Getting Around, Exeter Travel, Transport and Car Rental

(Exeter, Devon, England, UK)



Photograph of the city's Millennium BridgeThe whole of the United Kingdom really does seem to be at the fingertips of Exeter, due to the city's excellent travel infrastructure. Bus and rail transport are readily available in Exeter, while to sightsee in the city centre, it is simplest to travel between the cathedral and quayside areas by foot.

If you are walking in quayside and wish to travel to the Haven Banks area, then you may like to take advantage of the Butty Ferry, which has been transporting passengers across the River Exe since the middle of the 17th century. Although public transportation in Exeter is easy to come by, more and more visitors are choosing to travel by bicycle. There are plenty of cycle friendly routes both in and around the city, being flat and easy to navigate and suiting all ages.


Image of Exeter International Airport (EXT)

Exeter International Airport (EXT) / Arriving by Air

Address: Route B3184, Exeter, Devon, EX5 2BD, UK
Tel: +44 1392 367 433
Located at just under 8 km/ 5 miles from the city centre and to the east, Exeter International Airport provides good connections within the UK and Europe. Flybe is the main airline operating here, alongside Thomson Airways, Thomas Cook Airlines and Viking Airlines. The most popular destinations include Aberdeen, Alicante, Amsterdam, Belfast, Dublin, Edinburgh, Faro, Glasgow, Guernsey, Jersey, Lanzarote, Leeds, Madeira, Malaga, Manchester, Newcastle, Norwich, Paphos and Paris. Seasonal chartered and scheduled flights are also available from Exeter to Bodrum, Corfu, Crete, Dubrovnik, Geneva, Ibiza, Innsbruck, Larnaca, Gran Canaria, Menorca, Nice, Palma, Rhodes, Salzburg, Tenerife and Verona.

Exeter International Airport Guide

City centre view

Car Rental

Cars can be hired at Exeter Airport, as well as in the city. If you are planning to rent a car in the city, then the tourist information outlet on Paris Street / Dix's Field provides a useful list of all the current providers, which are located on Edwin Road and Marsh Barton Road. Many A-roads surround the city, with the A38 heading to the south-west and connecting Newton Abbot, Ivybridge and Plymouth. If you wish to travel to the north-east, then the A30 runs to Honiton, where it joins the A3030 and links Ilminster, Martock and Yeovil. The M5 motorway heads in a similar direction, to Cullompton, Wellington, Taunton and Bridgwater, and on to Weston Super Mare and Bristol, where it joins the M4 to Cardiff.

Parking is available in the city centre, with popular car parks being located off George Street, Magdalen Street, Market Street, North Street, Queen Street, Southernhay West, Tudor Street and the Water Gate. Alternatively, consider using the park and ride facilities at Honiton Road, Sowton and Matford, where bus transport runs to Exeter city centre every ten minutes or so.

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Photo of local bus

Buses and Coaches

The Exeter bus station is located on Paris Street, next to Bampfylde Street. One-day 'Explorer' bus passes provide unlimited transport on the city's Stagecoach buses, travelling to locations all around the city and Devon. For sightseeing trips, jump onboard the CoastLinX53 Jurassic Coast bus, which offers 'hop-on hop-off' tickets along this scenic route. National Express coach transport is also available in Exeter and provides an inexpensive way to travel to Bath (three hours), Birmingham (four hours), Bristol (two hours), London (four hours and 30 minutes) and Penzance (four hours and 30 minutes). Express bus transport is also to hand in central Exeter and travels to and from Plymouth in just over one hour and 30 minutes, stopping off at Buckfastleigh on the outskirts of Dartmoor.

Railway station picture

Trains

There are two main railway stations located in Exeter. The Central railway station is the smaller of the two and as its name suggests, is situated in the city centre, standing on Queen Street and close to the Northernhay Gardens, where it is served by the West of England Main Line Train. From the central station, trains travel to Paignton and Plymouth, while the scenic Tarka Line to Barnstaple runs past the picture-postcard valleys of the River Taw and the River Yeo.

The second train station in Exeter is St. David's, which stands on the north-westerly side of the city and offers the fastest way to travel to London (two hours and 30 minutes). From the St. David's station, further train transport connects both Bristol (one hour) and Penzance (three hours).

Taxis

There are taxi ranks located outside of the city's two train stations, suiting those arriving with heavy suitcases and needing to travel a short distance to their hotel. Taxis can also be requested by phone, and most public telephone boxes have numbers displayed. Capital Taxis is the city's main firm and has an office on Isambard Parade, next to St. David's train station.