Brixham

Brixham smells of fish and always has, which is the most honest thing any English seaside town has ever done. William of Orange landed here in 1688 on his way to take a crown, took one look at the hill behind the harbour, and named the road up it Overgang, which is Dutch for "crossing" and English for "you will be doing this on foot, in the rain, for the rest of your life." The town is a working port that tourists happen to visit, not a resort that happens to have boats, and the difference shows the moment a trawler unloads at six in the morning next to somebody's holiday let. People who want the coast without the smell of it should try somewhere the harbour is decorative.