To think we can find a seaside town to suit us all?

[redrise]

I feel I'm going around in circles trying to find a UK holiday destination both children will like. It should be easy but it isn't. Can anyone help?

1. Needs a sandy beach with a small stream running across it (or water outlet/pipe will do!). My 15 year old son is autistic and loves to create canals and divert water and would happily spend all day doing this.

2. Needs to be near a proper seaside town with lots of amusement arcades for my daughter. She loves places like Great Yarmouth but a little smaller would be okay.

The beach for my son and arcades for my daughter don't need to be in the same place, just within driving distance. I can Google seaside towns but I get nothing when googling "beach with stream" so hoping someone with local knowledge can help. Thank you!

@MinnieMountain

Tenby for the arcades, Manorbier for the stream. Manorbier also has a castle.

When my kids were young we loved loved loved Manorbier for stream damming and Tenby for the "seaside" experience.

@Bella37

Hope cove in devon has all of what you are looking for x

Sorry but no arcades anywhere near hooe cove! Cute little beach though and bigbury and bantham up the road are nice.

I agree about Torbay I think that ticks all the boxes plus lovely branch line to teignmouth and dawlish for more beaches and arcades.

@corlan

Bowleaze cove in Weymouth has a stream running across the beach. It's got amusements and it's right next to a couple of caravan parks.

Was just coming on to say this! My mum lives in Weymouth and we've had many many holidays there at all ages.

Manorbier in Pembrokeshire has a stream and there are one or two arcadey places in Tenby IIRC.

I see others have also suggested this area. Love love Tenby so much

Camber sands

I came on to say Sandsend too! Such a beautiful wee place and hours of fun for DS’s making dams on the beach.

southwold / walberswick

Another vote for Hunstanton/Old Hunstanton.

I second West Wales beaches - they often have streams, waterfalls etc - and are gorgeous. Never seem that crowded either.

Westward ho! Beautiful beach, little seaside town with penny arcades. No stream but full of rock pools and a manmade swimming pool, my kids love it! x

@Fruggalo

My children have had fun playing in/damming/mucking about in the streams at several beaches near Newquay (Mawgan Porth, Crantock, Perranporth, but I imagine most of them have something similar given the geography).

Another vote for Crantock! It's amazing :).

Filey for the beach, the brig, walk to Hunmanby Gap along the beach. Smallish arcade and other attractions, Scarborough, Bridlington both within 30 minutes drive for more in the arcade/parks line, Whitby 45 mins drive.

www.bing.com/images/search?q=filey+beach+&form=HDRSC2&first=1&tsc=ImageBasicHover

Manorbier is lovely isn’t it @fourquenelles? I’m from North Pembrokeshire but we got married at Manorbier castle.

Hunstanton is good fun, especially for the fair and arcades. Nowhere near as pretty though.

@ODFOx

Charmouth has a little river and the added bonus of fossil hunting which my dd loved. It's nit far along the coast from Lyme Regis.

I was going to suggest Charmouth on the Dorset coast too. The beach is sandy and has a river running on to the beach that can be paddled in but slightly further up can take dingy etc . I believe there is amusements in Lyme Regis which is only a few miles away but not been

@MinnieMountain

Manorbier is lovely isn’t it *@fourquenelles*? I’m from North Pembrokeshire but we got married at Manorbier castle.

Hunstanton is good fun, especially for the fair and arcades. Nowhere near as pretty though.

So many wonderful memories @MinnieMountain. My late DH's mum and sister used to live in Princes Gate just outside Narbeth so we visited regularly but it's been almost 15 years since the last time

Thank you so much everyone for your advice - I can't believe how many replies there are! We have settled on Tenby and Saundersfoot (something we would never have thought of without you guys!). My son is VERY excited about the "river beach" and my daughter is excited about the nearby theme park.

Hunstanton, Swanage, Sandsend and the others you mentioned are all on our list for future years.

The Cornwall ones look fabulous but there is going to be so little for my daughter to do I'm going to wait a few years- it won't be long until she'd rather be going away with her friends and we can mooch around Cornwall without listen to cries of "I'm bored" and complaints about lack of Wifi!

Thanks again everyone!

Have a great time! Might see you there! I know my children prefer the streams and running water than the sea. They've always had great fun there. Plus there are public toilets and other facilities. Lots of other beaches just a drive away. The public swimming pools are great too. Folly Farm and Hetherton are a must.

Char mouth has a stream I think. Not sure about nearest arcades.

Isle of Wight was my first thought. Lots of Sandy beaches plus kid friendly activities. Also, going across on the ferry is exciting for children.

Have fun OP.

You can also walk round to Coppet Hall from Saundersfoot once the tide is out a bit. There’s an excellent stream there.

Ah have fun OP, we had so many lovely holidays in Pembrokshire when the DC were small, happy memories 😀

You can also walk the coast path to hidden beaches and climb the odd hill if that's your thing. Plus find the beach where Dobby dues in the final HP film.

I'm going to second Charmouth - near weymouth. Lots of fossils to hunt as well. The sea life centre is good fun in Weymouth as well as a lovely beach

I second Swanage

Bude, Newquay, perranporth all have both streams and arcades.