I was recently lucky enough to stay overnight in the utterly gorgeous Lyme Regis as part of a press trip with Visit Lyme Regis, having only ever visited for a few hours before.

Here are my top tips!

Where to Stay: Coombe Cottage, Jurassic Properties*

When travelling with the kids we love the flexibility of self catering properties, and I’m always excited to find more affordable alternatives to AirBnB (which i’m finding increasingly extortionate!) so I was looking forward to staying with Jurassic Properties.

Coombe Cottage is a two bed character property jut rolling distance from the beach. Ideal for popping back if you forget your bucket and spade, water bottle, snacks etc! Check in was super easy as there was a key safe and we were emailed a code the morning of check in.

You open the front door into the open plan lounge kitchen diner – it was noticeable immediately that everything was immaculately clean and there were a variety of cute design touches. The bathroom is downstairs and if you lean out of the window you can see the water wheel (and you can hear it without the leaning 😆!)

My bed was super comfortable (very important) and the bunks looked great too. Despite being very central (I cannot imagine a better location to stay but then I have limited Lyme Regis knowledge…) there wasn’t any noise besides the seagulls in the morning, and they didn’t even bother me! A great little properly that had everything you could possibly need. Prices start from as little as £99 per night during low season.

What to do: Spanish Cookery Class & Lunch at The Strawberry Tree*

Sundays can be a bit ‘meh’ knowing you’ve got to go back to work/real life the next day but my whole experience at The Strawberry Tree was a joy from start to finish! We were welcomed by Ed and Giselle, the owners of this absolutely gorgeous Tapas Restaurant & Cooking School situated in the courtyard of the 1,000 Town Mill where they gave us a little insight into how their ‘passion project’ began.

And passion is something they have bags of, it was a pleasure to see two people so excited about the food we were about to prepare (and eat!) together.

The class/lunch runs from 10.45am and ends at approximately 2.30pm dependant on the group – it was a very relaxed atmosphere and we didn’t feel hurried in the slighest.

Costing £95pp for an individual or £75 each if in a pair (sharing a work station and food etc), on this occasion I was paired up with the lovely gluten free Rhi aka The Chubby Bristolian.

We made three dishes together:

Then in order to give us a ‘break’, Giselle gave us a demo of the two final dishes…

Afterwards, we had a little time while our skewers were cooking, to chat and enjoy a beverage in the beautiful gardens before sitting down as a group to eat our tapas feast.

I cannot believe I cooked something so blooming tasty!! Although I think probably most of the credit there goes to Rhi.

I ate til I was stuffed, but having made so much there was still plenty to take home with us in the environmentally friendly containers! So pleased to hear that you can have vouchers for this experience, as I think it would make a really lovely gift.

Where to get: fish & chips

An important one and luckily we had a Lyme Regis expert with us in the form of 10StoneGem (who married here last year) so we didn’t need to test out all the chippies before heading to the best one!

Service was fierce but friendly, the chips were hot and fresh and the curry sauce thickkkkk. Reasonably priced, would definitely return.

Where to get ice cream: Baboo Gelato

This one is a bit of a cheat as I didn’t sample myself but when I walked past I remembered that I have it on good authority from dessert queen herself Cupcakeiceingsugar that Baboo Gelato is the place to get ice cream in Lyme Regis and the salted caramel is the one to try. I’m actually kicking myself that I didn’t and will definitely be sampling on my next trip down!

Where to get dinner: The Cobb Arms*

I love a seaside pub and this one had everything you could need – moments from the beach when you’re in need of a break, cute outdoor seating for drinks with a view, happy helpful staff but most importantly, great food!

We kicked off with a ‘prestarter’ board which included the sourdough garlic bread, butterbean artichoke and basil hummus, marinated olives and pickles, cockle popcorn and (I kid you not) the best chorizo cooked in cider I’ve ever tasted. The cockle popcorn was the surprise hit for me – I had it a few years ago and hated it (too chewy/fishy) but this was seriously moreish.

