Short answer: Okehampton has trains again — the Dartmoor Line runs from Exeter, and a second station, Okehampton Interchange, opened in August 2026. Brothers is the best cooking in town, and the London Inn and Plume of Feathers both stay open.
This is the thing that has changed Okehampton. The Dartmoor Line reopened to passengers in 2021, running from Exeter via Crediton, and a second station — Okehampton Interchange, on the east side of town near the A30 — opened on 1 August 2026 with a 200-space car park and step-free access.
Both stations stay open. Use the original one for the town centre; the Interchange is the park-and-ride. For a December day on the moor without driving moorland roads in the dark, it is the best rail access there has been in fifty years.
The original station building has the Dartmoor National Park information centre, a railway museum and a station café — which makes arriving part of the day rather than the start of it.
Okehampton gives access to the highest, wildest part of Dartmoor — High Willhays and Yes Tor, the highest ground in southern England. In December that is serious walking: the weather changes fast, the light goes early, and parts are within the military firing range, so check the firing times before going up.
2026 dates: switch-on evenings, markets and festive services are confirmed by councils and operators through October and November, and they move year to year. Check the organiser's own listing before travelling.
Bellever Forest, south on the moor, has forestry tracks, a shallow river and wild ponies, with toilets and a coffee trailer. Lydford Gorge is fifteen minutes away — spectacular after rain, but steep and slate underfoot.
Book Christmas and Boxing Day lunch in November. Devon's good pubs fill weeks ahead and the ones that do not take bookings have queues instead.
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