Hidden Gems Near Plymouth
Written by UK Hidden Gems Editorial
Updated 5 August 2026
The hidden gems near Plymouth are The Box, Elizabethan Gardens, Beatle Bums, Tinside Lido, Devil's Point Tidal Pool, Drake's Island, Mount Wise and Devonport Guildhall and Column.
Plymouth packs a great number of finds within a short walk or drive of its centre, so this is a collection you could happily explore on foot over a day or two. Start in the heart of the city at The Box, its museum and gallery, then drop down to the Barbican for the tucked-away Elizabethan Gardens.
Out on Plymouth Hoe you will find the quirky Beatle Bums seat imprints and the elegant curves of Tinside Lido below. Follow the shore west to the tidal pool at Devil's Point and gaze across the water to Drake's Island, marooned in Plymouth Sound.
Round things off in Devonport, where Mount Wise offers headland pools and wide estuary views, and the Column and Guildhall stand as bold Greek Revival landmarks. Almost everything here sits within a couple of miles of the city centre.
Here are eight hidden gems to seek out near Plymouth.
The Box
Photo: N Chadwick via Geograph.org.uk
Step inside The Box Just a few minutes from the heart of Plymouth, The Box is the city's main museum, gallery and archive, opened in 2020 in a set of linked buildings that join the former city museum and library and St Luke's church to a large new extension. Its galleries span art, natural history, archaeology and the city's history, with major touring exhibitions and an archive study centre.
Its best-known sight is a group of fourteen restored ships' figureheads hung in the entrance hall. There is a cafe and a public square outside, and entry is free.
Elizabethan Gardens
Photo: N Chadwick via Geograph.org.uk
Slip into the Elizabethan Gardens Hidden behind a row of 16th and 17th-century merchants' houses off New Street on Plymouth's Barbican, this small walled garden sits barely a mile from the centre. It was laid out in 1970 by the Plymouth Barbican Association in the style of a Tudor garden, built into the ruins of old cottages to mark 350 years since the Mayflower sailed.
Four linked garden rooms hold a box-hedged knot garden, a rose garden, a formal water garden with a round pool and a small lawn, with a salvaged 17th-century doorway and a carved ship. It is free and quiet, an enclosed corner among the old town.
Beatle Bums
Photo: David Hallam-Jones via Geograph.org.uk
Sit with the Beatle Bums Set into the lawn of Plymouth Hoe near Smeaton's Tower, and a little over a mile from the centre, this piece of public art is a row of copper seat imprints let flush into the ground. They were made so that people can sit in them and recreate a photograph of the Beatles taken on the Hoe in 1967 during the filming of Magical Mystery Tour.
The Cornish metal sculptors Thrussell and Thrussell created it, and it was installed in 2015. When no one is sitting in it, it lies almost level with the grass.
Tinside Lido
Photo: N Chadwick via Geograph.org.uk
Take a dip at Tinside Lido Built into the shore below Plymouth Hoe, this open-air seawater swimming pool is a well-loved piece of 1930s design that opened in 1935. The semicircular pool, about fifty metres across, has fountains, tiered terraces and curved changing blocks, and it is filled with treated seawater.
Closed in the 1990s, it reopened in 2005 after restoration and now opens through the summer season with an events programme. A listed building barely a mile and a half from the centre, it looks out over Plymouth Sound.
Devil's Point Tidal Pool
Photo: N Chadwick via Geograph.org.uk
Swim at the Devil's Point Tidal Pool At Firestone Bay, around two kilometres from Plymouth's centre, this saltwater swimming pool sits by the shore of Plymouth Sound. The tide washes in and out of it, and cold-water swimmers use it through the year, with views across to Mount Edgcumbe and Drake's Island.
Its exposed spot means it takes a battering, and it was repaired and refreshed in 2024. It lies below the Royal William Yard at Devil's Point, an easy trip from the city.
Drake's Island
Photo: BB via Geograph.org.uk
Gaze out to Drake's Island This small, rocky island sits in Plymouth Sound just over two kilometres from the centre, ringed by the walls of an old fort and named after Sir Francis Drake. Barracks and gun batteries were built here over the centuries to guard the approach to Plymouth, and their remains still cover the island, long derelict.
It lies offshore between the city and the open sea, its buildings weathering behind the fortifications. The island has changed hands in recent years and is currently closed to visitors, so it is best admired from the shore.
Mount Wise
Photo: Derek Harper via Geograph.org.uk
Relax at Mount Wise On the southern edge of Devonport, a little over two kilometres from Plymouth's centre, this headland and public park looks out over the Tamar estuary toward Mount Edgcumbe and the Royal William Yard. On the point stand the Mount Wise Pools, a free set of three outdoor swimming pools open through summer, with a cafe, alongside the large Scott Memorial, a listed monument to the Devonport-born polar explorer Captain Scott and his team.
A circular viewing platform gives wide views, and old wartime tunnels run beneath the rock. The park is open and free at all times.
Devonport Guildhall and Column
Photo: N Chadwick via Geograph.org.uk
Climb the Devonport Column In Ker Street, Devonport, around two and a half kilometres from Plymouth's centre, the Column and Guildhall form a pair of Greek Revival civic buildings designed by John Foulston and built in 1824 to mark Plymouth Dock being renamed Devonport. The Column is a tall fluted Doric column of granite with a viewing platform reached by a long spiral stair, giving views over Plymouth toward Dartmoor.
Beside it, the Guildhall, with its Doric portico, has been restored as a community and events venue. The Column is a listed building, and it opens for the climb on set days.
FAQs
Which hidden gems in Plymouth are free to visit?
Plenty are. The Box, the Elizabethan Gardens, Beatle Bums and the Mount Wise Pools in Devonport are all free, making Plymouth an affordable city to explore on foot.
Can you swim outdoors near Plymouth city centre?
Yes. Tinside Lido below Plymouth Hoe offers seawater swimming in summer, the Devil's Point tidal pool at Firestone Bay draws cold-water swimmers year-round, and Mount Wise has three free outdoor pools in Devonport.
Is Drake's Island open to visitors?
Drake's Island in Plymouth Sound is currently closed to visitors after changing hands in recent years, so it is best viewed from the shore at Plymouth Hoe or Devil's Point.
Conclusion
For a city break with everything close at hand, Plymouth is hard to beat, since almost all of these finds sit within a couple of miles of the centre. Begin at The Box in the city heart, then wander down to the Barbican's Elizabethan Gardens and out onto Plymouth Hoe for the Beatle Bums and the graceful Tinside Lido.
Follow the shore to the tidal pool at Devil's Point and look across the water to Drake's Island in the Sound. Finish in Devonport, where Mount Wise offers free pools and estuary views and the Column and Guildhall stand proud in Greek Revival stone.
Museums, gardens, sea pools and monuments all lie within easy reach, ready to fill a day or two on foot, because these are the hidden gems to seek out near Plymouth.
