Short answer: Paignton is the best Torbay town with a toddler. The sand is flat, the tide stays close so the walk to the water is short, and the promenade is level with parking along the front. The pier arcade is a dry hour when needed.
Flat red sand, a level promenade, parking right along the front, and a tide that stays fairly close so the walk from buggy to water is short. It is the least effort of any Torbay town with a two-year-old.
Time any beach visit for a falling tide. Firm wet sand is easier to push a buggy across, and the shallow pools the sea leaves behind are warmer and safer for a toddler than the sea itself.
Free to walk onto, with an arcade, penny pushers and dinosaur mini golf at the far end. For a toddler the arcade noise and lights are the attraction — a dry, flat half hour when the sand has run its course.
Minutes from the seafront, around 80 acres, with indoor habitats and play areas. Four or five hours is typical for older children; with a toddler, plan for less and leave before the meltdown.
Fairy Cove behind the harbour is lovely but down steep steps — carry, not push.
Paignton has a mainline station a short, level walk from the seafront — easier than parking with a car seat and a buggy.
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