Overview

Cliff top public gardens with many step free path. Garden with lawns and plenty of flowers and views down across the sea. There's a café and cakery.

Transport & Parking

Sidmouth doesn't have a railway station. The 9 or 9A bus from Exeter takes about 35 - 45 minutes and stops at the Sidmouth Triangle. There are other local bus services that go to Sidmouth. In the summer season the Sidmouth Hopper Bus stops at various points of interest in the town, it is step free and has a space for a wheelchair user. From the Sidmouth Triangle, where most of the buses stop, it only takes a couple of minutes to the step free entrance of Connaught Gardens. It's from the same point that you can pick the Sidmouth Hopper to take you back down the hill.

Access

This is a cliff top garden and there are various routes to get to it. There are two step free route into the gardens both will involve going up steep slopes. From Peak Hill Road, there is a steady climb up from Sidmouth town centre to the step free entrance of the gardens. Using this route you will pass an entrance into the gardens with steps before you arrive at the step free entrance. The other way is via the sea front. From the town beach there is a path along to Jacob’s Ladder Beach, this is padestrianised. The ladder refers to a staircase that connects the beach to the gardens. There is also a steep slope with a hand rail which will take you up to Peak Hill Road and the gardens. I didn’t walk up but it’s my opinion that going up via Peak Hill Road would be slightly less steep. Once in the garden it is mainly flat with some gentle slopes. Most of it is step free but these paths are not signposted. Where there are steps there’s usually two to four steps but they tend not to have a handrail. There are a couple of walled gardens and a quite a few nooks and crannies so although the gardens are popular you can easily find a quiet stop to rest. There’s plenty of benches to sit on. In one of the walled gardens is a clock tower and there is a café and cakery, see my separate review. In the garden is a cactus house and bandstand, where there are regular concerts during the summer season. There are also some wonderful viewing terrace. One is overlooking Jacob’s Ladder Beach and over to the Salcombe Hills and another overlooking Lyme Bay, both step free. There is also a viewing point of Sidmouth beach and town, this had about four long steps down to it, which I think would be long enough to accommodate a wheelchair on each individual step.

Toilets

There is an accessible toilet which requires a radar key. It is spacious and has grab rails.

Staff

NA - although there were a lot of gardeners around when I visited I didn't speak to any of them.

Anything else you wish to tell us?

These gardens are a delight to visit as they are beautifully maintained and tranquil. Well worth visiting. It's a place people come to relax, sit, stroll around and visit the café. From the Peak Hill Road accessible entrance there is a pill box, a former defence from World War II.

Photos