Exploring one of the loveliest cathedrals in Britain, the city’s wonderful medieval architecture and branching out into Devon are just a few of the best things to do in Exeter.
The old Jewel of the South West is one of the most beautiful small cities in Britain, and a great place to relax for a weekend or more. There are some wonderful 15th-century pubs, or you can sit al fresco with a coffee on The Quay, alongside the River Exe.
Exeter is small enough to see in a day – at a push! It’s also ideal for a longer small city break, and a great place to dip your toes into Devon and the South West of England for the first time. It’s also a good base for exploring South Devon, the nearby Jurassic Coast and the Exmoor and Dartmoor National Parks, all of which are close by.
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Visit Exeter Cathedral
Exeter Cathedral is one of the most beautiful cathedrals in England, reason enough in itself to visit this lovely small city. Intriguingly, it’s one of the earliest cathedrals in Britain to have been completed. Most of it was built in the English Decorated Gothic style of the 14th century, and it was finished – except for some interior additions – by 1400.
The exterior of the Cathedral is unique, as it’s the only church in the country with a tower on each transept, the short side-sections emanating from the central crossing. The transept towers are the oldest part of the Cathedral, built between 1114 and 1133. The distinctive rounded blind arcades on each tower help date them to the Norman, or Romanesque period.
But Exeter Cathedral is best known for its Decorated Gothic architecture, which covers much of the rest of the church. It’s much more ornate than the Early English style of Gothic that you see in much of Salisbury Cathedral, with its more elaborate windows among its more obvious features. The two transept towers leave space for a continuous rib vault the length of the nave and chancel of the Cathedral – it’s an astonishing 96 metres long, the longest medieval stone vault in the world.
The Cathedral also has some exceptional stained glass, carved wooden misericords (sculptures on the underside of priests’ and choristers’ seats) in the choir, and an amazing collection of mainly late medieval tombs, especially around the entrance to the Lady Chapel.
See Also: Visiting Exeter Cathedral – One Of The Finest in England
Cathedral Close
The Cathedral Close is one of the most beautiful of its kind in Britain. It is home to several fascinating buildings close to the Cathedral, and as the space was taken up with unflattering wooden sheds in place for the upcoming Christmas Market. So I’ve opted to show each building instead, with a general view of some of the houses on the north side of the Green.
As you approach from the High Street, you walk the short distance along narrow Martin’s Lane, passing The Ship Inn along the way. The inn is believed to date from the 15th century, and a quote attributed to English seafarer Sir Francis Drake (of Golden Hinde fame) heaping praise on it.
It’s a genuine medieval pub, though the interior is a relatively recent restoration. The only question about the pub is whether or not Drake really said what it’s claimed he said. Either way, the food (British pub classics) is very good and it’s in a great location very close to the Cathedral.
A few steps beyond the pub, gorgeous St Martin’s Church is squeezed into a narrow corner of the Cathedral Close. The church was founded before the Norman Conquest – around 1065 – and has been rebuilt a few times since then. The south window – facing the Close – is from the 15th-16th century Perpendicular Gothic period, and there are some memorials inside dating from as late as the 18th century. The tower was added in 1675, and is reminiscent of some of Sir Christopher Wren’s churches in London which were built around the same time.
Sadly a small city like Exeter could not sustain so many churches, and St Martin’s was declared redundant in the late 20th century. It is in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust and now houses a wonderfully atmospheric bookshop.
A short walk further along the north side of the Close takes you to the Deanery, home to the Dean, the priest in charge of the Cathedral.
Harry Potter author JK Rowling is an alumna of Exeter University, and it’s not difficult to see how the city would have given her some inspiration. One place that may well have inspired her is the intricately carved doorway to the Deanery on Cathedral Close.
The wooden door is said to be the inspiration for the Room of Requirement in book 5 of the series, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. It’s a secret room whose door is normally invisible, but the door appears when students need to access it. The Room is where Harry, Ron and Hermione lead the Dumbledore’s Army meetings and training sessions, at a time when the utterly unlikeable Dolores Umbridge is the school’s teacher of Defence Against The Dark Arts.
The door itself is believed to date from around 1600, and it’s magnificent. Even if you have no interest in Harry Potter, it’s well worth a look for a few minutes.
