Teignmouth With a Toddler: What Actually Works

Short answer: The Den promenade is level, well kept and has a children's play area and skate park on it. The main beach is all sand, not pebbles. Across the ferry, Shaldon Wildlife Trust is a tiny zoo where you get properly close to the animals.

Flat ground and actual sand

Two things make Teignmouth good at this age. The Den promenade is level, well kept and specifically noted as good for mobility scooters — which means a buggy goes along it without any trouble. And the beach is all sand with no pebbles, which after Sidmouth or Blackpool Sands is a relief.

There is a children's play area and a skate park on the promenade, plus the pier and the outdoor lido nearby. Note that much of the pier itself is fenced off, so do not plan around it.

The trains

Do not underestimate this. Brunel's railway runs a few feet from the promenade and an express coming through is genuinely exciting to a two-year-old. It costs nothing and it happens repeatedly. The station is right on the beach if you want to watch from cover.

The Back Beach

Round on the estuary side — sheltered when the seafront is being blasted, with working boats hauled up on the sand, food shacks and old pubs a few steps away. The car park is larger and cheaper than the seafront. This is the side to head for on a windy day.

Across the ferry to Shaldon

Shaldon Wildlife Trust is the pick for this age group — a tiny conservation zoo specialising in small primates where the enclosures let you get genuinely close. Reviewers describe it as easy to walk around, well maintained, and note you can come and go all day on one ticket, which is exactly what you need with a toddler who needs a break.

Shaldon Beach beside it is small and relaxed with rock pools and a quay to crab from. The estuary currents are strong, so it is a paddling and crabbing beach rather than a swimming one.

What will not work

Ness Cove through the Smugglers' Tunnel is the most memorable thing here with older children and reviewers state plainly that it is not buggy or wheelchair accessible. If you want to do it, one adult carries the toddler and the pram stays at the top.

Eating

• Brunch on Triangle Place — the best breakfast in town and a separate gluten-free menu. Closes at three.
• The View at the Pavilions — upper-deck sea views and reasonably priced.
• The Friendly Fork Kitchen on the Back Beach — eat inside or out on the sand.
• The Ferry Boat Inn at Shaldon — an outdoor grill at weekends, and you can take food onto the beach.

Timing

Time the beach around a falling tide. Firm wet sand is far easier to push a buggy across than soft dry sand, and shallow pools left behind by the receding water are safer and warmer than the sea itself.