Daniel Mays' guide to Salcombe, Devon: Boat trips, fishing and celeb-spotting

From messing astir connected boats, to wherever serves the champion posh food and chips, here’s however to marque the astir of a staycation successful the British Riviera hotspot.

Salcombe successful Devon. It was archetypal introduced to maine by my woman who utilized to vacation down determination arsenic a child. Before I’d been wholly oblivious to it. She suggested it astir 10 years ago, truthful we threw everything successful the car and drove, and I fell successful emotion with it instantly.
Some radical telephone it Chelsea connected Sea, but erstwhile the upwind is astonishing down determination it’s similar the English Riviera. We effort to spell each twelvemonth for a mates of weeks to recharge. It’s a spot I consciousness truthful connected to. With the hectic beingness of an histrion successful London and everything other going on, I get determination and I consciousness instantly much relaxed and chilled. It’s similar a spiritual location for us.

My woman Lou[ise Burton] and our 2 kids, Milo, who is 19, and Dixie who has conscionable turned 12. They’ve grown up going down there. We emotion however it has a precise quaint colony consciousness to it and the locals are incredibly welcoming. We’ve truly got successful with the boating assemblage astatine Whitestrand Boat Hire. You tin get a vessel and spell formation hopping up and down the estuary, which is what we emotion to do. Over clip we’ve got a spot much adventurous and anchor the vessel and spell from North Sands to South Sands, implicit the different broadside to East Portlemouth.

We similar to prosecute a cottage truthful it’s backstage and marque time trips retired to Kingsbridge connected a boat.

There are 2 places we truly adore: The Winking Prawn, which is adjacent North Sands Beach. We're precise affable with the owners present and it's conscionable a beauteous spot, marooned successful a benignant of tiny vale wherever the formation is. And implicit astatine East Portlemouth you tin instrumentality the coastal locomotion astir the peninsula, which takes you each the mode to the alternatively zhuzhed-up edifice astatine Gara Rock, which is simply a five-star spa retreat hotel. You tin bash astir an hour’s locomotion and past spell determination for immoderate truly stand-out food.

Some prawn linguine oregon bully old-fashioned food and chips astatine Gara Rock.

Going from pub to pub down the estuary connected a boat. Just cruise down and necktie the vessel up and past spell and person a pub lunch. My lad and I person got truly into it and got taught by an expert. We person licenses to negociate a tiny vas now. You tin besides spell seal watching and beryllium taken retired to oversea and each the mode astir the coast.

There's a feline down determination called Squirrel, spell and find him and his vessel Anglo Dawn to spell retired connected a fishing trip. He’ll acceptable up the rods for you. I've got this large representation of Milo who caught this truly agelong eel and arsenic we came backmost into the harbor — there's a large pub called The Ferry Inn — and helium held up the eel and the full brew plot got up and gave him a monolithic clap.

There’s immoderate jaw-dropping properties. The higher up successful municipality the better. There’s 1 location which was designed by a brace of architects that was connected This Morning and takes successful views of the full of Salcombe.

The Ferry Inn is bully for youngsters!

There's a batch of celebs you tin extremity up spotting successful Salcombe. David Tennant goes down determination with his woman Georgia. Patricia Hodge has a gaff down there. I’ve seen Anton Du Beke. And there’s a immense location implicit connected the East Portlemouth broadside which is pink, and Liam Gallagher stayed determination 1 twelvemonth erstwhile we were there. I didn’t accidental hello, but I've met him successful Highgate Woods. People emotion it for a spot of calm and feeling similar you’ve gone backmost successful time. The tranquility is hypnotic.

I've got an astonishing people which I'm looking astatine close present connected my partition — it's rather a celebrated photograph taken successful the precocious day and each the boats are moored up. To maine it's the quintessential English Riviera.
I bought it from a framers successful Salcombe.

Well the boating assemblage volition beryllium retired determination successful their jackets and moccasins, but I don't truly spell successful for each that!

When we archetypal went boating successful the Salcombe Estuary I jumped successful disconnected the vessel to anchor it — similar a implicit townie — and the h2o fundamentally came each the mode up to my waist. I'd forgotten that my mobile telephone was successful the pouch of my shorts. So that was it! I proceeded to enactment it successful a container of rice, which of people didn’t work. Once I’d gotten implicit my tantrum (“There’s the irate Londoner who’s mislaid his phone!”) it was beauteous beneficial to beryllium without it! But present whenever I spell formation hopping I ever marque definite that my mobile is successful the apical pouch of my jacket.

Your crab catching kit! You tin bargain bait from the section butcher. The kids utilized to emotion it.

I'd person to accidental ‘Lovely Day’ by Bill Withers.

As told to Hayley Spencer