Appledore has a real character of its own and is a fusion of contrasts; In the morning you can be lost in the beauty of its wide open spaces, drinking in lungfuls of fresh sea air, and in the afternoon you can be pottering along its pastel-coloured maze of cosy, narrow passageways. Lined with painted fishermen's cottages and dappled with hanging baskets and cheery bunting, the winding streets are bustling with craft shops, cute coffee stops and restaurants.

With the heart of this community being based for centuries around the water, Appledore has had a rich boat-building heritage and is renownded as one of the country’s best working shipyards. Still dotted with traditional fishing boats, the quay is now also home to yachts and pleasure craft offering cruises up and down the estuary. Not forgetting the ferry across to the picture-postcard village of Instow across the water.

The real appeal for this part of the country has to be its beaches, with long sandy stretches less that 2 miles from your door, just paradise for sunbathing and surfing. And for walkers, you’ll love being surrounded by the South West Coastal Path and having Northam Burrows Country Park on your doorstep. For the more adventurous, you’re spoilt for choice, with an array of outdoor pursuits close by on land and sea including horse riding, kitesports and kayaking.

Surprisingly for its size, Appledore is brimming with fabulous places to socialise and dine out overlooking the water, including The Royal George or The Beaver Inn right on the estuary. With so much to fill your leisure time here in Appledore it’s easy to forget the practicalities of day-to-day life, but you’ll be delighted to know it’s well served for the important stuff like schooling, shopping and transport links. Could Primrose Fields in this charming nook of North Devon be just the place you’re looking to call home?