Clovelly is the Devon village on every biscuit tin: the cobbled street tipping down to the harbour, the donkeys, the whitewashed cottages. Most photographs show it in summer, with the quay busy and the street crowded.
Go in November, and you see what the village was built for. Herring come through the Irish Sea towards Bideford Bay to spawn, and for one Sunday the quay becomes a fishing port again. Smokehouse smoke, net-making and stargazy pie are all part of it. The Clovelly Herring Festival falls on Sunday 15 November 2026, and it shows the village at work rather than on show.
Quick Facts:
Region: North Devon coast, Clovelly (EX39 5TA)
Best for: Maritime history, herring food, a quiet-season visit
Getting there: By car off the A39 about ten miles west of Bideford; the nearest railway station is Barnstaple
Time needed: Two to three hours for the village, longer for the festival
The Festival on the Quay
Clovelly’s own events page lists the 2026 Herring Festival for Sunday 15 November at the harbour on The Quay, EX39 5TF. Hours were not listed when this guide was written, so check the village website before you travel. The 2021 festival ran from 10am to 4pm, according to the North Devon Gazette, and that is a reasonable guide.
Expect herring specialities from the Quay Kitchens, local crafts, natural-fibre goods on the quay, free face painting, and live music. Past festivals have also run chef demonstrations and beer tastings. Standard village admission covered the entertainment in 2018. For 2026, the village lists admission at £10.90 for adults, £6.50 for children aged 7 to 16 and £28 for a family pass, with under-sevens free.
Follow the smoke. Mike Smylie smokes kippers and bloaters on-site in his smokehouse, and the smell of woodsmoke is the first thing to hit you on the quay.
Where to Stay: The Red Lion Hotel sits on the quay. Clovelly describes it as an 18th-century inn, and the village’s 2024 guide lists 17 rooms with sea views.
Worth Knowing: Country Living magazine covered the 14th annual Herring Festival in its November 2020 issue, according to Clovelly.
The Silver Darlings
Herring fishing at Clovelly goes back over 400 years. The North Devon Gazette puts the start at 1602. In 1749 there were around a hundred herring boats in the port, landing about 9,000 fish at a time, according to Clovelly and the North Devon Coast National Landscape.
The drift net and the long line are the old methods, and they are still the only ones used. The season runs from Michaelmas to Christmas, according to a profile of the village’s last full-time herring fisherman, Stephen Perham, the sixth generation of his family to fish. A seven-year ban on herring fishing was in place from 1976 to 1983 to allow stocks to recover. In 1995, Perham caught 5 mease, or 3,060 fish, in a ten-foot rowing boat, a mease being 612 fish.
Today only two fishermen keep the tradition going. The festival is the shop window.
Walking: this part of the visit is the harbour itself. It is level and short. Allow thirty minutes on the quay, more if the weather is dry and the kitchens are busy.
Where to Stay: The New Inn on the High Street is a 17th-century inn with eight en-suite rooms, some with sea views, and a restaurant serving seafood. It lists off-site parking about 300 yards away.
Worth Knowing: A profile of the village’s fishing says the festival is held on the second Sunday of November. Clovelly’s 2026 page lists 15 November, which is the third Sunday, so go by the village’s date.
Kipperland and the Flax Exhibit
Mike Smylie is a maritime historian who runs Kipperland, an exhibition devoted to the history of the herring. He demonstrates traditional kipper and bloater smoking in his smokehouse. The 2026 festival listing confirms Kipperland, along with smoked kippers and bloaters for sale.
The same listing includes a flax exhibit featuring demonstrations of products made from the flax plant and a net-making competition. Past festivals have featured Irish curach boats and flax processing by Simon and Ann Cooper, according to the North Devon Gazette. The 2026 acts have not been announced.
Allow an hour. The exhibits are the hands-on part of the day, and the smokehouse is the one to watch.
Where to Stay: The Red Lion Hotel, a few steps from the quay.
Worth Knowing: A kipper is a split, smoked herring; a bloater is a whole smoked one. Smylie shows both techniques.
The Cobbled Street
The High Street is 20% steep, according to Clovelly, and slippery. It is built from beach pebbles. Cars cannot use it, so goods are moved up and down by sledge, and the donkey stables remain a focal point of the village. Clovelly says residents still use the sledges.
Wear shoes with grip. Buggies are hard to manage; the village suggests baby carriers. The street is not wheelchair-accessible, but a Land Rover service runs from Easter to October for anyone who cannot manage the hill. Check whether it runs on 15 November, because that is outside its season.
Allow time for the climb back, which is slower than the walk down.
Where to Stay: The New Inn sits on the High Street itself, so the hill is part of the stay.
Worth Knowing: Clovelly says the quay and many cottages date to the 14th century.
