Short answer: Teignmouth has two waterfronts and you choose by the wind. The sea wall for drama, the Back Beach on the estuary when it is blowing. Ye Olde Jolly Sailor is a couple of minutes from the Back Beach.
Both waterfronts, free. This is Teignmouth's Boxing Day advantage: when the seafront is being blasted by an easterly, the Back Beach round on the estuary side is comparatively calm.
Along Brunel's railway with the sea on the other side, level the whole way, trains passing a few feet from you. In a winter swell the waves break clean over it — stay behind the wall rather than on it, and never turn your back on the sea.
The estuary side, with working boats hauled up on the sand and the docks alongside. Sheltered, and with real character.
The level promenade, well kept and good for mobility scooters.
Ring before you set off. Boxing Day hours are decided late, change year to year, and are the single thing most likely to be wrong online. A two-minute call beats a wasted drive.
Seafront parking is around £4.60 for two hours in normal weeks; the Back Beach car park is cheaper and bigger. On Boxing Day the Back Beach is the one to aim for anyway.
Much of it is fenced off, so do not build a plan around walking on it.
If you want to eat out, book now rather than in December. The places that do serve on Boxing Day fill weeks ahead, and the ones that do not take bookings have queues instead.
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