Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
boards promoting boat trips, before heading up Torwood St to
Torquay Museum
(
Click here
). Here you can
take in the evocative displays in the Agatha Christie Gallery. Look out for the story of how she worked in the re-
sort first as a nurse during WWI, then as a pharmacy dispenser - which is where she acquired that famous know-
ledge of poisons. Back at the harbour, cut in beside the
Tourist Office
(
Click here
) - there's more Christie
merchandise inside - and past the
Christie bust
, which was put up to commemorate her centenary year. Next
comes the
Pavilion
, a shadow of its former glory. It was here that Archie Christie proposed to Agatha at a
classical music concert in 1913. Neighbouring
Princess Gardens
crop up in
The ABC Murders
. As
Rock Walk
rears steeply on the right, divert left onto the late-Victorian
Princess Pier
, one of Agatha's fa-
vourite roller-skating spots when she was a girl. At
Torre Abbey Sands
, turn inland, strolling past tennis
courts and pitch 'n' put greens to
Torre Abbey Gardens
(
Click here
), where you can discover plants that can
be used to produce the poisons that feature in Christie's plots. Next cut down beside more playing fields, past the
train station to the suitably named
Grand Hotel
. This is where Agatha honeymooned with first husband
Archie after they married secretly on Christmas Eve in 1914. A pilot in the Royal Flying Corps, he was back at
the front by Boxing Day. Time, perhaps, for another cup of tea.
Activities
Dartmouth Steam Railway and River Boat Co
( 01803-555872;
www.dartmouthrailriver.co.uk
; Torbay Rd, Paignton; adult/child/family return £13.50/7.50/36;
4-9 trains daily Mar-Nov)
Chugging from seaside Paignton to the beautiful banks of the River
Dart, this train trip effortlessly rolls back the years to the age of steam. The 7-mile,
30-minute journey starts with a long coastal stretch beside Goodrington Sands (look out
for dolphins), then cuts inland. The final section sees trains steaming beside the River
Dart, stopping at Greenway Halt (near Agatha Christie's former home), then the village of
Kingswear, where regular ferries shuttle across to picturesque Dartmouth.
The engines powering the smartly-liveried, vintage coaches date from the 1920s and
1950s; some are former heavy coal trains from the Welsh valleys, while others pushed
Great Western Railway passenger services.
Other trips are available; one involves cruising to Dartmouth by boat, then taking the
steam train back to Paignton (adult/child/family £17.50/10.50/47).
RAILWAY
Torquay-Brixham Ferry
MAP
FERRY
GOOGLE MAP
(Greenway Ferry; 01803-882811;
www.greenwayferry.co.uk
; Princess Pier; adult/child return £3.50/2.50; 12
sailings daily Apr-Oct)
Tor Bay encompasses 16 sq miles of open sea. The sheer scale becomes