The House That Moved
The House That Moved is one of the most remarkable things to see in Exeter. The 15th-century medieval half-timbered house now on the corner of West Street was originally located around 200 metres away, on the corner of Edmund and Frog Streets, and it was decided to move it intact – rather than demolish it – to make way for a city bypass road.
The building replaced another medieval house destroyed during the Luftwaffe’s ‘Baedeker bombings’ of the early 1940s, which also targeted other places of cultural significance including Canterbury and York.
We often see whole houses moved at home in Australia, but in Europe it’s a very rare feat. Normally it’s done painstakingly over several years, the building dismantled piece by piece and then reconstructed. Not this one. In December 1961 the timber frame of the house was raised and moved to its new location in a little over four hours.
The move is all the more amazing when you look at how top-heavy the house is. Such houses were common in medieval Britain, but this is a rare survivor. It now occupies one of the most picturesque parts of Exeter, across the street from St Mary Steps Church and several more late medieval houses and the remnants of the city’s Roman West Gate.
The ground floor of the building is now occupied by a bridal shop.
St Mary Steps Church
Exeter has a rich ecclesiastical heritage with several fine parish churches having survived the Exeter Blitz. St Mary Steps, opposite the House That Moved, is one of the most impressive, a small red sandstone church rebuilt in the 15th century in the English Perpendicular style. Its foundation date is believed to be around 1150, and the presence of some Romanesque rounded windows supports this.
The church got its name from the steps you need to use to enter it, as it’s at the foot of a very steep hill. It was put up for sale (along with several other churches in Exeter) in 1658, with the intention of converting it into a school) but it was eventually used as a parish church once again by locals.
Don’t miss the 17th-century clock on the south wall of the church. It’s named after the local Matthew the Miller, and the three figures above it are believed to be King Henry VIII and two of his guards.
Stepcote Hill
Stepcote Hill, next to St Mary Steps Church and across the street from The House That Moved, is now one of the most picturesque streets in corner. The steep stepped hill has several half-timbered houses on one side, and it’s a natural draw for photographers like myself when visiting Exeter.
However, its history is far grittier than you would suspect at first sight. Stepcote Hill, until the early 20th century, was Exeter’s slum. Its residents worked in the nearby cattle market, abattoir and tannery, where wages were low and they all contributed to local pollution and a general foul stench. The slum wasn’t fully cleared until the late 1920s, with the dilapidated buildings replaced with new houses.
Interestingly, William of Orange (King William III) marched up Stepcote Hill on his arrival from the Caribbean to claim the English throne in 1688. He was accompanied by 200 plantation workers (almost certainly slaves) and 200 soldiers from Finland.
Lunch on The Quay
A short walk downhill from the city centre, The Quay is the best place in Exeter to sit outside with a drink or meal and soak in the sun for a few hours.
It’s a lovely spot next to the River Exe, with several old cellars converted into pubs, bars, cafes and restaurants. I thoroughly enjoyed my coffee and cake at the Coffee Cellar, and my local friend recommends the food at The Prospect pub a short walk along the waterfront.
You can also canoe, kayak or stand-up paddle along the river, hiring gear from Saddles and Paddles who are also based on The Quay.
A wonderful place for a balmy summer evening out – and a great place for a morning coffee on a sunny November morning too!
Royal Albert Memorial Museum
Seeing all the historic Exeter sights is wonderful, but it helps to have somewhere that puts it all together for you. The place to go is the Royal Albert Memorial Museum, housed in a Victorian Gothic Revival feast for the eyes, one of the best city museums in the UK.
The scope of the Museum is huge, covering the ancient world, regional history, fine and decorative arts, natural sciences, cultures from around the world and one of the most extensive shell collections in Europe.
The Museum is superb for kids – who get a free ‘Beastie Bag’ wheelie suitcase full of toys and ideas for helping them enjoying the Museum. My son was too busy playing with his new friends to accompany me, but was less than happy when I told him about the Beasties and how great the Museum is. Definitely one for our return trip soon.
High Street and Gandy Street
These two streets are among the busiest shopping streets in Exeter, and also have a few historic details to seek out.
