About Us
Your Local Guide to the English Riviera
StayTorbay exists because the best places in Torbay deserve to be found — not buried in generic review sites built for everywhere.
How it started
StayTorbay started with a simple frustration. Every time someone visited Torquay, Paignton or Brixham and asked “where should we eat?” or “which beach is worth it?”, the answers were scattered across a dozen different sites — some out of date, some just wrong, none of them written by people who actually live here.
So I built something better. A single, honest, locally-written guide to the best hotels, restaurants, beaches, and hidden gems the Bay has to offer.
What we cover
Hotels & B&Bs
From boutique guesthouses to seafront stays
Restaurants & Cafés
Torbay is filled with some notable tourist traps. I will help you to discover the spots that the locals actually go back to!
Beaches & Outdoors
Every beach, cove and coastal walk!
Things to Do
Attractions, activities and day trips
Our approach
StayTorbay is an independent local review guide managed by myself, Luke Pillar, based right here in the English Riviera. I make it my endeavour to physically visit, evaluate, and highlight local businesses to help tourists navigate Torbay.
About Luke
I was born in Torbay Hospital, and although my early adulthood took me across the UK and over to Spain, the English Riviera has always been the anchor of my life. Over the decades, I’ve watched this coastline evolve. I’ve seen once-thriving businesses change hands and lose their spark, and I’ve watched hidden gems rise from obscurity to become local institutions.
Because I’ve seen Torbay from every angle, I know what makes a venue truly special. My goal is simple: to personally visit and revisit accommodations, restaurants, and attractions across the bay so that your time here is seamless, authentic, and memorable.
StayTorbay’s Vision
StayTorbay was built to be more than just a list of places to sleep and eat; it is a transparent, independent directory and review platform for the very best The English Riviera has to offer.
We know that a great holiday doesn’t stop at a municipal border. While our core focus is the English Riviera, our platform includes a flexible filter that lets you expand your radius. Whether you want to stay strictly within Torbay or branch out to places like Salcombe and Dawlish for a day trip, you have total control over your itinerary.
True transparency is hard to find in travel guides, which is why we do things differently. We actively track local and national news, linking both accolades and constructive press directly to business profiles. If a venue has earned an award, you’ll know about it. If they’ve hit a rough patch, we believe you have the right to know that, too.
What’s Next: The StayTorbay Holiday Planner
We are currently developing an intelligent holiday planner designed to take the guesswork out of your trip.
As you map out your days, meals, and activities, our planner works in the background. If you accidentally book a morning activity and an evening dinner that are miles apart, the system will flag the distance and warn you. Our goal is to ensure that when you step out the door, you can focus entirely on enjoying your holiday, backed by the genuine insider knowledge of a local.