Want to get away from busy Devon

[Peanutkitten]

Live on the coast in a beautiful very popular holiday destination that is already fully booked for the summer (which is great for our local economy!) but after last summer it was just so busy, this year we want to get away to somewhere quiet. Thing is, everything I look for in a holiday is what we have on our doorstep, so where else can we go in the U.K.? Never holiday’ed in the U.K. before! DC 10 and a newborn.
Apparently we can rent our house out for £3k a week?! That’s ridiculous! But we can’t as we have a sweet old cat!
AIBU to want the beach to myself again?! 😂

@dementedma good news is that Aberdeenshire has lots and lots of walks, castles and quiet beaches easily found by walking 15 minutes away from the car park. The bad news is that the sea is freezing and any indoor activities often get booked way in advance just by people who live here trying to find stuff to do!

Embrace the tourists with open arms, welcome them to the beautiful part of the world you live in, its been a long hard year for all of us, be nice

@MoonfacedMilksop

Whereabouts in Devon are you? I rent out my house in pretty much the most expensive town on the south coast of Devon. It sleeps 10, is 2 minutes to the beach and only over the August bank holiday week can I charge £2,500. The rest of the school holiday it’s more around £2,000. You’ll also need an awful lot of checks and a change of insurance unless you’re just planning on doing it informally.

But I fully empathise with you wanting to get away. It was shoulder to shoulder round the harbour last year, never been like that since 80’s. Add in the bloody stupid plan to have cruise liners offloading an extra 5,000 people per day for day trips and it’s going to be absolute carnage.

My parents have rented a two bed/sleeps 4 Airbnb for a visit during term time in the village over from us in east Devon for £1,500. That's about double the price from last year!

I would go for somewhere totally different too - Chester or Liverpool so you are near North Wales with the lush scenery. Loads of history to embrace too.

"It becomes unliveabe at a point"
Completely agree Onwards

I work in hospitality, and last year was just awful. I'm not sure I can do another Summer of that. I usually love my job.

We stayed in a cottage in North Yorkshire last year, its quite a 'posh' part of the country. Compared to where we live (suburbia in a major city) there were much fewer families and attractions much quieter. It was literally the only thing I could find last year with four weeks notice of deciding we wanted to go away!

We did a day trip to York (obviously busy) and visited a few National Trust places:

Fountains Abbey
Beningborough Hall
Nunnington Hall
Brigham Rocks

(Love a 'free' NT day out!)

We got recommended to Castle Howard but ran out of time. There are also a few nice villages for a pub meal/walks e.g. Helmsley, Hovingham. Knaresborough is a nice market town that we've visited before too, with a riverside walk and a castle from memory.

@Macncheeseballs

Embrace the tourists with open arms, welcome them to the beautiful part of the world you live in, its been a long hard year for all of us, be nice

Very true, but it goes both ways, it’s been a hard year for us too, so it would be nice if people were kind when they came to visit.

I’m pretty sure 99% of people who come are lovely, but the actions of the 1% spoil it for other tourists and residents alike.

@Macncheeseballs

Embrace the tourists with open arms, welcome them to the beautiful part of the world you live in, its been a long hard year for all of us, be nice

We do embrace the tourists, but it would be really great if they could treat our counties with respect. Cornwall and Devon are not one massive holiday park. People live here.

@Ridiculousradish

I completely get it OP. I live on the Cornish coast and last year was absolutely bonkers. I'm thinking of visiting Wales or Scotland. Or maybe the Yorkshire Moors..

Yes, I get it too.

I also live in a popular holiday area and am well used to the busy summer season, but last year was something else, and this year everywhere is already fully booked.

Our economy is mostly tourism dependent so it’s great, I usually love it here when the season starts. The place is dead over winter so I love that buzz when summer starts, but last year was just insane and a lot of the visitor’s behaviour was pretty terrible.

We have a camper van that we usually take away locally over the summer with friends, but this year I’d love to go somewhere a bit quieter. Even the more off grid/basic/wild camping type campsites are already fully booked here this year

We too live in a busy seaside town on the SC (Dorset).I like the holiday makers though it does get a bit too hectic as you say .What about Wales or somewhere like a small inland village?

www.theoldpiggerybandb.co.uk/

try somewhere not remotely touristy. .I stayed here once it was lovely and def no crowds

@Biffbaff

Yes YABU. The beach in Devon isn't just yours. I recommend Lincolnshire. Lots of space on the beaches (outside the main resorts) and it's full of misanthropic bastards as well.

We do pay a fortune for water though so that you can come and have clean water and safely swim (well not everywhere but massive improvements which cost massive amounts of money and the drinking water is horrible even though we pay so much for it.)

