Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway News
Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway is powered entirely by gravity and natural river water extracted from the West Lyn. The attraction which carries just over 300,000 passengers per season requires no external power, pumps or additional machinery to move the two carriages up and down the 500ft cliff face. The lift works on a simple balancing principle with the weight of 700 gallons of river water proving temporary ballast before it is released back onto the beach and has operated in exactly the same way since it opened in 1890.
The Tripexpert Experts’ Choice Award is the only industry accolade based on professional reviews and recognizes businesses that have been consistently rated as outstanding by professional reviewers. . Tripexpert remains committed to the idea that the best travel advice comes from detailed, thoughtful reviews written by (human!) professionals, these publications, including leading travel guides, magazines and newspapers are researched and the expert choice award is provided to those businesses that consistently feature well in recognised publications. Less then 2% of businesses receive an award making it a distinctive honor and recognizes Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway as one of the […]
Neville Benton is grandfather to 10 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren. Grand Daughter, Leanne, contacted us at the Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway to tell us a heart-warming story that we just had to share. Each year in the summer holidays, this much-loved grandfather, Neville (now 76), with his wife Juliet would take their grandchildren on a great British holiday adventure. Their favourite places to visit were Devon, Cornwall and Somerset, quite a journey from their Coventry home. Each year the grand-children requested a visit to the Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway, they absolutely loved it, and Neville and Juliet […]
The National Transport Trust has awarded the Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway the coveted ‘Red Wheel’ award. The award recognises the railways importance as a Transport Heritage Site and has been awarded in recognition of the unique water powered nature of the railway. The Red Wheel was presented by Stuart Wilkinson, Chair of the Transport Trust, and unveiled by Councillor Andrea Davis Cabinet member for Climate Change, Environment and Transport and Deputy Chair of Exmoor National Park. The nomination for the Red Wheel heritage plaque was received from Malvern Tipping at Bridgnorth Cliff Railway, a similar funicular which opened in […]
The Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway has been awarded SILVER in Devon’s 2020 Visitor Attraction of the Year category with the Devon Tourism Awards, the Cliff Railway was also Highly Commended in the Tourism Innovation category. The announcement was made during the online Devon Tourism Awards Ceremony on the 11th March 2021. The Cliff Railway, which has been a part of the communities of Lynton & Lynmouth since 1888, celebrated its success alongside The Exmoor National Park Centre, Lynmouth, which was awarded GOLD for Devon’s best Visitor Information Service. Highcliffe House, Lynton, was awarded GOLD for Devon’s best Bed and […]
Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway may be over 130yrs old but thanks to Openreach and good old-fashioned lateral thinking, and engineering know-how, the Cliff Railway will enter the next 130yrs with Full Fibre broadband. The upgrade forms part of Openreach’s investment to build Full Fibre broadband technology to thousands of homes and businesses in 33 “harder-to-reach” cities, towns and villages across the South West . The challenge was how to physically connect the 21st century digital infrastructure between the bottom station in Lynmouth with the top station in Lynton, which stands 500ft above. The solution, was to lay the cable between the […]
Which? readers have rated 50 of the most-visited historic attractions in the UK. More than 5,000 people took part in the survey, giving UK attractions an overall customer score, as well as ratings in eight categories, including accessibility, engagement, information provided, food and drink, and value for money. The results conclude that the top attractions are those that bring history to life, giving unfettered access to the lives of former residents with immersive and interactive exhibitions. Visitors gave Lynton and Lynmouth Funicular Cliff Railway in Devon a customer score of 83% and rated them the UK’s BEST cliff railway, with […]
On the 13th January 2020 a new top wheel encasement system slotted into place at the Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway. The new 3 tonne installation retains the historic original wheel but upgrades the Victorian base plate that has been at the Cliff Railway since its opening in 1888. The original system received routine maintenance and inspection, including ultrasound testing, x-ray assessment and grease analysis. Whilst no safety concern was raised, the Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway considered that the safety of the original Victorian design could be improved and facilitate easier maintenance. The new design enables a self-greasing mechanism, […]
