Local Area & Beaches

The Village

We fell in love with Croyde's unique combination of surfer chill and olde-worlde thatch and charm - an odd combination, but it works and is great fun. The cottage is a 10-minute walk to the centre of the village of Croyde, passing along the way our nearest thatched-roof pub, The Manor (3-minute walk) and the picture-postcard May Cottage Tea Rooms. Croyde has 2 further pubs serving food, 3 restaurants, an ice cream parlour, a fudge shop, a takeaway and delivery pasty & pizza place (which has a great bar on the deck out back), a Post Office and general store, some great clothes shops, two local craft markets in the summer and a small year-round skate park. We will provide you with a full list of all the local pubs and restaurants (and our personal recommendations) when you book a stay.

L♡ve L♡cal

We are really lucky to have some great local cafés, pubs and restaurants in Croyde & Georgeham. They are all local independent businesses, not chains. And they are all within an easy walk from Vale Cottage.

We hope you enjoy the food, drink & hospitality at our locals. If you book a week-long stay and spend up to £100 in one of our locals, please send us a picture of the receipt and we will gladly re-imburse you what you have spent.

The first round is on us!

The Beaches

Croyde is nicknamed Devon's Mini Maui, as it is famous for its world class surfing beach, which is life guarded for most of the year. In April 2022, Croyde and the surrounding beaches were named as the 12th ever World Surfing Reserve, sharing the status with the likes of Malibu and Australia's Gold Coast. There are plenty of surf shops to buy or rent equipment and plenty of surf schools if you want to learn. There's also a beach café for the more sedate and, come summer, some great food trucks for good value food to enjoy on the beach. The neighbouring beaches of Puttsborough, Woolacombe and Saunton are equally stunning and also great to catch a wave or just have a dip.

Other Activities

As well as surfing, both paddle boarding and coasteering are great fun, and there are plenty of places that you can learn and take part in both.

Walkers are in for a treat, with direct access to the South West Coast path and never ending sea views when you get up to the top. You can walk to three separate - and all stunning - beaches in less than half an hour from your front door.

For runners, the nearest Parkrun is Woolacombe Dunes, which includes an exhilarating 1km beside the waves. It is one of the most beautiful (and toughest!) Parkruns in the UK - a truly stunning way to start your Saturday.

More To Do

If you like cycling, check out the Tarka Trail along the river and to the beaches. There are plenty of places to hire traditional or electric bikes. Saunton Golf Course is 10 minutes away. They offer 2 challenging links courses and welcome guests, with green fees of £130 summer, £80 winter and £65 with a county card.

Slightly further afield - but still only about an hour's drive - there is some great pony trekking on Exmoor. Local villages that are definitely worth a visit include Lynton/Lynmouth, Clovelly, Ilfracombe, Instow and Appledore. The whole area around Croyde is designated the North Devon Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty - it's easy to see why.