The county of Devon is the only one to have two completely separate coastlines. In the north of the county you have the Bristol Channel; whilst in the south you have the English Channel. In between you have isolated towns and villages which really do tend to have a quintessentially English feel about them; then, of course, you have the moorland areas of Exmoor and Dartmoor. All-in-all, there is so much to attract tourists to Devon, it soon becomes easy to identify the reasons for it being England’s most visited county.
By staying in Devon cottages you will have the opportunity to visit all of the county’s top attractions. The national parks must rank very highly on any sightseeing itinerary and these remote and often stunningly beautiful landscapes are somewhere that you must set time aside to explore for yourself. Both parks are like last wildernesses of our country: with ancient, volcanic tors rising atop of steep hills, and ponies, sheep and all other manner of species of flora and fauna to glimpse.
There are two cities in Devon and both offer the perfect excuse for avid shopaholics to make good use of their credit cards. Exeter is situated in the east of the county and is actually the administrative headquarters for Devon. Exeter is known to date as far back as Roman times, so rest assured that there are plenty of interesting tourist attractions to see in the city. Exeter Cathedral is a must and there are some lovely boutique shops in this quarter of the city, along with some good cafés where you can grab lunch.
Plymouth is actually self-governing nowadays, but still considers itself as being very much Devonian. You may be surprised to learn that the city has a population of well over 260,000 souls: it is much larger than most people unfamiliar with the region realise. The historic Barbican area is absolutely charming and definitely one of the biggest draws to the city. You may well wish to visit the impressive National Marine Aquarium, where you can get rather up-close-and-personal with several species of marine life, including sharks (although you cannot get quite so close to these!). You should also visit Plymouth Hoe which is where Sir Francis Drake was playing bowls at the time The Spanish Armada was spotted on its way to trying to invade our country.
Another self-governing part of the county is known as Torbay. This is where you will definitely find some of Devon’s top beaches. In actual fact, there are some lovely stretches of sandy beach to be found in the towns of Torquay and Paignton. This area of the country is known as The English Riviera, and as it receives some of the mildest weather in the UK, you will soon work out why and how it has earned this reputation.
Some other quaint and interesting towns that you may well wish to visit whilst staying in your Devon cottages to rent include Tavistock, Totnes, Barnstaple, Lynton, Lynmouth and Exmouth. Tavistock is a personal favourite of mine, it too has strong connections with Sir Francis Drake, and is a very attractive market town. The town lies right within the foothills of Dartmoor National Park and is therefore one of the best spots in which to choose your Devon Cottages. The area is also very close to the border with Cornwall, if you fancy exploring a little further afield for a day or two.