Car Hire Exeter - Mini guide to Exeter

Exeter is a charming, cosmopolitan city surrounded by the lovely Devon countryside. Teeming with students, the town offers a combination of historic buildings, covered shopping malls and easy access to beautiful moor-land and the sea.

One of the major attractions in Exeter is the medieval St Peter’s Cathedral. Skirted by a lovely green and cobbled street, it stands on the site of a 7th C monastery. The underground tunnels that run under the High Street are also popular. Built originally in the 14th C to bring water to the city, they offer a unique experience, being the only such tunnels in Britain that are open to the public.

Being an old walled city, and built along the banks of the river Exe, the city centre is very compact. Only a short walk from the cathedral is the 900 year old former Benedictine Priory (Fore Street), a one-time guest house for monks, and later a grand Elizabethan residence. Nearby is the Royal Albert Memorial Museum (Queen Street), which has an impressive and varied collection.

The shopping options in town are varied, with the Guildhall Shopping Centre and the High Street offering the best in UK retail. Alternatively, just five minutes from the High Street, is the Quayside, a lovely waterside area with shops, outdoor cafes and restaurants, set around 17th and 18th C warehouses. Here, the Crafts Guild is worth a visit, with glasswork, jewellery, metalwork and leather on offer.

Exeter is also a great base for exploring Exmoor National Park, famed for its stone tors and rolling moors. Alternatively, up-river on the River Exe you can discover the medieval ruins of the original Exe Bridge, and down-river on the Exe estuary is the port of Topsham with its quaint Dutch Houses, waterfront and museum.

Exeter International Airport, only five miles from the city centre, currently has only a handful of scheduled flights to other UK cities. However, Exeter has an excellent train connection to London Paddington, so it is easy to reach from London’s Gatwick or Heathrow airports.

The major suburbs in Exeter are: Countess Wear, Duryard, Exwick, Heavitree, Polesloe, St. Thomas and Wonford.