Torbay is not only the birthplace of the Queen of Crime, but also the place where she found inspiration for many of her best stories, often while staying at her Devon home, Greenway.
Visit during the International Agatha Christie Festival
If you are staying during the International Agatha Christie Festival (September each year), there will be dozens of walks, talks, and events of interest as well as the permanent attractions with Christie links that we’ve listed below.
See a show during your holiday
Our local theatres often put on Agatha Christie plays and adaptations, so do check their What’s On pages to add a night out to your itinerary:
Paignton Palace Theatre: What’s On
Torquay Princess Theatre: Tickets
Babbacombe Theatre: What’s On
Day One
Arrive at The Miggi. Settle into your comfy, book-themed room, enjoy a welcome cuppa, and perhaps choose a book to read from our shelves.
A two-minute stroll to our local beach to walk on the sand and watch the waves is soothing at any time of day, and a great way to stretch your legs if you’ve been sitting in a car or train all day.
Pick up a vegan smoothie, coffee, or ice cream from the blue Sara’s at the Beach shack in the row of beach huts, or a drink from the terrace bar of the Redcliffe Hotel at the end of our road – the hotel has an interesting past and quirky design, and the sweeping view of the bay from their terrace is fabulous.
In the evening, enjoy a freshly-cooked meal made by Phoenix of All Good Things, served in our Agatha Christie dining room (book in advance with Phoenix).
Day Two
After a leisurely breakfast in our Agatha Christie dining room, visit Greenway house and garden by steam train and boat.
The steam train runs from Paignton station along the coast to Kingswear with lovely views. On the way, you’ll see the former “Churston” station (ABC Murders). From Kingswear, there are ferries across to historic Dartmouth, and from there you can take a boat accross the Dart to the Greenway boathouse and walk up to Greenway house through the grounds.
For folk with mobility issues, the steam train and ferries are accessible, but the other boat trips and the steep uphill walk to the house might be challenging. An alternative is to drive to Greenway – parking must be booked in advance. If you have a blue badge, do take it with you as the main car park is a long walk from the house.
About Greenway
A Georgian house with views to the Dart river estuary, this was the Summer home of Agatha Christie. She called it “the loveliest place in the world”.
You can tour the house and see the rooms where Agatha spent many happy hours, and where she wrote several of her best novels and plays. The house interior is 1950s style and houses many of Agatha’s collections.
The extensive grounds include walled gardens, woodland, a Camellia Garden, Fernery and riverside paths around the boathouse.
Greenway is run by the National Trust, so there’s the traditional shop and cafe (vegan options available), and also a large secondhand book shop.
For your evening meal, check out our list of places with vegan options in Torbay.
Day Three
After your tasty breakfast, head to Torquay to visit two completely different exhibitions with Agatha connections.
Firstly, Torquay Museum has an Agatha Christie Gallery which includes items from the family collections as well as costumes from the TV adaptations of the novels.
After the Museum, head to Torre Abbey gardens. The Abbey cafe has a few vegan options for a snack lunch. The ancient abbey is set in 18 acres of gardens, including huge greenhouses and the Potent Plants garden which commemorates all the plants that feature in the novels of Agatha Christie.
For your evening meal, check out our list of places with vegan options in Torbay.
Day Four
After a hearty Miggi breakfast, take an Agatha Christie themed guided walking tour around Torquay, take the self-guided Agatha Christie mile around the town, or choose some of the most relevant sites to visit such as the cove where Agatha learned to swim, and the memorial bust.
Head back to The Miggi late afternoon for one of Phoenix’s epic afternoon cream teas, served on traditional tiered stands in our Agatha Christie dining room.
You can take any treats you can’t eat in one sitting back to your room to nibble through the evening.
Day Four
After your tasty breakfast, head to Kent’s Cavern in Torquay.
Agatha visited the Cavern and used it as a location in her book “The Man in the Brown Suit”. In the book she changes the name of Kents Cavern to Hampsly Cavern and accurately refers to the bones of Ice Age Mammoths and Woolly Rhinoceros that were found there. Agatha discovered a passion for archaeology through her husband Max Mallowan and made frequent visits to archaeological sites in the Middle East.
The Cavern is one of the most important Stone Age sites in Europe.
Entertaining tour guides explain how ancient humans used the caves, how they were formed, and the story of the Victorians who excavated the site. You’ll be surrounded by 400 million year old rocks and spectacular stalagmites and stalactites.
Arriving back in Paignton, treat yourself to a meal at Tam’s Kitchen, our local vegan cafe (dogs welcome, accessible but has narrow doorway). Do mention that you’re staying at The Miggi!
Last day
Our hearty breakfast should set you up for your journey home. Although your room check-out time is 11am, you’re welcome to leave your bags a little longer so you needn’t rush too much – there’s always time to pop to the beach and say goodbye to the sea (until next time).