Short answer: The pier is free to walk onto and the arcade inside is the obvious wet-hour fix. Paignton Zoo is minutes away with indoor habitats. The Dartmouth Steam Railway runs from here in any weather, and a covered carriage is a good place to be.
It is a seaside resort built for volume, which means arcades, a pier and indoor space rather than a handful of beach cafés that shut when it rains. On a wet day it is the most forgiving of the three Torbay towns.
Free to walk onto, with a large arcade, penny falls and the usual machines inside. It is not a day out but it is a dry hour with children, and it costs nothing to get onto.
Paignton Zoo is minutes from the seafront, covers around 80 acres and has indoor habitats, ranger talks and play areas. Most visitors spend four to five hours. Free on-site parking for over 1,100 vehicles.
One thing to know: dogs are not permitted, assistance dogs excepted. Their nature reserve, Primley Park, welcomes all dogs free and is a short distance away.
The Dartmouth Steam Railway runs from Paignton along the coast to Kingswear, where the ferry crosses to Dartmouth. A covered carriage in the rain is genuinely pleasant, and the connection turns it into a whole afternoon rather than a train ride.
Kents Cavern at Torquay is entirely underground and the best wet-day attraction in Devon. Babbacombe Model Village has an indoor enchanted section. Both are a short drive round the bay.
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