Fisherman’s Cottage and the Kingsley Museum
Fisherman’s Cottage shows how a fishing family lived in the 1930s. Alongside it, the Kingsley Museum celebrates Charles Kingsley, who wrote Westward Ho! and The Water Babies and is connected to the village. Admission covers both, along with a 20-minute historical film and free parking, according to Clovelly’s visitor guide.
Time: forty minutes for both. The cottage puts the herring story at household scale.
Where to Stay: The Red Lion Hotel.
Worth Knowing: Clovelly says it is owned by one family, one of only three since the Norman Conquest.
Hobby Drive
Hobby Drive is a woodland path with glimpses of the harbour and Bideford Bay. Clovelly’s guide gives no length or difficulty, so treat it as a woodland walk and check the route on the village map when you buy your ticket.
In November, the trees have fewer leaves, so check the views from the path against the harbour below.
Where to Stay: The New Inn.
Worth Knowing: The village’s list of walks and viewpoints also names Mount Pleasant as a viewpoint.
Clovelly Court Gardens
Clovelly Court Gardens has Victorian walled gardens and greenhouses and sells produce. The village’s 2024 guide lists the walled gardens as open from April to September, so they are likely closed on the festival Sunday. Clovelly lists Christmas illuminations at the gardens on 20 December, and an RNLI Christmas light switch-on on 6 December.
If you plan a second visit for the lights, check dates on the village website before you book.
Where to Stay: The Red Lion Hotel.
Worth Knowing: Clovelly’s events page lists the Herring Festival, the RNLI switch-on and the Christmas illuminations as its next three events.
The Picarooners and the Last Herring Men
The boats are as particular as the nets. The small wooden boats called Picarooners are 16 feet long and are painted white every year with a red rim, according to Stephen Perham’s profile. They carried the same drift nets that Clovelly men used for generations.
Perham is the last full-time herring fisherman living in the village. He fishes once or twice a week after the festival to fill orders, and salts the unsold catch as bait for his summer lobster and crab fishing. His brother Tommy also fishes but no longer lives in Clovelly. By the 1950s and 1960s, only a few motorboats, Picarooners, and rowing boats were left in service, according to Clovelly.
Look for the white hulls with red rims on the harbour. The paint is the detail that tells you which boats are old.
Where to Stay: The New Inn. Charles Dickens visited the inn in 1860, according to the listing.
Worth Knowing: Clovelly says herring caught here were once distributed throughout England.
The Harbour, the Lifeboat Station and All Saints Church
Clovelly’s list of things to do names the harbour quay, the Lifeboat Station and All Saints Church, along with boat charters for fishing trips and the Mount Pleasant viewpoint. The quay is a tiny 14th-century harbour that is still active.
The Harbour Restaurant and the Snug and Harbour Bar sit by the water, and the bar runs live music nights, according to Clovelly. Check the dates for 15 November before you rely on them.
The village sits within the North Devon Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which covers 171 square kilometres of mainly coastal landscape, according to the North Devon Coast National Landscape site. A pebbled beach, a waterfall and Merlin’s Cave are close by, according to the New Inn’s listing.
Time: forty minutes on the quay, church and lifeboat station together. The walk is level and short.
Where to Stay: The Red Lion Hotel, right on the quay.
Worth Knowing: The RNLI Christmas light switch-on is listed for 6 December.
Practical Tips
Check the village website for festival hours before you travel. Wear shoes with grip. The street is 20% steep and slippery. Arrive early. Parking is included in the admission fee, so you pay once at the visitor centre. Take cash and cards for the quay stalls and check the Quay Kitchens’ menu on the day. Allow two to three hours for the village alone. Book a room if you want to stay for the evening, because the nearest railway station is at Barnstaple.
Responsible Visiting
The street is a residential working lane. Keep to the side for sledges and donkeys, and do not block doorways with photography.
Reader Q&A
Q: When is the Clovelly Herring Festival in 2026? A: Sunday 15 November, according to Clovelly’s website.
Q: Is the festival free? A: Village admission applies. For 2026, it is listed at £10.90 for adults, £6.50 for children aged 7 to 16, and £28 for a family pass.
Q: What is a measure of herring? A: 612 fish, according to Clovelly.
Q: Can I take a wheelchair or buggy down the street? A: The street is not suitable for wheelchairs and is hard for buggies. A Land Rover runs from Easter to October.
Q: Is the herring fishing still real? A: Yes, with two fishermen using drift nets and long lines, according to Clovelly.
Where to Stay (consolidated)
The Red Lion Hotel: 18th-century quayside hotel, listed with 17 rooms in Clovelly’s 2024 guide.
The New Inn: 17th-century inn on the High Street, eight en-suite rooms.
Closing
The herring still arrive each November, and two men still go out for them in small boats. For one Sunday the village shows what its quay was built to do. Then the smoke clears, and the cobbles go quiet again.
For more info on future events, visit our website
