In Salcombe, everyone is proud to call this place home. It’s easy to see why, especially if you visit on a sunny summer’s day when the sun bounces off the turquoise water. But the seaside town is far from a  hidden gem. Visitors return to this pretty part of Devon year after year, bringing with them some serious cash.

Tourism is worth a staggering £266 million a year to the South Hams district, according to council research, and it accounts for one in 10 jobs, with almost 4,500 people working in the industry. However, locals have previously expressed frustration at overcrowding in the peak summer season, when the streets become heaving with visitors, and reports say the small community of 2,000 swells to 20,000.

As we wander through the charming streets full of independent shops towards the yacht club where a race is taking place, we begin to realise just how tight-knit the permanent community is.

Friendly faces regularly stop Mayor Jasper Evans for a chat, and he has a wealth of knowledge on all the local businesses; however, he assures us it’s not so tight-knit that outsiders are not welcomed.

Mr Evans tells the Express: “Tourism is really important. The visitor economy is really important for Salcombe. It’s the main part of the economy.”

He takes us to the harbour through more pretty streets where we chat to an RNLI volunteer, who shares a similar feeling. 

He smiles as he tells us: “We all joke about ‘bloody tourists’, but you know, that’s our bread and butter. We love them really when you stop to think. People, in general, are most generous. 

“The problem is in the winter, it’s naked. Most locals would say it’s kind of nice to have the town back, but you do look forward to the visitors coming.

“Obviously, the economy is important to all of the locals, but it is also nice to see people around the town. It’s nice to see people who appreciate what we do.”

It’s a theme we notice throughout the day as we chat to locals who have made businesses that thrive on tourists searching for uniquely Devonian experiences.

From the Salcombe Brewery to the gin distillery, or the many bustling restaurants and cafes serving up fresh seafood, we start to understand that independent businesses are a huge part of Salcombe’s appeal. 

We head to Island Street to the Salcombe Distillery, where a gin-making course is taking place as we chat to the co-founder and director, Howard Davies.

He tells us: “I think what the South West does very well is producing very high quality products, be that food and drink, clothing or accessories. 

“Often you can get levels of quality from boutique independent local companies that you may not get from a broader multinational organisation. 

“I don’t know what you’re like, but when I go away, I love to buy local. There’s something special about it, and you want to support the local market.”

He adds: “I think for a lot of South West communities, ultimately tourism is a really important part of the economy.

“Now, obviously, it brings challenges because you have locals who live here, and it’s trying to get that balance between affordable housing for people who live locally, but you need employment for people who live locally as well.”

As we wander down Island Street, a place full of artisanal local businesses, we chat to Theo Spink, who lives in the area and works at Luscombe Maye estate agents. 

She tells us: “A lot of people, including myself, depend on our jobs for the holiday trade, so people are able to live here because there is business to be had. We are all hugely dependent on that holiday trade.”

When I ask if it’s ever overwhelming, she responds: “It can sometimes be, but I think what people need to remember is that it’s just six weeks. 

“It’s those state school holidays where it’s crazy. But if it wasn’t that crazy, people wouldn’t make enough money to sustain their businesses year-round.”

When we chat to Mayor Evans about the volume of tourists, he acknowledges: “It’s very concentrated in the summer season and a few other high points in the year.

“We’re trying to diversify here so that the months when the tourists don’t come, we still have economic activity. It’s really important, we have to remember our permanent residents.”

He tells us that Salcombe also has a fishing industry, which is no better exemplified than in our next stop at the Crab Shed, a friendly seafood restaurant where we see an enormous Devonian crab being served up for lunch to a father and daughter.

As we sit on a bench in the sun overlooking the water, owner Emma Langmaid enthuses: “We love tourism, it’s our business. We’ve got a beautiful place to showcase. 

“I think it’s incredibly important, it’s important for everything. Our livelihood is down here, so yes it has to happen.”

Some people who work in traditional industries have more mixed views, as we learn from Mike Wrigley, who works in one of the few remaining boat yards on Island Street. 

The artisanal hub used to be full of workshops, metal workers, riggers and engineers, and we’re told nearly all of the residences on the opposite side of the street have been purchased by second homeowners.

He tells us: “It’s swings and roundabouts. Salcombe has been a tourist town for the best part of 100 years, so it is part of how the place ticks. 

“It’s not so much the tourism that’s causing the problem, it is the second homes side of things. There are so many second homes now, it is killing the local community in a way.”

He adds: “Even when I started working in this workshop, there was still a reasonable number of people living in this street, but it’s pretty much all gone, there are only one or two now. 

“All the boat yards have disappeared, and there are only three of us here now. It was all workshops [but they have gone too].”

However, he appreciates the atmosphere of tourist season. 

He said: “In season, it’s nice because there are a lot of people that make the place feel alive again. It’s only really the school holidays, July and August, that it generally just gets too many. You know, the whole place becomes a struggle to live in.” 

We end our trip by visiting the harbour master, who undoubtedly has the best office view in the town, looking straight onto the water.

With a 22-year career under his belt at the harbour, Cameron Sims-Stirling tells us it is one of the area’s biggest trading points.

He says: “Tourism is a huge part of our everyday living, and keeps us in jobs all year around here. 

“I think times have changed. I think there definitely was that sort of, oh second home owners and holidaymakers, but I think the penny dropped and we just went, well, none of us would have jobs. With any seaside town, there can be that delicate balance.”

He smiles as he tells us: “On a day like today, try and beat it. It’s epic. That’s why people come here.” We can’t help but agree.