A beautiful home on its own peninsula near Dartmouth, complete with helipad and glasshouse
Woods House occupies one of the finest positions on the River Dart.


In medieval times, the South Hams region of South Devon, now part of the South Devon AONB, was a feudal estate comprising the land between the Rivers Plym and Dart and to the south of Dartmoor, with the English Channel forming its southern boundary.
The area’s strategic importance ensured long-standing links with the Royal Navy and inspired a grand maritime tradition, which has made its spectacular, deeply indented coastline a Mecca for seafarers, who dream of owning a house that has, as the French say, ‘les pieds dans l’eau’.
https://player.vimeo.com/video/277643233?color=e41e26
Around here, however, the best waterside houses are rarely seen on the open market. As Sarah-Jane Bingham-Chick of Savills explains, ‘families who inherit or manage to buy such a house tend not to sell, or only in exceptional circumstances’.
It’s no wonder, then, that the executor’s sale of Woods House at Stoke Gabriel, near Totnes, offered at a guide price of ‘excess £4 million’ through the firm’s Exeter office, has sent a frisson of excitement through the upper echelons of an increasingly buoyant West Country market – as demand for high-end coastal property elsewhere in the UK remains ‘a lot stickier’, leading agents say.
The ancient, no-through village of Stoke Gabriel, one of the most sought-after in the South Hams, stands on a creek of the Dart, some three miles upriver from Dartmouth.
Set on its own south-facing peninsula, within 39 acres of wrap-around gardens and grounds, Woods House occupies one of the finest positions on the river, with rolling pasture sweeping gently down to the riverbank and more than half a mile of river frontage.
Exquisite houses, the beauty of Nature, and how to get the most from your life, straight to your inbox.
The house enjoys total privacy, being visible only from the river and accessed through a discreet entrance in the village that leads into a tree-lined drive.
The fine Victorian stone house has been carefully restored and reconfigured in recent years to provide some 6,000sq ft of family accommodation on three floors, with three reception rooms, a large kitchen/breakfast room, a sun room, master and guest suites, five double bedrooms, four bath/shower rooms, a study and a playroom.
Mod-cons include cabling for digital, audio or visual use, with additional guest accommodation provided in a separate three-bedroom cottage.
Amenities include garaging, a kitchen garden with a fine Victorian glasshouse, a 40ft-long barn and a helipad.
Credit: Via Savills in Truro: For sale at a guide price of £2 million is Polbream, in Mullion, some eight miles south of Helston. This extended former farmhouse sits on its own headland, Polbream Point
A magnificent house on its own headland at The Lizard, the balmiest place in Britain
Polbream is for sale for the first time in a generation – Penny Churchill takes a look at this delightful Cornish
Credit: The Seashell (Galbraith)
A Scottish getaway by the side of a loch that's a pure slice of romantic fantasy
Standing just yards from Loch Sunart is The Seashell, a fabulous little spot for sale that offers an ideal romantic
-
Dire Straits' bassist John Illsley reveals why he swapped the recording studio for the art studio — and his consuming passions
John Illsley rose to fame as the bassist of the Dire Straits, but nowadays you're more likely to find him in an art studio.
By Lotte Brundle Published
-
What is a Japanese llama called? The Country Life Quiz of the Day, October 20, 2025
Featuring more questions you didn't know you needed the answer to.
By Country Life Published
-
The Hampshire home of a Victoria Cross-winning British WWI ace fighter pilot is for sale, with lake, chapel and some of the best fishing rights in England
Penny Churchill looks at Longparish House, a north Hampshire haven on the River Test.
By Penny Churchill Published
-
Five superb country homes, from under £1 million to £20 million, as seen in Country Life
Our look at some the best homes to come up for sale via Country Life in the past week includes a Wiltshire dream home and a vast Kent mansion that's an easy commute to the City.
By Toby Keel Published
-
Rock stars and the country house: Liam Gallagher's life in the Cotswolds is in the finest tradition of music A-listers, from The Beatles to Beyoncé
What is it about the British countryside that draws A-listers from every walk of life? With Liam Gallagher's Cotswold former home on the market, Toby Keel takes a look.
By Toby Keel Published
-
Life on Portugal's Coast of Kings, where Ian Fleming met the triple-agent whose gambling inspired 'Casino Royale'
Once a quiet fishing village west of Lisbon, Cascais became an unlikely hive of activity during the Second World War, attracting regal refugees and intelligence operatives in equal measure. Russell Higham investigates its enduring glamour — and its connection to Casino Royale.
By Russell Higham Published
-
An extraordinary Italian palazzo built in the heart of Oxfordshire is up for sale at £16 million
The Palazzo Pallavicini in Genoa inspired the creation of Newington House, which is on the market for the first time in 35 years.
By Penny Churchill Published
-
A bum deal on a bog-standard property? The former public conveniences being sold off for a song
London has several affordable properties with enviable postcodes and great lighting... so long as you're happy spending more than a penny on a Victorian loo.
By Toby Keel Published
-
A castle for sale just down the road from Gleneagles, where everyone from George VI to a farmer and his pigs once roamed the grand halls
Orchil Castle has seen it all in a tumultuous century and a half — but it's getting back to its best, and now needs a brave new owner to take it on the next step of its journey.
By Toby Keel Published
-
Five homes with their own orchards that will be the apple of your eye (almost literally)
If you've been looking enviously this year at neighbours with apple trees that have been heaving with fruit, here is the solution: five lovely homes for sale that come with their own orchards.
By Arabella Youens Published