Babbacombe Cliff Railway, Funicular railway in Babbacombe, England.
Babbacombe Cliff Railway is a funicular railway in Torbay, on the Devon coast of England, that carries passengers down a steep coastal hillside between a clifftop station and the beach below. The two carriages run on separate parallel tracks linked by a single cable.
The railway opened in 1926 and was first run by the Torquay Tramway Company, then passed to Torquay Borough Council in 1935. Since then it has changed hands several times but has kept running, serving the coastline for nearly a century.
The railway links the clifftop to the beach below and is used by locals and visitors alike as part of a normal day out. The open machinery at the upper station lets you watch the cable system at work as the carriages move.
The upper station sits near Babbacombe village and the lower one leads directly to Oddicombe Beach, so the railway works well as a one-way trip with a walk back along the coast path. The service runs seasonally, so it is worth checking ahead before planning a visit around it.
Because the two carriages share a single cable, the descending one pulls the ascending one upward, meaning the motor only needs to handle the difference in weight between the two sides. This means a heavier load going down actually helps pull a lighter load going up.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 60,000 contributors worldwide.