High Street has plenty of chain shops, but also a most unusual one. The Anglican St Stephen’s Church has been temporarily repurposed as a boutique clothing store, but it’s still also used for services. If it pays the bills and helps keep it open (the original building was mentioned in the Domesday Book, back in the 1080s) then that’s good. And an alleyway runs beneath the low St Stephen’s Bow archway at the east end of the church, one of the most beautiful glimpses you’ll find of medieval Exeter. I assume the ‘Bow’ in the name refers to the posture tall people like myself have to adopt to pass beneath it!
A little further along High Street, on the corner with Gandy Street at number 227, you’ll find one of the outstanding buildings in Exeter. The half-timbered house dates from around 1650, and we don’t know much about it other than it would have been built by a citizen of considerable wealth. The facade is ornately decorated with colourful coats of arms. The ground floor is now home to a branch of the Lakeland kitchenware store.
Gandy Street is a picturesque side street running 100 metres or so off the High Street towards the Royal Albert Memorial Museum. It’s a pleasant enough spot, with its many shop signs and The Vaults pub. I’ve read several articles suggesting it may have been JK Rowling’s inspiration for Diagon Alley, the street full of magic shops in the Harry Potter series. If it was, then she certainly livened it up a lot!
Exeter Castle and Rougemont Gardens
Also known as Rougemont Castle, little remains of Exeter’s Norman (late 11th – early 12th century) Castle other than the ruined gatehouse pictured above. Until recently Exeter Crown Court was located behind it, and a new Court has since been built nearby.
Rougemont Gardens is one of the loveliest Exeter parks, a small green space between the Castle, city walls (and the landmark Athelstan’s Tower) and the Royal Albert Museum. It’s amazing how quiet it is given how close it is to the city centre.
Exeter Roman Walls
Exeter’s history began in the 1st century AD as the Roman garrison of Isca Dumnoniorum. The town was founded around AD 55, and the garrison was stationed there for around 20 years before moving north to Isca Augusta – modern Caerleon – in South Wales.
The circuit of town walls was almost 2.4 km (1.5 miles) long, and of this, around 70 % of the walls are still visible. One of the most impressive sections is around 100 metres to the east of the Cathedral – turn right there and head down towards the river. The walls make for a great walk around the city, and there are quizzes for kids to make things a little more intriguing for them!
Old Exe Bridge
The medieval Exe Bridge is one of the most remarkable bridges in England, and one of Exeter’s hidden gems.
It was built in the late 12th and early 13th centuries, a solid stone bridge to supersede the previous flimsy crossings of the River Exe. Very few bridges in Britain survive from this period – the Dee Bridge in Chester is the best surviving example from the period. The Old Exe Bridge is believed to have been 17 or 18 arches long at first, but over the centuries it too sustained serious damage, largely due to flooding.
The three surviving arches were partly submerged by debris, and the surviving structure was only fully uncovered in the aftermath of the Exeter Blitz of 1942. The tower of St Edmund’s Chapel, on the east end of the Bridge, has also survived, although the rest of the church has long since been lost.
The remains of the bridge are now surrounded by parkland above the river, less than 100 metres away from the House That Moved and Roman West Gate.
Where Is Exeter
Exeter is the county town of Devon, in the southwest of England.
Here are some sample distances from nearby major cities:
Bristol to Exeter – 76 miles
Bath to Exeter – 78 miles
Plymouth to Exeter – 45 miles
London to Exeter – 173 miles
Cardiff to Exeter – 108 miles
Birmingham to Exeter – 160 miles
Bournemouth to Exeter – 81 miles
How To Get To Exeter
If you’re driving, Exeter is very to reach, as it’s just off the major M5 motorway, the main route into the southwest of England. The A303 – from east Somerset and Wiltshire – is another useful route to Exeter, as are the A30 and A38 from further west in Devon and Cornwall.
Exeter also has very good train connections. You can get there from London via Bath and Bristol, from Cardiff and Birmingham via Bristol, and from Cornwall (Penzance, St Ives and Newquay). Trains from London (Paddington) to Exeter take between 2 hours 5 minutes and 2 hours 40 minutes.
As for coaches, National Express runs a direct service from London Victoria Coach Station to Exeter. And both Flixbus and Megabus offer services there.
Places To Visit Near Exeter
Exeter is a great base for exploring the South West of England, with easy day trips in all directions.
Immediately to the south, Exmouth has the nearest beach to Exeter, and a wonderful one at that, a short train ride from the city. On the edge of town is the fascinating A La Ronde, a rare late 18th-century cottage orne built for two unmarried cousins, Jane and Mary Parminter.
