Boasting over 700 miles of coastline, the South West of England is home to a significant share of the UK’s Blue Flag beaches, which meet rigorous international standards for water quality, safety, and environmental management. Combined with the UK’s longest national trail, the South West Coast Path, the region offers a blend of recreation, scenery, and cultural heritage. These beaches are not just places to relax, but destinations full of history, ecology, and character.
1. Oddicombe Beach, Torbay, Devon
Oddicombe sits beneath the cliffs of Babbacombe and is proudly one of only two beaches in England to have maintained Blue Flag accreditation every year since 1987. Built in 1926, the Babbcombe Cliff Railway ensures that accessing the beach is part of its appeal. The railway still ferries visitors down the steep incline, allowing them to envision an era when engineering and leisure intertwined. Oddicombe is suitable for both families and solo visitors, with its shingle beach offering a newly refurbished cafe, kayak hire, trampolines, and deckchair and beach hut rentals. The layers of the cliffs also make it an excellent viewing point for observing Devon’s prehistoric past. Oddicombe’s ability to combine history with practical amenities is why it continues to be so enduringly popular.
2. Porthcurno Beach, Cornwall
Known for its white shell sand and turquoise waters, Porthcurno is a beach that offers both beauty and historical weight. On 7 June 1870, the first international telegraph cable to India was landed here, making it one of the most important communication hubs in the world for the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Though it doesn’t hold Blue Flag certification, the cove’s clear waters, sheltered setting, and Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty status make it one of Cornwall’s most celebrated destinations. The dramatic cliffs shield visitors from prevailing winds, giving the area a kind of microclimate on a blowy day. Carved into the granite by Rowena Cade in the 1930s, the legendary Minack Theatre sits above the beach and is open year-round. Although regularly visited by bodyboarders and surfers, the gentle stream along one side makes the beach equally child-friendly. With lifeguards in high season, local buses running in summer, a car park and a café, Porthcurno is an accessible beach with an abundance of history to explore.
3. Exmouth Beach, Devon
Stretching for nearly two miles in one of Devon’s oldest seaside towns, Exmouth Beach sits at the gateway to the Jurassic Coast, a UNESCO World Heritage Site spanning 95 miles of geological history. Although fossil hunting remains a popular pastime, today the beach is lifeguarded in season and offers paddleboarding, kite surfing, sailing, rockpooling, and direct access to the South West Coast Path. Exmouth’s award-winning restaurant, The River Exe Café is a custom-built floating restaurant off the Exe Estuary, accessible only by water taxi and open from 1st April to 30th September each year.
Exmouth Beach offers a destination where families and adventurers can all find something to enjoy along one remarkable stretch of sand.
4. Dawlish Warren, Devon
The Blue Flag award-winning Dawlish Warren combines a lively seaside resort with a 506-acre National Nature Reserve. In the mid-19th century, the Great Western Railway made Devon accessible to Victorian holidaymakers, and visitors have continued to enjoy the beach ever since. Today, Dawlish Warren offers cafes, arcades, amusements and a mini-golf course, whilst walkers explore quieter trails through the dunes. The beach offers peace of mind for swimmers, with lifeguards operating during the May to September season, and its onsite toilets, showers and parking make it accessible for all. Managed collaboratively by Devon Wildlife Trust and Teignbridge District Council, the Exe Estuary Nature Reserve houses a visitor centre and a haven for birds and wildflowers. Teaming this with its own railway station on the Riviera line, and the classic fish-and-chips or ice cream on offer, Dawlish Warren beach is perfect for accessibility and tradition in a picturesque location.
5. Goodrington Sands, Torbay, Devon
Located near Paignton, Goodrington Sands has long been part of the English Riviera’s Victorian resort tradition. The beach, divided into North Sands and South Sands, offers safe bathing, seasonal lifeguard patrols, and plenty of rock pools for children to explore. Awarded Blue Flag status, it is supported by ample amenities, including cafés, amusements, and the nearby Splashdown Quaywest Waterpark. Adding historical charm, the Paignton & Dartmouth Steam Railway runs along the coast here, with vintage trains still passing by. Goodrington is a beach that appeals to families, but also to visitors with a sense of nostalgia for seaside holidays of the past.
