Mini Golf Grass Putting Course in Seaton, Devon

The 602nd course visited on our Crazy World of Minigolf Tour was the Putting Green at Seafield Gardens in Seaton, Devon.

On the green in Seaton

The 18-hole Mini Golf layout was a bonus discovery on our tour as we spotted a sign for the course while walking towards the town centre from the prom!

A nice bit of signage letting people know the course is there

Unfortunately the course wasn't open when we arrived on Tuesday 2nd June. The weather was a bit drizzly on our visit so it was probably for the best.

Interestingly the 18-hole course is split into two sections.

The lower section is next to the Bowling Green

The upper section is next to the club house pavilion

You can find the course in Seafield Gardens, Seafield Road, Seaton, Devon, EX12 2QS. For more information, opening times and prices check out the Leisure East Devon website.

Related blog posts:
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Mini Golf in the South West of England

Link:
- Leisure East Devon website

Like the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour on Facebook, check out our YouTube channel and follow me and Emily on Twitter.

Mini Golf in the South West of England

Visiting 62 more miniature golf courses on a tour of the South West of England.

We've been on some big road-trips in the past few years and this summer we had a brilliant two-week holiday around the coast of South West England.

At Gilmores Golf in Newquay, part-way through our mammoth road-trip around the South West coast of England

During our time away we visited the milestone 600th course. The Jurassic Adventure Golf course at the Santa-Fe Fun Park in Swanage, Dorset became the 364th course played when we visited on Sunday 31st May.

Jurassic Adventure Golf in Swanage

Two weeks later we visited Mini Golf course number 661 at Vivary Park in Taunton, Somerset. The 18-hole course was the 380th we've played since the tour began in September 2006, and the 17th played on our holiday.

Mini Golf in Vivary Park, Taunton

We got into playing minigolf after making a resolution in 2006 to visit as much of the UK's coast and on this trip we reached 227 seasides visited. We're looking forward to our next holiday already.

Here's the list of the 62 courses we visited in Dorset, Devon, Cornwall and Somerset:
• Swanage (Santa Fe Fun Park) - Jurassic Adventure Golf - 600th course visited overall
• Lyme Regis (Lister Gardens) - Crazy Golf

The Lister Gardens Mini Golf course in Lyme Regis

• Seaton - Grass Putting Green
• Oak Mead Family Golf Centre - Grass Putting Green
• Oak Mead Family Golf Centre - Pitch and Putt
• Salcombe Regis, near Sidmouth (Thorne Park Golf Centre) - Crazy Golf

Putting on the Crazy Golf course at Thorne Park Golf Centre near Sidmouth

• Salcombe Regis, near Sidmouth (Thorne Park Golf Centre) - Grass Putting Green
• Salcombe Regis, near Sidmouth (Thorne Park Golf Centre) - Pitch and Putt
• Sidmouth (The Victoria Hotel) - Grass Putting Green
• Sidmouth (The Belmont Hotel) - Grass Putting Green
• Sidmouth (The Triangle / Coburg Fields) - Grass Putting Green
• Exmouth (Seafront) - Arnold Palmer Crazy Golf
• Exmouth (Seafront) - Grass Putting Green
• Exmouth (The Imperial Hotel) - Grass Putting Green
• Dawlish Warren (Funderland) - Adventure Golf

A crazy hole on the Funderland Adventure Golf course in Dawlish Warren

• Dawlish (Station Road) - Swedish Felt B-Run Mini Golf
• Teignmouth (Sea Front) - Jurassic Adventure Golf

The Adventure Golf course in Teignmouth

• Torquay (The Imperial Hotel) - Crazy Golf

Our hotel in Torquay had a Crazy Golf course - what a bonus!

