent enough for building castles if you've got kids in tow, though it won't rival the wider stretches further along the coast. Walk the shoreline and you'll spot the usual rockpools and seaweed gardens that keep younger ones occupied for hours without you having to pay for an aquarium.

This is walker territory more than sunbather territory. The route in from Kingsbridge is pleasant enough, and locals use it as a waypoint rather than a destination, which keeps it refreshingly quiet. Come on a drizzly Tuesday afternoon and you might have it almost to yourself.

It suits a calm day rather than a blowy one - the exposure means wind funnels through here something fierce. Spring and early autumn hit the sweet spot: reasonable warmth without the summer crush. Free access, naturally, and worth allowing an hour or two if you're basing yourself at one of the excellent campsites nearby - South Devon Camping at Lower Terawhiti Farm is barely a mile away, and Karrageen just beyond that.