Following a recent visit to Lynton and Lynmouth, Year 6 student, Louis, from St Michaels Prep School in Kent was inspired to make a fully working scale model of the Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway. The St Michael’s Homework Challenge had asked the children to choose a British inventor or invention and create something to show what they had achieved and how. Following his families recent half-term visit to Lynton and Lynmouth, where they had all travelled on the water powered Cliff Railway, Louis chose the “Victorious Victorians” as his homework challenge and set about building his very own working […]
The sun shone down all day on the annual Cliff Railway Day Victorian & Steampunk Celebration at Lynton and Lynmouth, and the crowds were out in force to help celebrate and party like it was 1888. The unique Cliff Railway, the highest and steepest fully water powered Cliff Railway in the world, has been carrying locals and visitors between the two towns for almost one hundred and thirty years, since the reign of Queen Victoria. And a right royal time was had by all, as Queen Victoria and other members of her family attended and greeted visitors within the town […]
The Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway’s newest driver, Tasha Clarke, will release the first car of the new season on Saturday February 9th at 10am. Local HM Coastguard Lynmouth volunteer, Tasha, was born in Lynton and has worked at the railway for 5 years, initially undertaking part-time work in the ticket office before expressing her interest to qualify as a driver. Tasha, 25, follows in the footsteps of her father, Ashley Clarke, who is the Chief Engineer and General Manager and has worked at the railway since 1979 and together they are the first father and daughter driving team in […]
The Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway was awarded a BRONZE award for the Large Visitor Attraction of the year 2018 with the Devon Tourism Awards. The announcement was made at the Visit Devon Awards Ceremony at Highbullen Hotel, Golf & Country Club on the 22nd November 2018. The annual competition, now in its 9th year, saw over 164 entries across Devon tourism business with just 78 selected as finalists. Of the finalists, in the Large Visitor Attraction of the Year category, the Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway scooped BRONZE, Exeter’s Royal Albert Memorial Museum and Art Gallery was awarded Silver and the […]
The Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway is a finalist for the Large Visitor Attraction of the year 2018 with the Devon Tourism Awards. The annual competition, now in its 9th year, saw over 164 entries across Devon tourism business with just 78 selected as finalists. Of the finalists, a Gold Silver or Bronze award will be announced at an Awards Ceremony to be held at Highbullen Hotel, Golf & Country Club on 22nd November 2018 and success in the Devon Awards results in entry to the South West Tourism Excellence Awards in February 2019 and possibly invited to represent Devon in the […]
The Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway provided a recent filming location for BBC’s Antiques Road Trip, with the railway forming a feature part of the programme which was aired in September. The Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway has also recently featured in the recent crime thriller Winter Ridge, BBC’s Countryfile with John Craven, BBC’s Escape to the Country, ITV’s Britain’s Best Walks with Julia Bradbury and a further 2018 feature film ‘Louisa: An Amazing Adventure’ about the 1899 overland Lynmouth to Porlock Lifeboat Launch. We are also currently filming with Channel 4, Four in a Bed and ‘Impossible Engineering’. The […]
The Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway Day celebrations this Saturday (12th May 2018) has now spread to other UK Cliff Railways! That damp dark November morning when the Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway team dreamed up a national day to celebrate the engineering of our nations famous Cliff Railways has now erupted into multiple family fun day celebrations up and down the UK encouraging people to support and discover the wonders of our nations Cliff Railway heritage. Alongside the Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway, South Devon’s Babbacombe Cliff Railway and Scarborough’s Central Tramway we’re on board early and recent promises […]
The launch of the crime thriller Winter Ridge, filmed on location in Lynton & Lynmouth, has certainly raised awareness of the area’s beauty and viability of filming locations. The film has recently won the award of ‘Best Feature Film’ at the London Independent Film Festival 2018. The Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway was glad to be featured and we look forward to the official launch in the UK later this year. The Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway has also recently featured in BBC’s Countryfile, BBC’s Escape to the Country, ITV’s Britain’s Best Walks with Julia Bradbury and a further 2018 […]