Afterwards it was on to our ‘starters’ although we treated them more as sharing plates which was a great idea as we were all able to have a taste. We had:

This was probably my favourite (although incredibly hard to chose) lamb was so moist and the yoghurt dressing was spot on. If I had to criticise the flatbreads were a bit crispy and I prefer fluffy? But I loved the lamb so much I didn’t really care 🤷🏼‍♀️

Some of my most favourite ingredients so this was always going to be up there. Interesting to have the Palma ham crispy – added great texture. Could have eaten this twice.

My least favourite but I am not a broad bean fan and believe peas belong with fish and curry sauce 😅 Still nice choice to have for all the GF veggies out there!

I sadly can’t tell you much about the scallops as they weren’t actually on the menu – our waitress (who was utterly fabulous but actually an accountant filling in on her first pub shift in three years!) let us know it was an option after we’d placed our orders, so this was a rookie extra, and it was sublime!

Needless to say having had starters and sharing plates we (shamefully) couldn’t handle mains! 🤦🏼‍♀️ But some of the more hardy souls on our table could which I was pleased about as I really wanted to nose at the Fish Sharer, which we very nearly ordered!

How incredible does that look? It had whole grilled fish of the day, mussels & wild garlic prawns, cuttlefish croquettes, fries, salad and wild garlic bread. Should you not be feeling so adventurous on the fish front though they also had my absolute favourite and go to when by the seaside – scampi! With seriously delicious fat chips (which I did manage several of).

So that is probably what I’d go for next time… although based on how much I loved the kofta I think the lamb burger is very tempting? Might have to take hubby and get him to go 50/50.

Couldn’t handle a pudding (I was looking like this guy by the end of our meal) but I did grab a brownie to take out and that was great too. Sometimes eatery’s in beautiful locations can be busy and get trade purely because of where they are situated, but it was really reassuring to go somewhere that seemed passionate about their food and that cared so much about their customers. I’d definitely go back with the family – just need to find out if there’s a kids menu available! Otherwise it’ll be grab a babysitter and organise a date night – I know my other half would love it here.

Where to get drinks: The Lyme Bay*

For after dinner drinks we strolled back towards The Lyme Bay to have cocktails in the new downstairs cocktail bar.

(I had a little nose upstairs too and that looked equally as stylish and would offer stunning views in the daytime – you can’t tell but there’s a glorious garden out the back that overlooks the sea)

Down the (incredibly steep spiral) staircase was a quirky little bar with ample seating and a DJ. Staff were friendly and happy to make something off menu, provided they had the ingredients (I wanted a Black Russian). House cocktails are £9.50 and they have a large selection of spirits!

It gave off ‘speak easy’ vibes, perfect for drinks on a date night or girly catch up with friends on a Friday night. It’s open until 10pm on a Thurs/Sun and 11pm Fri/Sat.

Where to get brunch: Town Mill Bakery

Literally footsteps from Coombe Cottage, Town Mill Bakery was another must visit recommended by our resident Lyme Regis expert Gem!

It had a cute deli where you could purchase the most divine pastries and produce to take away, or indoor and outdoor seating where you can chose from a vast breakfast menu including traditional favourites and the slightly more exotic (Turkish Eggs anyone?)

I went for the smoked salmon and scrambled eggs and swapped my spinach and beetroot for avocado. It was absolutely delicious – I can be a fusspot with salmon but this was fresh and full of flavour, eggs were creamy but not to the point of underdone.

For me it was perfection on a plate. My neighbours mushrooms and chorizo on toast looked pretty tempting too!

Where to wander: Everywhere!

Lyme Regis is simply begging to be explored and seems to have something for everyone. The joy is wandering and finding them for yourselves but here are a few ideas to start you off…

So just incase you hadn’t gathered I’m now most definitely a fan of Lyme Regis! At only 1 hour 15 from Clevedon and 1 hour 30 from south Bristol it’s an easy seaside destination without feeling like a trek. I was only there for 24 hours so we parked at Woodmead carpark (up on the hill – but doable for most abilities, just pace yourself) and it was £17, so not overly cheap – I’d probably look for an alternative if heading for a few nights. Which I definitely want to do… now just to find someone to join me!

Thanks for reading,

Lizzie xxx

Disclaimer – elements of my trip were on a complimentary basis, these are denoted by an * above! But all of my views are my own and without bias – if I do not like somewhere then I won’t write about it!