Paignton is one of the three towns that together become Torbay the others being Torquay and Brixham.
It has four long red sandy beaches with rocks and rocky pools that are always popular with children trying to catch little crabs and tiny fish.
Paignton was mentioned in the Domesday Book and the towns name derives from Paega’s Town that was a Celtic settlement. It was a fishing village until the 19th century.
The harbour was constructed in 1837 and the pier was built in 1879 it has been vastly improved over the years and is a popular place with many attractions both inside and out.
Oldway Mansion, one of several period houses in the town was owned by the Singer Sewing Machine family and modelled on Versailles. It was built in 1873 but had extensive work carried out in 1904 and was then bought by the council to be used as the towns civic centre in 1946. The hallway has a marble staircase and an 1850 sewing machine. Other Singer family homes were the Palace Hotel and the Inn on the Green, both of these were bought for the family’s two sons.
Kirkham House is a medieval stone residence and it shows what life was like in the 15th century.
The Paignton and Dartmoor Steam Railway runs from Paignton. It was originally opened in 1859 and went to London. Nowadays it just travels to Churston and Kingswear. It is a popular ride for children and steam train enthusiasts.
People of Paignton’s nickname is ‘pudding eaters’ because of a huge pudding made to celebrate the coming of the railway. Another was made in 1968 to commemorate the town’s Charter and a third made for the 200th Anniversary of the birth of engineer, Isambard Kingdom Brunel.
Paignton relies heavily on tourism. It has wonderful beaches for families to play together with safe swimming and paddling and at Preston Sands there are many water sports to take part in such as kite surfing and dingy sailing.
Regatta week in August draws crowds to the town and there is a fair on the green and a huge firework display.
A great day out for all the family is Quay West Water Park.
Another attraction not to be missed is Paignton Zoo, one of the largest in the country and also includes seventy-five acres of botanical gardens. There are 1200 species of large and small animals at the zoo and it is run by a charitable trust dedicated to the conservation of wildlife.
There are plenty of public houses and nightclubs in Paignton and several very good restaurants some of which are in hotels but others include Fish and Chips, Pizza, Brasserie, Vegetarian and Indian all serving high quality and in some cases award winning food. They all give a good service and offer value for money.
Property to rent is available with averages prices of £435pcm for a l bed flat, £550pcm for a 2 bed flat and £760 for a 3 bed house.
Paignton Station is in Torbay Road and is close to the shops which include QS, Choice, Burtons, Select, New Look and Edinburgh Wool Shop.
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