Company Statement Dated: April 2nd 2018 The Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway has unfortunately been closed due to a small landslip of earth and rock debris onto the tracks of the railway. This occurred outside of the operating hours of the railway and there has been no injuries to passengers, visitors or staff. No damage to the carriages of the Cliff Railway has occurred. The landslip is thought to have been a result of the combined recent very wet conditions and freezing easterly wind conditions which has created an unstable section of banking near the middle bridge section of the […]
April 6th 2018 is the 130th anniversary of the opening of the Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway. To mark the occasion, cliff railway engineers and staff have worked tirelessly this week re-painting the carriages in the original heritage ‘Oxford Blue’ as a special one-off Birthday celebration. In 1888, historical records confirm that the cliff railway was originally Oxford Blue and not the traditional Buckingham Green that we have become used to seeing. Whilst the cliff railway was extensively photographed in its early years, black and white film could never document the original colour. Chief Engineer, Ashley Clarke, stated that ‘It’s […]
This week the Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway appointed Jacob Salmon, 18, from Lynton as it’s newest driver. Jacob attended Lynton School and then Ilfracombe Comprehensive before joining the company in September 2015. Jacob had previously worked within the Railway’s Cliff Top Cafe as a seasonal cafe assistance during his summer holidays. Jacob’s ability was recognised early and he started to develop the required skills to become a full qualified Cliff Railway Driver. Each driver is required to demonstrate competence within the mechanics and the daily operating procedures of the railway as well as maintenance, VHF radio use and of […]
The Victorian engineering of Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway has often been described as being ‘frozen in time’. But this became a reality this week when the famous water powered railway literally froze. The Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff railway, which was built in 1888 is the only completely water powered railway in the UK and one of only three examples left in the world. The funicular cliff railway relies on a simple balancing principle and gravity. The two cars are permanently attached to each other by two hauling cables that run around a huge pulley wheel at the top and […]
The 1st Lyn Scout Group added a bit of sunshine to the opening of the Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway today ahead of the 2018 season. Our Mayor, Suzette Hibbert, the group leaders and children of the 1st Lyn Scout Group braved the weather and volunteered their time to cut the ribbon and send the first car of the 2018 season up the track. The scouts, along with their families sang the entire way to the top station before taking the opportunity to undertake an investiture ceremony whilst on the Cliff Railway for some new members on the return trip. […]
We would like to extended a huge thank you to everybody that attended the Classics on the Cliff event on the 29th January 2017. It was amazing to see something that hadn’t occurred for almost 50 years and the team worked so hard to ensure that everything went smoothly & safely (except the weather which was awful). We would like to particularly thank the car owners who trusted us with their pride and joys, our drivers and staff during the day, the public that attended to watch and of course the media who helped spread the word, particularly Martin Hesp […]
Here at the Lynton & Lynmouth Cliff Railway we have a photo shoot occurring on the 29th and 30th January 2018 with Practical Classics Car magazine. As part of the photo shoot (and whilst the passenger carriages are removed for winter maintenance) we are putting a few Classic Cars onto the platform of the Cliff Railway and transporting them up the cliff. Practical Classics are writing an article about the Cliff Railway, it’s past role in transporting goods and cars and they are also showcasing the local area with a drive from Lynmouth to Porlock. The last time that cars […]
The attached image of the ‘mystery car’ is on the platform of the Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway c.1905. The car, registered A7047 was owned (we assume) by Sir George Newnes (who is sat in car next to his driver). Sir George Newnes was a key financier of the Cliff Railway and the then Chairman of the Lynton and Lynmouth Lift Company, but the model of the car is less certain. Rob Shaddick, one of the company directors, and with an interest in Classic Cars, happened to show the photo to Practical Classics Magazine whilst attending a Classic Car show […]