Short answer: Two miles of flat, level promenade run behind the whole beach — the easiest New Year's Day walk in east Devon with a buggy or a wheelchair. The Point at the marina opens at 8.30 in normal weeks.
The promenade. Two miles, flat the whole way, which very few Devon seafronts can claim. It suits a buggy, a wheelchair, or anyone who overdid it the night before and wants to walk without climbing anything.
Orcombe Point at the eastern end is the official start of the Jurassic Coast, marked by the Geoneedle. The zigzag climb gives you the estuary and the bay.
The Maer behind the seafront is a former golf links, so it drains well and never turns to mud.
Exmouth has one of the more established winter swimming followings in east Devon, helped by two miles of beach and a long level promenade to get warm on afterwards.
One thing that does not change with the season: the estuary currents at the western end are genuinely dangerous, and cold water gives you less time to deal with them. Stay well away from the estuary mouth.
New Year's Day swims on this coast are organised by lifeboat crews, surf clubs and pubs rather than councils, and most are announced in the last fortnight of December on local Facebook pages. Check there rather than expecting a listing.
If you are getting in: the sea is colder on 1 January than at any point in the summer, cold water shock is the real risk rather than the temperature itself, and it is worth going in with people rather than alone. Walk in, do not dive, and get warm clothes on quickly afterwards.
Almost everywhere opens later than usual on New Year's Day, and some places do not open at all. Ring in the morning rather than assuming.
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