Plymouth, England What to do there?

[cinal]

Hello everyone

 

Looking for info on Plymouth's port. Where does the ship tender from? Are there any attractions close to dock? Would like to wonder around on our own.

Any suggestions would be great.

 

Thanks

 

Cindy

[jodyndavid2004]

a lot of shops and WWII monument and an aquarium and if you can get a tour of the country side its really nice

[doris day]

Plymouth is a lovely, interesting city, surrounded by beautiful Devon countryside and some fabulous beaches are very close by. Sir Frances Drake sailed from here and was born in nearby Tavistock. Dartmoor and the famous Dartmoor ponies are also close by. Don't forget to try the famous Devon Cream Teas.

[SamAndNancy]

...where they make Plymouth gin. The tour itself isn't much, but it includes a "tasting" session where you learn about what gives gins their distinctive flavors.

 

Most important, stop off after the tour in the bar that's part of the distillery and ask for a Refractory Martini.

[pepsicruiser]

We took a tour to Dartmouth by bus and then ferry. It was a beautiful ride. Dartmouth is a fishing village filled with great old pubs and filled with winding streets great for walking. Look into it ... it was a great place.

[cinal]

Thanks for the input.

 

Those all sound great, is there anything close to the dock to see or do we need to take a taxi. What about a tour which one do you recomend?

 

We will be there on April 24th off of the Brilliance of the Seas and not sure if we are intrested in the cruise tours. Would like to see things on our own and wander around.

 

Would like to have some fish and chips too. Any suggestions as to where to eat?

 

Cindy

[Rala]

We did a ship-sponsored walking tour. The highlight for us was going up to the "hough" pronounced "hoe". It is like a huge plateau with high cliffs that look down to the water with gorgeous views. The guide was very knowledgeable and the history of the place was very interesting if that is your thing. You could probably get a taxi to the "hough" if you don't want to do a formal tour.

[liverpool-lou]

Hello everyone

 

Looking for info on Plymouth's port. Where does the ship tender from? Are there any attractions close to dock? Would like to wonder around on our own.

Any suggestions would be great.

 

Thanks

 

Cindy

 

Hi, you could try this link, it may give you some ideas. I dont know where about the ship tenders though. Plymouth is a lovely city and full of history, i used to live not far from there, you will find many 'olde world tea' shops and the like and as someone said you really have to try the Devon cream teas :D

http://www.mayflowersteps.co.uk/plymouth/current.html

[rubrrick]

Thanks to the OP for bringing up this question. We are on the Jewel of the Seas leaving Harwich on June 16, and originally we were scheduled to to have a day in Falmouth, but just a short time ago, that was changed to Plymouth. Sounds like a fun port to explore.

 

Rick

[cinal]

Hi, you could try this link, it may give you some ideas. I dont know where about the ship tenders though. Plymouth is a lovely city and full of history, i used to live not far from there, you will find many 'olde world tea' shops and the like and as someone said you really have to try the Devon cream teas :D

http://www.mayflowersteps.co.uk/plymouth/current.html

 

Thanks liverpool-lou the web site is great. I am soooo exctited now to go there now! I can hardly wait.

 

Cindy

[liverpool-lou]

Cindy, you're welcome, i also remember down by the 'Hoe' is a place called 'The Barbican' that as i remember is a good place to visit also.

Have a great cruise :D

Mo

[Rala]

Yes, I had forgotten about the "Barbican", but we found that very interesting as well.

[james_19742000]

Well I live about 30 minutes from Plymouth, I believe they dock in the bay and tender in from there, probably tender into Milbay Dock, where the ferry terminal is.

 

As the others have said, you can visit The Hoe, this is a large expanse of green area, with the rather large lighthouse, you cant miss it! There is usually something going on there if it is a weekend, usually an old car show, fairground etc etc, the Barbican is the old part of Plymouth lots of old fashioned boutique style shops and pubs etc to visit, this is where teh majority of private yachts etc are moored and where the local fish is bought ashore.

 

The City Centre itself is a depressing place, it is a typical maritime Naval port, bombed extensively in the war, so everywhere does suffer from severe 'concrete' everywhere, although admittedly this is being addressed with lots of redevelopment and a general smartening up of the area, its not as depressing as it was 10 years ago.

 

Personally, I would recommend visiting our wonderful Dartmoor, some fantastic views and scenery on the west side of the moor (the Plymouth side), we do have the Dartmoor Pony (although increasingly rare these days) which my little 3 year old loves visiting!!!! Depending on how long you have in Plymouth this woudl be my recommendation!

 

Or you could head into the South Hams, this is the area to the east of Plymouth and runs out as far as Dartmouth and Totnes, you could visit Slapton Sands (this is where the D-Day landing training excercises that went wrong were carried out) this is a wonderful natural long stretch of beach, with a nature reserve to the back of it, there is a small village at the end of the beach, where you can get refreshments in the local cafe, pub etc etc.

 

But like others have said, you must try a proper Devon Cream Tea, using proper 'Devon' thick clotted cream, not the runny cornish rubbish!!! The best Cream Tea is at Badgers Holt, in a small place called Dartmeet on the west side of the Moor, they do the BEST scones ever known, they cook large ones, and cut of slices of scone, unique they are in that way.

 

Overall, there is plenty to do from Plymouth, whether you want to stay local in Plymouth itself or venture further afield, I would imagine that for the price of two people going on an organised excursion, you could probably have a txi to yourself for a few hours to visit some of what our lovely County of Devon has to offer, or if you fancy coming over to Torquay you could always visit us for some Tea!!!! :-)

 

Anyway, enjoy your visit.

 

Regards James

[cinal]

Thanks James,

 

All of your suggestions sound great! We will have to decide what to do. Everything sounds so wonderful!!

A taxi ride might be just the thing!

 

Cindy

[time4me2fly]

Here's another great website to check out.

 

http://visitbristol.co.uk/usa/top-15-places-to-visit/plymouth

[Penzance]

Here are a couple of websites worth browsing through.

 

http://www.plymouthcity.co.uk http://www.beautiful-devon.co.uk

[Hawks11]

Thanks for the input.

 

Those all sound great, is there anything close to the dock to see or do we need to take a taxi. What about a tour which one do you recomend?

 

We will be there on April 24th off of the Brilliance of the Seas and not sure if we are intrested in the cruise tours. Would like to see things on our own and wander around.

 

Would like to have some fish and chips too. Any suggestions as to where to eat?

 

Cindy

You will be near Plymouth Hoe and the Barbican which is the Elizabethan Plymouth, all the rest was knocked flat in WW2. Fish and chips aplenty there. Take a look at this thread for some ideas.

:http://cruiseforums.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=771599&highlight=dartmoor

[kruzseeka]

James, you are so right! I read this thread a few days ago, and thought about recommending the Badger's Holt - but I wasn't too sure of exactly where it was in relation to Plymouth. We visited it many years ago and it has remained with me since then as simply the BEST cream scones ever! The walk by the river is lovely too - but now you've mentioned it, I think another visit calls - must arrange a trip to Devon very soon!!