• Torquay (Torre Abbey Gardens) - Jungle Journey Adventure Golf
• Paignton (Sea Front) - Pirates Bay Adventure Golf
• Paignton (Junior Browns) - UV Indoor Crazy Golf - course removed from venue
• Goodrington Sands, Paignton - Beton Mini Golf - 600th course visited in the UK

The Goodrington Sands Beton Mini Golf course in Paignton

• Roundham Head, Goodrington Sands, Paignton - Pitch and Putt
• Torquay (Torre Abbey Gardens) - Pitch and Putt
• Dartmouth (near Higher Ferry) - Grass Putting course
• Plymouth (The Hoe) - Grass Putting course
• Plymouth (West Hoe Park) - Treasure Island Adventure Golf
• St Martins (Parkdean Looe Bay Holiday Park) - Crazy Golf
• Looe (Looe Bowling Club, Marine Drive) - Upper Grass Putting course
• Looe (Looe Bowling Club, Marine Drive) - Lower Grass Putting course

Looe Bowling Club in Cornwall is home to two grass Putting courses with some great views

• St Austell (Kidzworld Cornwall, Stadium Retail Park) - Mini Golf
• Swanpool, Falmouth (Swanpool Park) - Crazy Golf

The Crazy Golf course in Swanpool Park, Falmouth is in a great spot

• Falmouth (Gyllyngvase Beach) - Crazy Golf - now part of a garden
• Penzance (The Alexandra Inn) - pub beer garden Crazy Golf

The beer garden of The Alexandra Inn, Penzance has a 17-hole Crazy Golf course in it!

• St Ives (Porthminster Beach) - Grass Putting course
• St Ives (Porthmeor Beach) - Grass Putting course
• St Erth (Penwith Pitch and Putt) - Crazy Golf

The Penwith Pitch & Putt centre in St Erth, near St Ives, has a very bright and colourful Crazy Golf course

• St Erth (Penwith Pitch and Putt) - Pitch and Putt
• Perranporth (Boating Lake) - Grass Putting course
• Newquay (Gilmores Golf) - Beton Crazy Mini Golf

Playing the Beton Mini Golf course at Gilmores Golf in Newquay

• Newquay (Trenance Gardens) - Crazy Golf

The Trenance Gardens Crazy Golf course in Newquay

• Newquay (Trenance Gardens) - Pitch and Putt
• Newquay (Killacourt) - Grass Putting course - out of season
• Newquay (Tolcarne Beach) - Crazy Golf - course on the cliff has been removed
• Newquay (Narrowcliff, near Tolcarne Beach) - Crazy Golf - hut remains, no course evident
• Newquay (The Headland Hotel, near Fistral Beach) - Grass Putting course
• Porth Island, Newquay (Krazy Golf at Newquay Football Golf) - Crazy Golf

Putting at the Krazy Golf course on Porth Island, Newquay

• Mawgan Porth - Crazy Golf
• Mawgan Porth - Pitch and Putt
• Berryfields Holiday Park, Porthcothan Bay - Crazy Golf
• Padstow (Greens Cafe) - Crazy Golf - 650th course visited overall

Playing a Pyramid hole in Padstow

• Padstow (Greens Cafe) - Grass Putting / Pitch and Putt
• Bude (Bude Haven Recreation Ground) - Crazy Golf

A snakey hole in Bude

• Bude (Bude Haven Recreation Ground) - Grass Putting Green 1
• Bude (Bude Haven Recreation Ground) - Grass Putting Green 2
• Bude (Crooklets Beach) - Pitch and Putt
• Westward Ho! - Putting course on a signpost - not found
• Westward Ho! (Pebble Ridge) - Pirate Adventure Golf
• Woolacombe (The Bay Hotel) - Mini Golf (Pitch and Putt)
• Woolacombe (Funderland) - 15-hole Adventure Golf
• Ilfracombe (The Promenade) - Crazy Golf
• Taunton (Vivary Park) - Mini Golf

It wasn't possible to stop at, or play all of the mini, crazy and adventure golf courses, or all the putting greens and pitch & putts we saw on this trip, or those we'd heard about beforehand.

On Broad Road in Swanage there is a piece of parkland that overlooks the bay and pier. This area has appeared on many postcards over the years and used to be home to a grass Miniature Golf course.

The Parkdean Holiday Park in West Bay, near Bridport used to have a Crazy Golf course. We checked, it's no longer there.

After we'd played the Crazy Golf course in Lister Gardens in Lyme Regis we noticed on the town map that the gardens are also home to a grass Putting Green. We had noticed a two-tier patch of land near to the course, but it wasn't laid out for putting. Perhaps it was too early in the season.

