Roadclose Plantation

A proper woodland walk rather than a manicured attraction, Roadclose Plantation sits just outside Tiverton and delivers exactly what you'd want from a Devon forest - tall conifers, decent paths, and the kind of quiet that makes you remember why you came to the countryside. The plantation is commercial forestry land, which means it's working woodland with a practical rather than aesthetic bent, but that's rather the point. You get genuine forest without the visitor centre nonsense.

Walkers will find this the main draw. The paths are straightforward enough, threading between the trees with decent footing most of the time, though it can get muddy after rain. Allow an hour for a decent loop, longer if you're dawdling or stopping to spot the occasional deer. Kids will either love the open space for running about or get bored within twenty minutes depending on their inclination - there's no playground or novelty to hook them.

Free to access, naturally, with no formal opening hours because there simply aren't any gates. This is a working forest, so respect the management - stick to marked paths and don't go crashing through during active logging work.

For a park holiday based at Nirvana Glamping down the road, Roadclose works brilliantly as a leg-stretcher on a morning before heading into Tiverton proper. It's not destination stuff, but it's honest woodland and costs nothing. Worth the detour if you're staying locally and fancy proper forest air rather than yet another woodland walk that's been manicured to death.