Best Sunset Spots in Woolacombe

Short answer: Woolacombe's three miles of sand face due west, so the sun goes down straight out to sea from anywhere on the beach. Morte Point from Mortehoe is the better viewpoint, and Barricane's café serves curries on the sand while it happens.

Due west, straight out to sea

This is the thing Woolacombe has that most of Devon does not. The beach faces due west into the Atlantic with nothing in the way, which means the sun sets over open water in front of you rather than behind a hill. On a clear evening it is as good as sunsets get in England.

It also means you do not need to find a special spot. Anywhere on three miles of sand works.

Barricane

The best of the beach options, and the one with dinner attached. The small shell cove north of the main beach is sheltered, west-facing, and the beach café there serves Sri Lankan curries into the evening through the season — eaten sitting on the sand while the sun goes down.

Reviewers describe it simply as a beautiful cove for the scenery and sunsets. Parking is roadside on the esplanade above and goes early, so arrive well before you need to.

Morte Point

The better viewpoint if you are prepared to walk. The headland out of Mortehoe puts you high above the water with a clear western horizon and the sea running against the rocks below. Seals are often on the rocks for much of the year.

The rock underfoot is sharp, so proper shoes, and take a torch — the walk back to Mortehoe is unlit.

Bull Point

About a mile and a half each way from the Mortehoe car park on a track rather than a cliff path, which makes it the most manageable of the headland walks in fading light. Open horizon in every westward direction.

Timing

Arrive half an hour before sunset and stay twenty minutes after it. The afterglow is usually better than the sunset itself, and almost everyone leaves the moment the sun touches the horizon — so the best light and the emptiest viewpoint arrive at the same time.

Practical

• Take a torch. Devon coast paths are unlit and the walk back is in the dark.
• Stay back from cliff edges. The ground gives way, and you cannot see where it starts.
• Check when the car park closes — several on this coast lock their gates.
• It gets cold fast once the sun goes, even in July. Take a layer.

Where to eat after

Captain Jacks in the village is one of the few places open right through the winter. The Jube on South Street is the best-rated pub in Woolacombe and takes dogs inside. Up in Mortehoe, the Chichester Arms and the Ship Aground are both a few doors from where the Morte Point walk ends.