Im originally from Devon inland so significantly less busy. I would recommend Scotland I visited a lot before moving here even the more busy relatively speaking but simply stunning West Coast isn’t as busy as a Devon seaside village on a quiet day. Edinburgh is busy loads of tourists but worth a visit Glasgow is also busy because it’s a big busy city but less tourists I prefer it to Edinburgh others will disagree, Loch Ness is touristy so I personally wouldn’t go there and some of the islands can get quite busy but it’s all relative.
On our way to the south last year we stopped off in the Yorkshire Dales hoping to rekindle memories of childhood holidays there it was nothing like we remembered probably not as many tourist as Devon and Cornwall but really really busy, and significantly more than on the West Coast of Scotland, ditto the Lakes gorgeous but rammed with tourists.
Travel around? Look at the less touristy Dumfries and Galloway stunning coastal countryside and the weather is supposed to be better. Inveraray and Loch Fyne are gorgeous although you’ll get attacked by midges, Loch Lommond is very busy especially on a -rare- sunny day probably due to its proximity to Glasgow but it’s still worth a visit if your in the area as is Glasgow itself great museums friendly people fab places to eat. Scotland is bigger than many people realise numerous something for everyone stunning beaches and has lots to offer.

It’s only April 2nd and some of the people of Devon and Cornwall are already complaining about outsiders so we can expect the pitchforks to be out again come May.

You’ve had your lovely beaches to yourselves for many months now and they don’t just belong to you.

Don’t worry though I definitely won’t be coming after all of the ‘keep out!’ carry on of last year. Banking on getting my second vaccine in time to go abroad to somewhere with guaranteed weather which will be cheaper and where I’ll be welcome.

@OnwardsAndSideways1

I think people are underestimating how busy Devon and Cornwall will be- it won't be like a usual busy season where our visitor numbers are huge, it will be rammed as people can't go abroad. A friend of mine works in a public service and they are estimating double the normal visitor numbers in the summer.

I've told the children we will have to live strategically and only go out early or later in the evening, no driving places at midday, and not the busiest places.

It becomes unliveable at a point.

It isn't usual summer busyness the Op is complaining about, it's everyone on a packed island not being able to escape and all heading for the same few places!

Did you hear the local news yesterday? Reporting people trying to get holiday home owners to let places over Easter, offering to sneak in at night, park elsewhere so no one knows they are there, offering top dollar.

It's like prohibition but with holiday accommodation instead of alcohol.

I see people are suggesting Wales but you have to be careful as plenty of areas here were rammed full of tourists. There’s probably some that would be ok as long as you avoid the coast, Gower, Snowdonia, The Brecon Beacons etc.

Cumbria. If you stay outside the national park and travel in you'll save as well. Coast, lakes, towns and a city. Hadrian's Wall. There's a lot more to it than Windermere.

Loving the Wales suggestions. You do realise it isn't just one place and we also get busy hotspots here?

Having said that OP, I hope you find somewhere that works for you.

I'll probably be booking a week in Devon (Cornwall border so not coast) in May so we can see DP's family who we haven't seen in a year. Fully respecting the locals of course.

Shropshire.

I too live in a seaside holiday area ....Dorset
We are used to the summer visitors and I enjoy the holiday atmosphere that they create.
But last summer was crazy ....over double the usual amount ....people sleeping on the beach ILLEGALLY ... parking on anywhere they could ..ILLEGALLY ..blocking roads and emergency vehicles
We couldn't enjoy our own town or county.
I'm not blaming the visitors ....I just sympathise with the poster.

I live in Devon, I can understand why tourists flock here.

As lots of other posters are saying, Wales!

We did the Wye Valley last year, it was wonderful. This year we’ll be staying near the Gower.

Central London is one of the few places which is likely to be quieter than usual this summer, because of the lack of international tourists and a lot of people still working from home at least part of the time. If ever you’ve fancied doing the London tourist thing but got put off by the crowds, this could be your year!

You sound like an absolute delight Jackie.

I for one am pleased you won't be coming. Enjoy your holiday abroad.

Oh and you're right, the beaches don't belong to us, but we are usually the ones out there doing beach cleans after the holiday makers have left all their shit. Forgive us if we're a bit protective over them.

Like a PP I would consider a city break. I too live in a South devon harbour town, and our plan is to have a week in London, musuems, shows if they are on, South Bank ect
It was super busy here last summer but it felt bustling and jolly (apart from when it rains)
I welcome the tourists, I'm chuffed I live in a place where people want to come on holiday. I DO wish that parking wasnt shit from April til September but hey ho
I also have a holiday cottage which still has 2 weeks free in August so there is still availability... Here at least!

You're in the wrong bit of Devon.

I live inland, in an AONB. Not a soul around, even at the height of summer. I can walk all day and have silence and beauty to the horizon.

It's not Devon that's the problem. It's the seaside.