Paignton doesn’t get talked about as much as Torquay or Exeter, but anyone who’s actually moved house here knows it has its own quirks. It’s a town of two very different halves — traditional Preston terraces on one side, modern Goodrington estates on the other — stitched together by a town centre that gets properly busy in summer and a road network that funnels most of the through-traffic along the same handful of routes. As a Devon-based removal company that covers removals in Paignton regularly, here’s what we think actually matters when you’re planning a move here.
Removals Paignton: Preston and Goodrington Are Different Jobs
Treat Paignton as two towns rather than one, because access varies enormously depending on which side you’re moving into or out of. Preston, towards Torquay, is built up around Victorian and Edwardian terraces, many split into flats over the years. Narrow streets, on-street parking that fills early, and properties with front doors straight onto the pavement all mean a removal van needs a sensible pitch spot sorted in advance, not found on the day.
Goodrington, south of the town centre, is a different picture. Newer estates around Goodrington Sands and Clennon Valley tend to have driveways or nearby parking, wider roads, and generally easier access for a full-size van. The trade-off is distance from the centre and, in high summer, traffic building around the beach car parks that can slow the final approach to a property. We plan the route and the pitch differently for a Preston terrace than we would for a Goodrington close, and it’s worth telling your removal company which part of Paignton you’re in when you book, not just the postcode.
Town Centre, Winner Street and Parking Suspensions
Central Paignton, around Winner Street, Palace Avenue and the Green, mixes shops, flats above shops, and older residential streets close to the seafront. It’s compact and can be genuinely tight for a large vehicle. If you’re moving into or out of a property near the town centre, check whether you’ll need a parking suspension from Torbay Council — for anywhere with limited off-street parking, it’s worth arranging a few days ahead rather than hoping a space turns up. A local removal company should ask about this at the quote stage; if they don’t, ask them.
Roundham Head, just south of the harbour, adds elevation and sea views but also some steeper, narrower access than the flatter streets further back from the front. It’s not on the scale of Torquay’s hills, but it’s enough that a driver who hasn’t done it before can end up boxed in on a one-way stretch with no easy way out.
Traffic and Timing Around Paignton
Paignton’s roads funnel through a fairly small number of pinch points — the seafront, the Torbay Ring Road (A3022), and the routes out towards Totnes on the A385 or Brixham along the coast road. In summer, Goodrington Sands and the Green draw day-trippers from across the English Riviera, and traffic around the seafront and Sands Road can back up badly on a hot Saturday. If your move falls between June and September, an early start is the single biggest thing you can do to keep the day on schedule — loaded and moving before the beach traffic builds makes a real difference.
Outside peak season, Paignton is a straightforward town to move around. October through May sees quieter roads, easier parking, and generally faster access on both sides of town.
Churston, Galmpton and the Quieter Edges of Paignton
Move further inland and Paignton changes character again. Churston and Galmpton, towards Brixham, offer a mix of village cottages, bungalows and larger family homes on generally easier roads than the seafront areas — though some of the older lanes around Galmpton are narrow enough to need care with a full-size van. Churston station, on the line to Kingswear, gives this part of town a quieter, more rural feel despite still being within Paignton. If your move is out this way, access is rarely the problem — it’s more a case of having enough time booked for a bigger property, since houses in this area tend to be larger than the flats and terraces closer to the centre.
Packing for a Paignton Move
Older properties around Preston and the town centre often turn up more than expected once you start clearing lofts, cupboards under the stairs and garden sheds — decades of belongings that don’t reveal themselves until moving day is already underway. It’s the most common reason a move overruns its allotted time.
Our packing and unpacking service can take on a full house or just the awkward and fragile items, using proper materials and clear room-by-room labelling so nothing gets lost between addresses. If you’re doing it yourself, start with the least-used rooms about four weeks before the move and number your boxes by room — it saves real time on the day.
Why a Devon-Based Team Matters in Paignton
Any removal firm can quote for a job in Paignton. Fewer of them know which streets near Winner Street clear of parking by mid-morning, which Preston terraces need a smaller vehicle for the final approach, or which Saturdays in August are worth avoiding altogether if you have any flexibility on your moving date.
Being based just up the road in Newton Abbot means we’re in and out of Paignton regularly, with no call-out charge added for fuel or travel time. That local knowledge — which routes to avoid at 2pm on a summer Saturday, which Goodrington closes are easy for a van and which need careful reversing — comes from doing the job here again and again, not from a satnav.
Moving Within Paignton
Moves within the town are often underestimated because the distance looks small on a map. A move from Preston to Goodrington still involves loading and unloading a full house — the time it takes doesn’t shrink just because the new address is a couple of miles away rather than fifty. Treat it with the same planning as a longer move: the right crew, the right vehicle for the access at both ends, and enough time booked to do it properly. Our house removals service covers everything from a flat above Winner Street to a family home out towards Galmpton.
Moving To or From Paignton
We’re based in Newton Abbot and cover the whole of Devon, with Paignton sitting naturally within our regular South Devon work — along the coast to Torquay and Brixham, or inland towards Totnes and Newton Abbot. We also handle long-distance moves to and from the rest of the UK, whether you’re arriving in Paignton for the first time or leaving the English Riviera for pastures new.
More on how we cover the wider area: South Devon removals.
Get a Quote for Your Paignton Move
We offer free, no-obligation quotes for removals anywhere in Paignton and across the English Riviera, either with an in-person survey or a short video call, whichever suits you better. Call us on 07792 215 204, see more about how we work on our Paignton removals page, or get in touch online and we’ll come back to you promptly.
Professional removal services across Devon. Helping families and businesses move with care since 2019.