This year the Ladram Bay Holiday Park has created a Jurassic Adventure Golf course at the site in Otterton near Budleigh Salterton. We didn't get a chance to play it. Charter member of the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour Christopher Gottfried did visit the course on a trip to Devon last year.

On that trip Christopher also visited Paignton and spotted a Crazy Golf course on the pier. On our visit we saw it had been removed. There were trampolines instead. The stroll along the pier wasn't all for naught though as I got to have a go on a Hillbilly Shooting Shack.

It's not minigolf, but it's a seaside classic - a Hillbilly Shooting Shack on Paignton Pier

Other Crazy Golf courses we had to skip on this trip due to time constraints are at:
- Pecorama Games, Gardens and Trains in Beer
- Exmouth World of Country Life
- Babbacombe Model Village
- Holywell Bay Fun Park
- Lappa Valley Steam Railway
- Old MacDonald's Farm and Bed & Breakfast
- Bideford Atlantic Village
- Devon Railway Centre

There are also quite a few more miniature golf courses at holiday camps, caravan parks and hotels in the area.

Thanks to everyone for their tips and hints about places to visit on the trip, and special mentions to Tim 'Ace Man' Davies for his excellent course list on MiniatureGolfer.com, Jam Trubridge, Matt Dodd, Helen Dodd, Chris Harding, and Christopher Gottfried.

There'll be more blog posts about the courses we visited in the coming weeks so watch this space!

Related blog posts:
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Dorset
- Devon
- Cornwall
- Somerset

Videos:
- Crazy Golf Hole in One at the Jurassic Adventure Golf course in Swanage
- Mini Golf Hole in One at the Jurassic Adventure Golf course in Swanage
- Crazy Golf in Lyme Regis, Dorset
- Mini Golf in Lyme Regis, Dorset
- Mini Golf Hole-in-One at The Imperial Hotel in Torquay
- Crazy Golf Hole-in-One at The Alexandra Inn, Penzance 
- Playing Krazy Golf on Porth Island, Newquay

Another Luton

Visiting our third 'Luton'.

Luton in Devon

On our recent holiday we visited Devon and en route to Teignmouth from Dawlish we had to pop into one of the other places in the UK called 'Luton'. This one is near Newton Abbot.

All of the road signs on the way said Luton was 1 and a half miles away!

Look! There's another one

And another!

One of the two approach roads to Luton in Devon. Heading away from this Luton on the way to Teignmouth we had to drive across a golf course - that was interesting

The village sign was partially obscured by a hedge and stinging nettles. It was purely by chance that we spotted it too. Driving into this Luton we didn't see any signs, but after we'd driven through the village I did a three point turn near a farm on Fore Street and there it was!

'Home' again

Back in April 2012 we visited Luton in Chatham, Kent. That's little more than a street. We drove by that Luton again last year.

The only road sign we saw for Luton in Kent showed it was one mile away

There's another Luton in Devon, near Honiton. We didn't have time to visit on our road-trip, but next time we're down that way we're going to pop along for a look.

I'm originally from Oxford and on a road-trip to Scotland and back in 2012 we spotted an Oxford in Northumberland.

Related blog posts:
- Luton

Link:
- Luton, Devon on Wikipedia

Gluten Free in Plymouth

On our recent holiday in the South West of England we had a very nice time in Plymouth - especially as we were able to have a three-course meal together!

Ahead of our trip Emily and I had researched potential places to eat because dining out as a Coeliac can be a bl**dy nightmare. Thankfully we'd found at least two 100% gluten free places in Plymouth. One of which we'd booked a table at for dinner. We weren't disappointed.

A happy Coeliac diner

The Galley is the restaurant part of the The Maritime Inn in The Barbican area of Plymouth and the food there is brilliant.

The Crab Cakes were delicious

  

The meal was finished off with the Homemade Profiterole - it was MASSIVE!

Check out the menu online - all of the food is freshly prepared and there is NO gluten in the food or kitchen. This meant I was able to try some of Emily's meal too. The BBQ Chicken Wings were great.

The Galley gluten free restaurant in Plymouth gets the thumbs up from me

You can find The Galley at The Maritime Inn, 19 Southside Street, Barbican, Plymouth, PL1 2LD. The restaurant is open Tuesday to Sunday. Visit The Galley website for more information. The pub had a nice and friendly atmosphere and we enjoyed a few Gin & Tonics there after the meal.

