Beer, Devon
You'll find the little fishing village of Beer tucked away in a little cove on the Jurassic Coast in East Devon; it's a lovely place, where the locals have known each other's families for generations, so it's all very friendly and relaxed. The main car park is just off the main street so you have to stroll down over the hill to the beach, and there the wonderful ambience continues. In the summer folk are out early, opening up the beach huts, putting up deck chairs, pushing boats down to the shore, and lifting the hatch on the beach cafes, raising the parasols to shade the happy customers who come for a cooked breakfast or later, for one of the famous crab sandwiches from Ducky's. If the smell of the sea has got you fancying fish for tea you're in luck if it's not too late in the day as halfway up the slipway there's a hut where they sell it nice and freshly caught, off the boats.
If you like a walk head up the cliff and over to Branscombe on the South West Coast Path, via Hooken Undercliff; it's like an almost tropical world, a complete contrast to the bracing air on the clifftop. When you get back have fish and chips and a nice cold pint in the beer garden of The Anchor Inn, a wonderful spot to sit of an evening by the way, and to enjoy the sea views.
If you're with the fam hire a self -drive boat and go out on the waters around Lyme Bay, head up to Pecorama for a ride on the miniature railway, or seek shelter from the blazing sun at Beer Quarry Caves where Beer stone was mined and used in the building of such edifices as Exeter Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, The Tower of London, Winchester Cathedral and St. Paul's. Impressive.
All information correct at the time of writing