Short answer: The Meadows is a large free park between the River Tavy and the canal, with a zip wire, a playground and a BMX pump track. Free to park and a short walk from the centre — exactly what 1 January needs.
Flat, free, and a short walk from the centre. With children and new bikes or scooters, this is the best thing on this list — and the parking costs nothing.
Out on the high moor: forestry tracks, a shallow river and wild ponies. The sheltered way to do Dartmoor, and far kinder than the open tops on a raw morning.
Twenty minutes south — Francis Drake's house, with grounds and woodland. Check whether it opens on the 1st.
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.
The Pannier Market runs Tuesday to Saturday in normal weeks and will be closed on the 1st. It is the main attraction here, so plan around the park and the moor instead.
Dartmoor on 1 January: the light goes by four, the weather turns faster than it looks from the car park, and the roads are unfenced with ponies and sheep on them. Start early, take a map, and tell someone where you are going.
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