We'd heard about The Galley from my fellow Coeliac Blogger Kevin Gollop's blog - Gluten Free by the Sea - the site is well worth a read and really good if you're heading down that way.

Earlier in the day I'd treated myself to a Chicken Pie and a Rocky Road Bar from The Ladybird Bakery in the Market. Another top tip from Kevin. I was well and truly stuffed by the end of the day - in a good way, which makes a change.

And elsewhere in the South West...

While we were away for a two week break I only managed to have nine hot meals. That's including breakfasts in the hotels and B&Bs we'd booked where breakfast was included (on these occasions I ordered the 'safe' option of boiled eggs - and even then my order was only right twice!?).

Other meals out included a very nice dinner at The Black Swan Inn in Swanage, a tasty late lunch in The Cobb Arms in Lyme Regis, takeaway fish & chips at Rockfish in Torquay and Brown's in Perranporth (and a horrific and eye-opening experience of how NOT to serve gluten free fish & chips in Dawlish - I didn't eat what I was served), and a meal out in Torquay (where I got glutened).

I did manage to find some gluten free pasties by Baked to Taste - in Dorset and Devon, but not in Cornwall!

There were some other places we noticed on the trip that had 'gluten free' options. But these were not safe for Coeliacs due to cross-contamination.

So it's absolutely marvellous when we find places that are really serious about serving safe (and tasty) gluten free food to people on strict and lifelong gluten free diets because of Coeliac Disease.

Links:
- Gluten Free by the Sea
- The Galley
- The Ladybird Bakery
- Coeliac UK

Related blog posts:
- Gluten Free
- Coeliac
- Funny things about being a Coeliac

Crazy Golf in Ladram Bay, Devon

Spotting another course on the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour.

Neither Emily nor I have played or visited any Crazy Golf courses today - but charter member of the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour Christopher Gottfried has!

The Arnold Palmer Crazy Golf course at the Ladram Bay Holiday Park in Otterton, Devon

While on business in Devon he found a miniature golf course at Ladram Bay, near Honiton. It looks like a great layout and is an example of an Arnold Palmer Crazy Golf course that includes a windmill, loop-di-loop and lucky last hole.

On the 30 September 2006 we visited and played at the first course on what has become the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour and its great to hear about another new course for us to visit when we reach the south west of England.

A great view of Ladram Bay in Otterton, Devon

Other courses visited by Christopher include Brighton (Crazy Golf), Paignton (Crazy Golf), Margate (Cliftonville, Little Oasis Crazy Golf), Herne Bay (Mini Golf), Newquay (Mini Golf) and Mundesley (Adventure Island Golf).

Looking on the Ladram Bay Holiday Park website the recently refurbished course costs £1.50 for a round.

Related blog posts:
- Eight years of the Crazy World of Minigolf Tour!
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Christopher Gottfried's Minigolf Player Profile
- Christopher Gottfried on The Ham and Egger Files

Link:
- Ladram Bay Holiday Park

Crazy Golf on Paignton Pier in Devon

A Crazy Golf course visit from the Gottfried family archives.

My brother Christopher travels around the country a fair bit and while on the pier in Paignton, Devon he spotted a Crazy Golf course!

The 9-hole Crazy Golf course on Paignton Pier. Photo by Christopher Gottfried (12 October 2012)

Emily and I are yet to reach that part of the UK - we've been as far as Weymouth* on the south coast and Weston-super-Mare** on the north coast of the south west of England. We're hoping to get down there soon though as there are stacks of great places to explore.

Other courses visited, but not played, by Christopher include Brighton (Crazy Golf), Margate (Cliftonville, Little Oasis Crazy Golf), Herne Bay (Mini Golf), Newquay (Mini Golf) and Mundesley (Adventure Island Golf).

Related blog posts:
- Crazy World of Minigolf Tour
- Christopher Gottfried's Minigolf Player Profile
- Christopher Gottfried on The Ham and Egger Files

Link:
- Paignton Pier

* On the way back from the first-ever Weymouth Open tournament in 2008 I did however take a wrong turn and ended up in Bridport.
** In our pre-Crazy World of Minigolf Tour days we did have a holiday in Minehead.