Orcombe Point, just to the southeast of Exmouth, is the westernmost point of the Jurassic Coast (Dorset and East Devon Coast) UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is spread over eight different sections across 96 miles of coastline, culminating in the chalk-white Old Harry Rocks at Studland Bay in Dorset.
In Devon, Sidmouth is one of the most popular seaside towns on the Jurassic Coast, and there are some outstanding beaches to the east of there including Ladram Bay (just north of Budleigh Salterton) and Beer Beach, further east near Seaton.
Much of the Devon section of the Jurassic coast has red sandstone cliffs. As you move east into Dorset, the geology changes significantly. Highlights along the way include the Golden Cap cliffs above Seamouth, and the iconic Durdle Door sea arch, one of the most famous landmarks in England.
Devon has many more wonderful places to visit, with a huge variety to choose from. Families often head for Torquay and Brixham, while the more romantic wild explorers among you may head west to Dartmoor, or northwest to my favourite place in the county, Lundy Island, 12 miles off the coast. It’s a glorious place to visit, a remote rock in the Bristol Channel mainly inhabited by puffins for a few months each spring, and many a tale of smuggling and piracy. I rate it among the most beautiful islands in Europe.
The county of Somerset, a short drive to the north of Exeter, also has plenty of places to intrigue you. There are enough things to do in Wells Somerset to make a long day trip, with one of the outstanding Gothic cathedrals in Europe. It’s on the edge of the Mendip Hills, an area with several cave networks, most famously at Cheddar Gorge and Wookey Hole. The town of Glastonbury, with its ancient ruined Abbey, famous Tor and convergence of ley lines of mystical energy is only six miles from Wells.
Where To Stay In Exeter
There are plenty of great places to stay in Exeter, from modern designer hotels to the more traditional comforts of a medieval pub. Here’s my pick of the best:
**** – Leonardo Hotel Exeter – reliable, stylish chain hotel within five minutes’ walk of the city centre, with good road connections and across the street from the bus station
*** – Queens Court Hotel – popular Georgian-inspired hotel, also five minutes’ walk from the main Exeter sights, and opposite St David’s Church
**** – City Gate Hotel – beautiful Georgian hotel with contemporary touches, a 3-minute walk from Exeter Cathedral
*** – White Hart Inn – fine 15th-century inn with many original features (wooden beams and ceilings), some rooms with four-poster beds, less than five minutes’ walk from the Cathedral
Things To Do In Exeter – Final Thoughts
Exeter is one of the best small cities to visit in the UK. It has a wonderful medieval heart, with so many details to divert you along the way – and I’ve pointed many of these out in the course of this article. But Exeter’s Cathedral is the one absolute must-see in the city, one of the 15 to 20 outstanding cathedrals in Great Britain.
For more ideas on places to visit in the West Country and beyond, take a look at some of these articles for further inspiration:
One Day In Bath – how to spend 24 hours in the stunning Georgian city
12 Most Beautiful Streets In Bath – a photo guide to the terraces and townscape of the World Heritage city
12 Most Famous Landmarks In Bath – the Abbey, Roman Baths and much more
21 Best Places To Visit Near Bath and Bristol – from Somerset and Devon to the Cotswolds and South Wales
Visiting Westminster Abbey – how to visit London’s great royal church
25 Most Beautiful Churches In London – from Westminster Abbey to some of Sir Christopher Wren’s hidden gems
Things To Do In Hereford – one of the least-known cities in England, with a superb Cathedral
20 Best Places To Visit In The Welsh Borders – complete guide from the Bristol Channel to the Irish Sea
21 Best Things To Do In Chester – one of the most beautiful cities in northern England
One Day In Cardiff– 24 hours in the capital of Wales
35 Best Castles In South Wales To Visit – from Cardiff and Caerphilly to the wild romantic ruin of Carreg Cennen – and many more
David Angel is a British photographer, writer, and historian with over 30 years of experience as a European travel expert. He holds a degree in History from Manchester University, and his work is regularly featured in global media, including the BBC, The Guardian, The Times, and Condé Nast Traveler. David is fluent in French and Welsh, and can also converse in Italian, German, Portuguese, Spanish, Czech, and Polish.