Ilfracombe is located on the north coast of Devon, UK, a little further south than the Exmoor National Park and is the premier tourist resort for the region and has been for well over a century. This becomes obvious once you see the old cottages, imposing old houses and the many Victorian built hotels that are still to be seen even today, indeed the town remains largely unspoiled from the modern designs that has ruined the appearance of many resort towns.

There can be no better or nicer place to use as your holiday base to explore this region of north Devon and of course Ilfracombe itself has many attractions in its own right. The local Ilfracombe countryside is truly outstanding and can be toured by foot, cycle or car. You ought to try driving off the main "A" roads a little and venture on the smaller local "B" roads or even unclassified roads (some are so narrow that the bushes each side might clatter your cars wing mirrors), where impressive vistas are around every bend as the road cuts the hillside with very steep, mostly unguarded valleys to the roadside.

Ilfracombe harbour is the main attraction that is actually in the town itself, with just a few fishing boats, day yachts, motor boats, pleasure cruisers offering afternoon trips and the old ferry to the National Trust owned Lundy Island. All through the holiday season and bank holiday weekends, it is packed solid with tourists wandering round the small shops and feasting or drinking at the many restaurants and bars built along the old quay. A word of advice, keep a firm hold of your choc ice or bag of chips as the local gulls love them!

Ilfracombe accommodation of every type is copious, from back-packing hostels through to the first class hotels and friendly guest houses, most of which are in family ownership and run ensuring top class service and warm hospitality. At high times they can get fully booked up so booking well in advance is sometimes advisable. Weekend and short breaks are often a specialty of most of the hotels in and around Ilfracombe, with some offering good deals and big discounts so do not forget to enquire before you make a booking. Individual self catering flats and rental cottages can be booked in Ilfracombe and right along this part of the Devon coastline, again, booking early always gets the most attractive Ilfracombe holiday cottages.

Ilfracombe beaches are quite small, but small kids (and the very big kids) will just love rock pool exploring, when they are exposed on the low tides, one beach even has to be visited via a long old tunnel that is carved right through the rocky hillside, this is a fun adventure in itself. Nice little Cafes, fried fish and chip shops and ice cream outlets can be found all along the main promenade, together with a couple of small slot arcades. If your children have a bit too much energy, then take them for a long stroll up to the summit of the hills in and on each side of the town, to for marvelous views of the Devon coastline and probably see Wales in the far distance on a clear days.

For loads more tourist advice and travel information about Ilfracombe, Devon please visit Ilfracombe