In six fabulous weeks, I’ve driven 4,666 miles, visiting 851 locations on our stunningly beautiful coast as recommended by you, the readers.

I’ve tasted 49 locally produced ice creams, eaten far too many chips and sampled an astonishing array of real ales, from Mersea Island, in Essex, via the Black Isle Brewery, in Ross-shire, to Dorset’s Fursty Ferret. I’ve gently surfed summer swells, hiked cliffs garlanded with wild flowers and dived deep into clear waters.

I’ve played pinball on Weston’s doomed pier, talked fishing quotas with salty old seadogs in quayside pubs and swum alone at midnight on deserted beaches. I can report that the British seaside renaissance is well under way - all we need is a little sunshine.

These are the best places to enjoy it.

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• Camper van man Week 6 gallery: Salcombe to Whitstable

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• Camper van man Week 5 gallery: Weston-super-Mare to Salcombe

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• Camper van man Week 4 gallery: Southport to Mumbles

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• Camper van man Week 3 gallery: John O'Groats - Southport

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• Camper van man Week 2 gallery: Skegness to John O'Groats

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• Camper van man Week 1 gallery: Southend to Skegness

Beach of the week

Chris selects his favourite beaches from his camper van man tour of the British coast

Catch of the day

Chris selects his best food and drink tips from his camper van man tour of the British coast

Rooms with sea views

Chris selects his favourite places to stay on his camper van man tour of the British Coast

• Beach of the week

Camper van man week 2: Skegness to John O'Groats

On his round-Britain coastal adventure, Chris Haslam takes in England’s windswept northeast flank, then heads for Scotland

• Camper van man week 1: Southend to Skegness

• Camper van man's tour of the British coast

BEST SEASIDE TOWN
Cromer comes close, but if it’s an old-fashioned, kiss-me-quick, Punch and Judy, donkey-riding, castle-building, ice-cream-and-chips trip you seek, then nowhere does seaside like Weymouth.

BEST BEACH
Like some fickle superstar, the jaw-droppingly gorgeous Kynance Cove, in Cornwall, appears only for the 2½ hours either side of low water – but, if the sun is shining, it’s the best beach on earth.

BEST SEASIDE WALK
They call the eight-mile stroll from St Ives to Zennor, Cornwall, the Coffin Path - depending on what parish you had lived in, your casket was borne either east to St Ives parish church or west to St Just. Now renamed the Tinners Way, the route remains as spectacular as ever, hugging filed edges, dancing along clifftops and plunging to sea level at Gala Rocks.

BEST COASTAL DRIVE
It could have been the lovely B1159 from California Cliffs to Cromer, in Norfolk, or the vertiginous toll road from Lynton’s Valley of the Rocks to Combe Martin, in Devon, but the winner is the Lochinver scenic route - aka the B869 - in Sutherland’s Assynt region. Red deer, sea otters, ospreys, seals and one astonishing seascape after another are all that will slow you down on this stunning 22-mile drive.

BEST FISH AND CHIPS
The Tunny Club, in Scarborough (www.tunnyclub.co.uk ), offers fresh fish from the quay across the road, crisp batter and gourmet-standard chips for just £1.95.

BEST SEASIDE PUB
There’s nowt drizzled, muddled or sun-dried at the Cod and Lobster, in Staithes (01947 841993) - just an honest little boozer, perched on the harbour wall, that grows on you like a barnacle.

BEST SUNSET
There were surfers out at sea, parties on the beach and a hippie chick strumming a 12-string guitar at Crooklets beach, Bude. You had to be there, man.

BEST SEAFOOD
No reservations at the Company Shed, Mersea island (01206 382700), so come early. There’s no licence, either, so bring your own wine - and no equal, not even in Padstein. Try the seafood platter (£8.50), perfect with a bottle of crisp Mehalah from Mersea’s own vineyard.

BEST BOAT TRIP
The two-hour cruise from Bridlington aboard the Yorkshire Belle (01262 603081, www.yorkshire-belle.co.uk ) takes you north around Flamborough Headto the puffin colony at Bempton. Early-morning or late-afternoon departures are best and the price for a family of four is just £16.

BEST SEA-VIEW ROOM
The Volkswagen California: I know Volkswagen lent me the van to circumnavigate Britain, but that’s not why it gets this mention. In six weeks of trouble-free motoring, my state-of-the-art van - adored by all who met her - has been an office, a beach cafe and a family cottage by the sea. I’m going to miss her very much.

- Chris Haslam toured Britain in a Volkswagen California campervan (www.volkswagen-vans.co.uk/california ). For more on the south coast, go to www.enjoyengland.com/seaside

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