Tavistock sits on the south-west edge of  Dartmoor National Park , about 15 miles (24km) north of Plymouth.

Tavistock is the largest town in West Devon with a population of approximately 12,000.  The town is ideal for visitors to Dartmoor both to see the town itself and as a base for exploring the surrounding beautiful countryside of Dartmoor and Devon.  The town itself has a wide range of interesting and practical shops, market, riverside park, leisure centre and theatre.    Around Tavistock you will find wild Dartmoor scenery, plentiful nearby pretty villages of Devon and Eastern Cornwall, and a variety of National Trust properties.

The name "Tavistock" derives from 2 aspects of the town, the first being the River Tavy, on which Tavistock lies and the second being that Tavistock was and still is a prominent agricultural ‘Stock’ market for the area.

Tavistock's market was recognised by the granting of a Market Charter by King Henry I to the town in 1105.

Tavistock has a long history part of which is that Sir Francis Drake, was born just south of Tavistock, in 1542. Sir Francis Drake’s statue can be seen not far from Tavistock town centre, on the road to Plymouth, the port from which he set sail to confront and beat the Spanish Armada.