Dawlish Warren is a

seaside resort A seaside resort is a town, village, or hotel that serves as a vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requirements, such as in the Germ ...

near the town of Dawlish in

Teignbridge Teignbridge is a local government district in Devon, England. Its council is based in Newton Abbot. Other towns in the district include Ashburton, Buckfastleigh, Dawlish and Teignmouth. It is named for the old Teignbridge hundred. ...

on the south coast of

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

in England. Dawlish Warren consists almost entirely of holiday accommodation and facilities for holiday-makers especially caravan sites.

Location

Dawlish Warren is located at the mouth of the

Exe Estuary The Exe estuary is an estuary on the south coast of Devon, England. The estuary starts just to the south () of the city of Exeter, and extends south for approximately eight miles to meet the English Channel (). The estuary is a ria and so is la ...

opposite

Exmouth Exmouth is a port town, civil parish and seaside resort, sited on the east bank of the mouth of the River Exe and southeast of Exeter. In 2011 it had a population of 34,432, making Exmouth the 5th most populous settlement in Devon. Histo ...

and has a beach, a National Nature Reserve spanning 506 acres (2 km²) and a golf course, which is classified as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). Dawlish Warren pond

The renowned sand spit at Dawlish Warren is the location of both the golf course and the

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

which was declared a National Nature Reserve in 2000. This spit has reduced in size within the past century due to erosion partly caused by the installation of a

breakwater Breakwater may refer to: * Breakwater (structure), a structure for protecting a beach or harbour Places * Breakwater, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria, Australia * Breakwater Island Breakwater Island () is a small island in the Palme ...

at Langstone Rock to the south-west which traps sand from the local sandstone cliffs and interrupts the natural sediment flow of the area. The resort is popular with holidaymakers and although a death occurred from E. coli poisoning in 1999, allegedly caused by a nearby sewage outflow, a new sewage treatment plant has since been built resulting in both Dawlish Warren and Dawlish beaches now winning the Blue Flag for the quality of the bathing waters.

Tourism

Along with neighbouring Dawlish, this corner of south

has a favourable climate, which draws thousands of visitors to the area in summer. Because of this, the Dawlish Warren economy relies heavily on tourism, and in particular on the many caravan and camping parks in the village which add over 15,000 to the local population during the summer months. There are several holiday parks which attract visitors from all over the UK, but in particular the West Midlands and South Wales. The major holiday parks are Welcome, Hazelwood, Cofton, Golden Sands, Dawlish Sands, Peppermint Park, Lady's Mile and Oakcliff. In 2008 Peppermint Park and Golden Sands joined Dawlish Sands as part of

Park Holidays UK Park Holidays UK operates 54 holiday parks in the UK and is one of the largest holiday park operators in the UK, offering caravan and lodge holidays, glamping breaks, touring and camping, and holiday home ownership. It has parks in both country ...

Caravan Parks. The name 'Peppermint Park' has gone and the site has been rebranded 'Golden Sands'.

Amenities

Aside from the golf course, Dawlish Warren has a doctor's surgery, a pharmacy and an independent supermarket, along with several gift shops which cater for tourist traffic. It also has a number of restaurants and

take-out A take-out or takeout (U.S., Canada, and the Philippines); carry-out or to-go (Scotland and some dialects in the U.S. and Canada); takeaway (England, Wales, Australia, Lebanon, South Africa, Northern Ireland, Ireland, and occasionally in Nort ...

eateries. As you would expect for a resort, there are many bars and pubs such as the Silly Goose, and The Mount Pleasant Inn, which dates from before the 1750s, and is located just outside the resort. Dawlish Warren once had a post office, though this closed in the early 2000s.

Access

The resort is served by

Dawlish Warren railway station Dawlish Warren railway station serves the seaside resort and holiday camps of Dawlish Warren in Devon, England, at the mouth of the River Exe. The station is on the Exeter to Plymouth line, down the line from and measured from via . From ...

, situated a few minutes from the beach. The station is between Dawlish and

Starcross Starcross is a village with a 2011 census recorded population of 1,737 situated on the west shore of the Exe Estuary in Teignbridge in the English county of Devon. The village is popular in summer with leisure craft, and is home to one of t ...

stations, and is very busy in the summer. Dawlish can be reached by a 1.5-mile walk south-west along the

South Devon Railway sea wall The South Devon Railway sea wall is situated on the south coast of Devon in England. A footpath runs alongside the railway between Dawlish Warren and Dawlish, then another footpath forms a continuation to the sea front promenade at Teignmouth. ...

Religion

Although Dawlish Warren is within the civil parish of Dawlish, it lies in the ecclesiastical parish of

Cofton Cofton is a small village, parish and former historic estate, near Dawlish in south Devon, Parish church The parish church, dedicated to St Mary, was rebuilt in 1838-9 by William Courtenay, 10th Earl of Devon (1777–1859), of Powderham Castle ...

. There is no actual church in Dawlish Warren, but St Mary's Church Hall (St Mary's Church is in Cofton) is located near the resort's railway station. It is used for services, and also for a wide array of community activities.

Gallery

File:Dawlish Warren 2007.jpg, Dawlish Warren railway station File:St Mary's church hall, Dawlish Warren.jpg, St Mary's church hall

References

External links

Dawlish Warren Nature Reserve
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dawlish Warren Villages in Devon Seaside resorts in England Spits of England Beaches of Devon Dawlish