Paignton seafront in the late evening, at high tide

Paignton is an English coastal town on "the English Riviera" near Torquay, in the county of Devon. Over the years, the two towns have grown into each other, and together with Brixham to the south they form the unitary authority of Torbay.

Paignton (originally spelt "Peynton") appears in records in the 12th century, and for most of its history has primarily been a fishing village. During its expansion in the 19th century, a new harbour was constructed according to the Paington Harbour Act of 1837 (notice yet another spelling). Since then the rise of tourism led to the appearance of Paignton Pier, and has fuelled an even greater expansion which led to Paignton effectively swallowing the adjacent coastal villages of Goodrington and Preston. Oldway Mansion, formerly the home of the Singer family (of sewing machine fame) lies between Preston and Paignton, and is now the meetingplace of Torbay Council. Other Singer legacies in Paignton include the Palace Hotel and the Inn On The Green, both of which were homes for Isaac Singer's sons, and Paignton Green itself, which was used as a runway for their private aircraft.

Nowadays Paignton depends heavily on tourism, and is marketed predominantly at the lower to middle end (economically speaking) of the British population. The long beach in summer is frequently crowded by tourists devouring ice-cream and fish'n'chips. Night life is predominantly late-opening bars and clubs on the sea-front. A recent addition to Paignton's attractions is the Quaywest waterpark on Goodrington beach. However, the most famous attraction in the town still remains Paignton Zoo.

Paignton beach and the nearby Preston Sands are the best places in Torbay to launch for water sports such as wind and kite surfing, as well as dinghy sailing.

External link

• Paignton (DMOZ.org)