Sidmouth is a town on the English Channel in Devon, South West, UK, at the mouth of the River Sid in a valley between Peak Hill to the west and Salcombe Hill to the east. It is surrounded by the East Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and is on the Jurassic Coast, a World Heritage Site and the South West Coast Path. 14 miles (23 km) southeast of Exeter.

• The red-coloured rock indicates the arid conditions of the Triassic geological period. The coastline around Sidmouth is one of the most important sites in the world for fossils from the Triassic period. Over the years incredibly rare and fragile fossils have been carefully collected, cleaned and studied, making it possible to reconstruct the environment of the Jurassic Coast as it would have been some 235 million years ago
• Visited by Queen Victoria in her youth in 1819. Victoria and her parents stayed at Woolbrook Cottage, now known as the Royal Glen. Sadly Victoria’s father, the Duke of Kent, died here the following year. Victoria never returned but donated a stained glass window to the Church of St Giles and St Nicholas in memory of her father.
• A series of southwesterly storms in the early 1990s washed away much of the shingle beach protecting the masonry. A set of artificial rock islands was constructed to protect the seafront, and tons of pebbles were trucked in to replace the beach.
• A Canadian admirer of Sidmouth, Keith Owen, had planned to retire here but on finding he had a terminal illness donated a large sum of money to the Sid Vale association asking for some of it to be spent ‘planting a million bulbs’. Now if you visit at daffodil time (around March) you will huge swathes of daffodils across the area.
• The main town beach is 1 mile (1.6km) long and mainly shingle.

Sidmouth appears in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Sedemuda, meaning “mouth of the Sid”. Like many such settlements, it was originally a fishing village.

• The resort was very fashionable in the 1800s and was visited by Queen Victoria in her youth as well as the Grand Duchess of Russia in 1831.
• Sidmouth is home to hundreds of listed building and many blue plaques can be found around the town.

• Airbnb, you can get a room from £40 or I saw an entire house from £66 per night.
• Hotels, start from £70 a night

Tip: Get up to £50 off your first booking with Airbnb click here.

There are two supermarkets in Sidmouth Waitrose and Lidl. There is also small Tesco, co-op and McColls in the town centre if you want to shop for you own. Restaurants aren’t that expensive though and there are plenty to choose from.

• Folk Festival August annual event where amateur performers, multi-national and local bands take over hotel lounges, pubs and pavements.
• Literary Festival, June.
• Regatta, End of August each year.
• Science Festival
• Sea Festival
• Sidmouth Air Show
• Sidbury Fair
• Sidmouth Fringe Festival
• Walking Festival

• Taxi,
  • Hanson Cabs, 07460 230220
  • Sidmouth Taxis, 07474 205328
  • Orchard Taxis, 01395 578883
  • Peak Taxis, 01395 513322
• Walk, It’s only a small town so easy to walk and the seafront is all on the level.

The Esplanade, Sidmouth EX10 8AZ. Car is the easiest way to get here and only way I have ever come. Driving and parking are easy enough off-season, but in summer months can be a lot more challenging. There is a ‘park and walk’ service from the council offices on station road, which involves a 15 minute walk into town.

• Bus, services to Sidmouth run regularly from Exeter and Honiton. Most buses arrive/depart “The Triangle” 200 m from the seafront.
• Car, the A375 connects Sidmouth with the A3052 at Sidford.
• Ferry, from Exmouth.
• Train, Since the closure of the Sidmouth Railway in 1967, the nearest railway stations are Feniton, Honiton or Whimple, all on the West of England line with services running to Exeter and east to Salisbury and London. Feniton is the nearest of these stations, being 8 miles (13 km) away.

• Taxi,
  • Hanson Cabs, 07460 230220
  • Sidmouth Taxis, 07474 205328
  • Orchard Taxis, 01395 578883
  • Peak Taxis, 01395 513322
• Tip: Get up to £50 off your first booking with Airbnb click here.