6. Saunton Sands, North Devon
A popular spot for surfers, Saunton Sands is a vast, three-and-a-half-mile beach backed by Braunton Burrows, the largest sand dune system in the UK. Surfers return due to Saunton Sands’s consistent waves that favour longboarding, but its size also makes it a haven for walkers seeking a quiet stroll. The site’s historical significance runs deep. During World War II, Saunton and its surrounding dunes became part of the US Assault Training Centre, chosen for its uncanny resemblance to Omaha Beach in Normandy. More recently, Saunton has also appeared in popular culture, featuring in Pink Floyd’s ‘The Wall’ artwork. Whether surfing or strolling, Saunton Sands is a beach shaped by history and nature alike.
7. Carbis Bay, Cornwall
Privately owned by the Carbis Bay Estate, this mile-long sheltered beach is just minutes from St Ives. Its calm waters have earned it Blue Flag recognition, making it an ideal spot for swimmers of all ages. The beach is accessible via one of the UK’s most scenic rail routes, the St Ives Bay Line, or for those arriving by car, beach-front parking is on offer. The beach shop stocks essentials and souvenirs, and is fringed with luxury hotels, spas, and restaurants, offering a high-end seaside experience. Facing the sea, the Carbis Bay Hotel was built in 1894 by Cornwall’s famed architect Silvanus Trevail, and has welcomed writers such as Virginia Woolf, who stayed in 1914. Whether you arrive by train or car, for the spa or the sea, Carbis Bay is a delightful seaside village in a picturesque haven.
8. Porthminster Beach, St Ives, Cornwall
Porthminster, a Blue Flag beach, is just a minute’s stroll from the platform of St Ives Railway Station. The South West Coast Path runs past the beach, offering scenic walks toward Carbis Bay, and visitors can explore St Ives itself with a stop at the Tate St Ives, the Barbara Hepworth Museum, and the town’s many galleries all nearby. Porthminster has water sports readily available, especially kayaking and paddleboarding, and the shoreline connects with St Ives Harbour Beach as it extends during low tide. Visitors can enjoy the celebrated Porthminster Beach Café, a multi-award-winning restaurant overlooking the bay serving beachside snacks, cocktails, and locally sourced seafood. For comfort and convenience, the beach offers deckchair hire, beach pods for storage, and accessible amenities via Cornwall Mobility.
9. Porthmeor Beach, St Ives, Cornwall
Another Blue Flag award-winning beach, Porthmeor is set directly below the iconic Tate St Ives. Facing the open Atlantic, Porthmeor is St Ives’s main surfing beach and attracts surfers year-round, supported by qualified trainers avaialble to beginners. The St Ives Surf School, based right on the beach, offers lessons in waist-deep waves whilst more experienced riders chase the waves further out. Facilities are thoughtfully laid out, with its fully stocked beach shop, and parking at both Porthmeor and Island car parks.
10. Westward Ho!, North Devon
Unique in being the only town in Britain named after a novel (Charles Kingsley’s Westward Ho!), this beach carries both literary and seaside significance. Originally developed as a Victorian resort to capitalise on the popularity of Kingsley’s novel, it retains a retro charm with arcades, terraces, and cafés reminiscent of its 19th-century heyday. However, at the same time, its reliable surf and vast tidal range make it a favourite amongst visitors looking for some water activity. Westward Ho! has become a hotspot for surfing, swimming, kayaking, and paddleboarding, and it is also framed within the North Devon Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. One of its many distinctive features is The Rock Pool, a seawater tidal pool tucked amid the rocks at the southern end. Westward Ho! successfully combines quirky heritage with contemporary leisure.
Collectively, these beaches illustrate the South West’s remarkable diversity. Some are resort-like, with Blue Flag awards attesting to their environmental quality, whilst others draw surfers, walkers, and historians alike. What unites them all is their ability to offer visitors seaside leisure, history, and connection to nature.
