April is one of those months in Totnes when the town quietly remembers what it does best. The light comes back, the river path dries out, and the high street starts to hum on a Saturday morning in a way it simply doesn't in February. Walk down Fore Street on a sunny lunchtime right now and you'll see what I mean — there are tables out, dogs everywhere, and the sound of someone tuning up in a doorway.
If you're planning a trip in or around Totnes over the next few weeks, here's a roundup of the events worth building a day around. We've kept it to things actually happening between now and the end of the month, so you can pick a date, pencil it in, and go.
Totnes Indoor Artisan Market — Tuesday 14 April
Image: Visit Totnes
The Indoor Artisan Market returns to the Civic Hall on the second Tuesday of every month from April through November, and this is the first one of the season. It's a lovely browse: jewellery, knitted toys, handmade chocolate, textiles, prints, mosaic art and dried flowers, all from local makers. Running 9.30am to 3.30pm, it's an easy one to dip into on a lunch break.
Billie Maree EP Launch — Friday 17 April, Barrel House Ballroom
Image: Barrel House Ballroom
The Barrel House is having a particularly good month, and if you only catch one gig, the Billie Maree full-band EP launch is worth the ticket. Doors at 7pm. The Barrel House is one of those venues that punches well above its weight for a town this size, and an EP launch night always has a bit of extra energy in the room.
ShareFest Totnes — Saturday 18 April, Civic Hall
ShareFest is very Totnes in the best possible way. It's a free, family-friendly day at the Civic Hall built around the idea of doing more with less: a Repair Café, bike maintenance, a clothes swap, plant swap, skill-shares, a pay-what-you-feel café, community singing, talks and children's activities. From 10am. Bring something broken, leave with something mended (or at least the conviction that you could mend it yourself).
Sharpham Estate parkrun — Every Saturday, 9am
If you want to start your weekend with a properly Totnes view, the Sharpham Estate parkrun is a free, timed 5k held every Saturday at 9am along the cycle path that hugs the Dart. It runs through one of the most beautiful stretches of countryside in Devon — vines on one side, river on the other — and the post-run coffee culture is exactly what you'd expect from this town. No need to book; just turn up with a printed barcode. There are four Saturdays left in April: 18, 25, and onward into May.
Totnes Good Food Sunday Market — Sunday 19 April
Devon's biggest fine food farmers' market lands in town on the third Sunday of every month, which means 19 April this time around. The Totnes Good Food Sunday Market brings sixty-plus food and craft traders to the market square, and it's the kind of morning where you go in for a coffee and come out with sourdough, cheese, a jar of something you didn't know you needed, and a bunch of tulips. Get there early — by midday the good stuff has a habit of disappearing.
On the Water with Dart Totnes ARC
Image: Dart Totnes Amateur Rowing Club
The other side of the river-sport coin: Dart Totnes Amateur Rowing Club is one of the oldest community rowing clubs on the South West coast and a lovely thing to know about even if you've never picked up an oar. Their season is properly underway in April, and their calendar is the best place to see when there's a fixture or open session you can spectate. If you've ever fancied trying it, this is a good month to get in touch — the river at this time of year is hard to beat.
Coworking in the Heart of Totnes
This is where it helps to know that you don't have to choose between a day out in Totnes and a day of getting work done. Castle Street Co is right in the heart of town, a hundred metres from the train station, and it's the perfect place to set up for a half day or a full day if you're coming in for an event later, working remotely while the family explores, or simply want to escape the kitchen table for a change of scene.
Half-day passes are £12, a full day is £19, and that gets you gigabit internet with no throttling, proper espresso, free printing, a calm and beautiful workspace, and a kitchen if you've brought lunch. You can roll in at 9am, get a meaningful chunk of work done, and still be at the Indoor Market or the Barrel House by the evening. No membership, no commitment — just a desk when you need one.
Spring Tables: Where to Eat This Month
Image: Gather Totnes
April is when the local restaurants quietly start swapping over to spring menus, and there are two in particular worth booking ahead for. Gather, tucked off the high street, is doing a £90 tasting menu (or a £60 half-tasting) built around foraged and Devon-sourced ingredients — it's the closest thing Totnes has to a destination dinner, and an evening at the chef's table is the kind of thing you remember. For something more casual, Totnes Wine is a brilliant in-and-out: pick a bottle off the shelf, pay a small corkage, and drink it around the tasting table with whatever cheese and charcuterie they've got out that day. Both are easy to slot in either side of one of the events on this list.
Dartington Estate Heritage Tour — Friday 24 April
Image: Dartington Trust
A short walk or quick drive out of town, the Dartington Estate is running a Heritage Centre tour from 11am to 12.30pm, with the option to stay for lunch at the Green Table café afterwards. It's a properly good way to spend a slow Friday — the gardens are coming back to life, and the estate's first-Sunday Arts & Crafts Market (over 25 makers and artisan food producers) is also worth bookmarking for early May. The full programme is over on the Dartington What's On page.
Anna Phoebe at the Barrel House — Tuesday 28 April
Closing the month is violinist, composer and producer Anna Phoebe, whose live show at the Barrel House pairs violin and electronics in a way that has to be heard in person to make sense. 8pm. A nice end-of-April marker if you need an excuse to be somewhere atmospheric.
Easter Holidays at Pennywell Farm — until 19 April
Image: Pennywell Farm
If you've got younger ones in tow, Pennywell Farm's Egg-Stravaganza runs across the Easter holidays until 19 April. It's a short hop from Totnes and remains one of the most reliably fun family days out in the South Hams.
That's April. A market or a gig for almost every weekday and weekend left in the month, and a town that's genuinely at its best right now. If your plan involves being in Totnes for any of it, come and work from Castle Street for the day — pick your event, book your desk, and make a proper day of it.
Find us on Castle Street, 100 metres from the station, the bookshop, the river and the rest of it.
