Devon move on the cards

[unsurewoman0]

Hi, I am looking at either relocating to Tiverton or Sidmouth from Kent where I live now as most of my family are in either of these two towns. Which would be the better option do you think? My Dc have left home now so don't need to worry about schools

Sidmouth 100%

Sidmouth

I personally wouldn’t move to either of them but might move just outside them.

Sidmouth and the whole surrounding area had a very aged population last time I went and the sea on that coast is rubbish. Tiverton is run down but transport links are better for the decent coastline.

I’d definitely go for Tiverton out of the two.

I'm from Tiverton and still have family there. It has improved and the town centre is lively in parts but is is decaying like lots of market towns.

It's in a frost pocket if your a gardener and pretty cold in the winter.

You need to travel if you want theatres, a good cinema or a range of choices for restaurants as it's limited. That will be Exeter or Taunton.

There is no rail link. Don't be fooled by the Tiverton Parkway name, it's nine miles out of town with a poor bus service.

Because there is little choice it can be a bit rough due to most pubs being in a bit of a cluster for late night opening.

I don't know Sidmouth at all.

Just my opinion, others may vary.

Tiverton is quite neglected and forgotten about, hasn't really had any investment for a long time it seems. It has a nice street with independent shops but the rest of it is run down. Feels like the middle of nowhere as well (although so does most of Devon in fairness)
Sidmouth is quite nice but the beach isn't great in my opinion.
Having said all that I would choose Sidmouth

Definitely Sidmouth for me.

Sidmouth lovely town, quite affluent but quiet and an old population.

Tiverton reminds me of Dereham in Norfolk an awful lot, it's quite isolated and has a lot of charity shops. Not an awful lot to do either. Its probably as far inland as you can get in Devon if you like the coast.

I would choose Sidmouth every day of the week

Definitely Sidmouth. Much nicer than Tiverton.

Sidmouth.

Though personally I prefer Exmouth - it's a bit rougher around the edges than Sidmouth, but definitely improving. It's bigger and more lively than Sidmouth, with a much younger population, and I prefer the beach and sea there for swimming, paddleboarding etc. It's got cheaper house prices and a train link into Exeter, and is a 30 minute drive to Sidmouth.

Tiverton does have some nice places surrounding it like Bampton but the town itself isn't very nice for me, used to live there. Would LOVE to live in Sidmouth!

Two contrasting towns really -
Sidmouth is quite affluent, expensive and by the sea.
Tiverton is a bit deprived, cheap and inland.
Neither have many employment opportunities- I would guess that in Sidmouth much of it will be tourism and in Tiverton much of it will be to do with Heathcoat textiles.
Neither have train stations, well Tiverton kind of does but it's about 7 miles away. Bus services not great from either.
Tiverton did used to be worse than what it is today, used to be more run down and it also used to be a key location in the south west for drug hauls- not sure if that is still the case.
Sidmouth does have some nice little shops, so does tiverton on gold street but tiverton also has a lot of barbers and pound shops.
Sidmouth I find friendlier personally. Tiverton can seem very insular as there are many people who live there that have never really left, it is quite cut off.
I would pick Sidmouth every time

Sidmouth.

If you can afford it then Sidmouth a thousand times over.
If you don't have the money then I would look at Tiverton's surrounding villages because I wouldnt really want to live in Tiverton itself.
Good luck with the move though, Devon's a nice county

Sidmouth but it depends what you're after. I find Tiverton dull and a bit run down but Sidmouth has a very high percentage of retirees (not a problem for me but might be for some people.)