Short answer: Bigbury Beach has an accessible ramp down onto wide flat sand with a shallow incline, plus lifeguards, toilets and a café. It is one of the most accessible beaches in the South Hams. Bring cash — the car park app rarely works.
Bigbury Beach is one of the best accessible beaches in this part of Devon. There is an accessible ramp down, the sand is wide and flat with a shallow incline, and there are RNLI lifeguards, toilets and a café. It faces west, so the sunsets are the best in the South Hams.
On any sandy beach, time the visit for a falling tide. Firm wet sand is far easier with wheels than soft dry sand, and it is the single biggest thing you can do to make a beach day work with a buggy or a wheelchair.
When the tide covers the sandbar to Burgh Island, a sea tractor on tall stilts carries passengers across through the water. Getting onto it involves steps up to the platform, so ask the operator about access. At low tide you can cross on the sand.
In the lower car park, with sea views and plenty of indoor and outdoor seating. It is the easiest place to eat here without negotiating a slope.
Burgh Island is small, with a steep climb to the ruined chapel at the top. The Pilchard Inn, a 14th-century pub, sits near the landing, but old buildings rarely have level entrances — ask before you cross.
Bolberry Down, a short drive west, has a wheelchair-accessible clifftop path with free blue-badge parking. Kingsbridge's quay, twenty minutes inland, is flat.
Also worth knowing: whether Burgh Island is free to visit, and what parking at Bigbury actually costs.
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