Dog Friendly Devon Attractions: The Full List

Short answer: Babbacombe Model Village allows dogs across about ninety per cent of its site. The Babbacombe Cliff Railway takes dogs year-round. Cockington Country Park, Berry Head and the Tarka Trail are all free and dog friendly. Aquariums, caves and zoos are the ones that do not.

Paid attractions that take dogs

Babbacombe Model Village at Torquay is the standout — dogs are allowed across about ninety per cent of the site, though not in the indoor sections. It is hilly and exposed, so check the forecast, but with adventure golf included in the ticket it is a genuine day out with a dog in tow.

The Babbacombe Cliff Railway takes dogs year-round, which is worth knowing even though the beach at the bottom does not allow them. Bicton Park Botanical Gardens near Budleigh Salterton is dog friendly across sixty-odd acres. Stone Lane Gardens near Chagford is dog friendly, and so is Castle Drogo outside the house itself.

The free ones

• Cockington Country Park, Torquay — no entrance fee, well-behaved dogs welcome throughout.
• Berry Head, Brixham — free nature reserve with fort ruins and a dog-friendly café.
• The Tarka Trail — thirty miles of traffic-free path, flat and paved.
• Morte Point and Baggy Point — National Trust headlands, free to walk.
• The Valley of Rocks, Lynton — free, spectacular, and the goats are used to dogs.
• Watersmeet — National Trust woodland gorge, dogs on leads.
• Braunton Burrows and Northam Burrows — dunes and open country.

Where dogs are not allowed

The pattern is predictable once you see it: anywhere with animals or enclosed exhibits. Ilfracombe Aquarium, the National Marine Aquarium at Plymouth, Shaldon Wildlife Trust, Dartmoor Zoo, Paignton Zoo, Kents Cavern, Beer Quarry Caves, The Big Sheep, The Milky Way, World of Country Life and Watermouth Castle all keep dogs out, at least from the main sections.

Kingswear Castle is worth a specific mention: dogs are not permitted anywhere on the grounds, and it is a private holiday let rather than an attraction anyway.

Places that go further than allowed

A few places are actively good about it rather than merely tolerant. The Grove at Exmouth has a dedicated dog hydration keg and deep water bowls throughout. The Point at Exmouth marina has a dog station with blankets and treats. Harbour Light at Paignton brings blankets and treats without being asked. The Lighthouse café bar at Torquay is categorised as a dog café.

A practical note

Much of Devon's best dog walking is on working farmland — Braunton Burrows, RSPB Labrador Bay, East Soar. Keep dogs on leads around livestock and ground-nesting birds, and take everything home. Access to most of this depends on people doing that.