A Solva Publishing Travel Guide Series

Britain is an island nation shaped by the sea. Around its shores lie colourful fishing villages, magnificent beaches, ruined castles, ancient harbours, towering cliffs and seaside towns filled with centuries of history.The Great British Coastal Escapes is an invitation to discover ten of the most beautiful and fascinating stretches of coastline in Britain, from the artistic streets and golden beaches of Cornwall to the wild Atlantic scenery of Northern Ireland.Beginning in St Ives, explore a Cornish town where fishing heritage, spectacular beaches and one of Britain's great artistic traditions come together beside the Atlantic. Follow the coast north to Whitby, where the ruins of a medieval abbey overlook a historic harbour forever associated with Captain Cook, Dracula and the sea.Cross into Wales and discover Tenby, with its medieval walls, pastel-coloured harbour houses and beautiful Pembrokeshire beaches. Then journey to Northumberland, where enormous empty sands stretch beneath Bamburgh Castle and the tidal causeway to Holy Island disappears beneath the North Sea twice each day.Travel south to Dartmouth, where boats move along the River Dart between wooded hills and centuries of maritime history, before exploring the extraordinary Jurassic Coast, where cliffs and beaches reveal approximately 185 million years of Earth's past. Fossils, natural arches and dramatic geological formations turn this remarkable coastline into a journey through deep time.In North Wales, visit the remarkable Italianate village of Portmeirion before exploring the wild coastline of the Llŷn Peninsula, a landscape of beaches, mountains, ancient communities and Welsh culture. Continue to Norfolk, where enormous skies meet traditional seaside towns, wildlife-rich salt marshes and the waterways of the Broads.Scotland brings another change of character. Along Fife and the East Neuk, old stone fishing villages, historic harbours and coastal paths lead towards St Andrews and the North Sea.