Exmouth Seafront, looking toward the Exe estuary

Exmouth is a seaside town in Devon. Exmouth is Devon's oldest seaside resort and has a two mile long golden, sandy beach fronting the channel which attracts visitors and locals all year round. At the eastern end of the beach is the start of the Jurassic Coast, England's first natural World Heritage Site. The seafront is renowned for its fascinating rock pools, bird life and stunning views across the Exe Estuary.

Understand

Sitting where where the Exe Estuary joins the sea, Exmouth has a wide range of facilities and a wonderful collection of independent shops, beautiful gardens, and superb entertainment. With a wide variety of places to stay, eat, and drink, Exmouth has gradually established a reputation as a fantastic place to enjoy watersports, sailing, cycling, fishing, walking, eating out and the many special occasions the town has to offer. There is a full calendar of events such as the Medieval Christmas Cracker and the New Years Eve fancy dress celebrations, which were voted one of the UK's top destinations in which to celebrate, and Exmouth Arts Festival (end of May) which has developed from a rich arts scene. Another regular occasion is the Velo Vintage cycle parade; an eccentric affair, complete with penny farthings, tweed and theatrical, handlebar moustaches!

The town centre's piazza-style Strand Gardens, which have undergone a £3 million makeover, is the ideal place to watch the world go by. Once the sun has gone down you can watch the light display around the war memorial as you enjoy a coffee or cocktail al fresco in the café quarter. Exmouth has also benefited from the completion of the South West Coast Path, Exe Cycle Trail and an explosion of water sports, from waterskiing to kite surfing, body-boarding and sailing (Steph Bridge, five times world champion Kite Surfer, is a resident).

The town is surrounded by the wooded, rolling hills of Woodbury Common and is a fantastic base to explore this part of Devon's countryside and coast with many charming, quaint towns and villages nearby.

Get in

By train

  • 🌍 Exmouth station, Imperial Road, EX8 1BZ. Exmouth is on the Avocet Line situated at the end of a branch from Exeter. Exeter itself has connections to London Paddington, Bristol and Birmingham. Great Western Railway trains take about 20 minutes and operate every half hour (M-Sa daytime, less frequent evenings and Sundays). 

By bus

Stagecoach Bus 57 runs frequently from Exeter Bus Station to Exmouth Parade Stop A (£2, 40 min as of Apr 2023).

By plane

The nearest airport is Exeter Airport (EXT IATA), 11 miles away.

By car

Exmouth is about 15 minutes from the M5 Motorway. Leave at Junction 30 and follow the A376; it's around 10 miles to Exmouth.

Get around

Exmouth's town centre is rather small, so it's easy to travel on foot. Exmouth Cycle Hire rents bicycles and cycling equipment, so there is the option of cycling along the South West Coast Path that runs along the coast and connects Exmouth to Topsham to the west and Budleigh Salterton to the east, or along the Exe Estuary Trail which carries on from Topsham around the coast to Dawlish.

The Exmouth Land Train runs from 5 May to 28 October each year, from 10AM to 4PM, and is a fun way to get around Exmouth, with the train's route following a circuit alongside the beach and through the town centre. A full circuit trip costs £3, or £5 for an unlimited day traveller ticket. It is available for private hire throughout the year.

See

  • 🌍 Exmouth Museum, Sheppards Row (off Exeter Road). M–Sa 10:30AM–12:30PM, Tu W Th 2:30–4:30PM. Closed Bank Holidays & Su. Closed from November for the winter.. 
  • Exmouth is home to a functioning harbour, once a small fishing dock, now mostly used by pleasure craft and the occasional trawler.
A la Ronde, near Lympstone

Do

  • Exmouth is a popular tourist destination due to its long, sandy beach. However, swimming is forbidden on a short stretch of the beach due to fast tidal currents.
  • A modest range of tourist attractions are open during the summer season, including a small boating lake, miniature golf course, model railway and amusements arcade.
  • Exmouth is one end of a long and pleasant coastal walk along the cliffs to Budleigh Salterton. The walk contains steep segments, though, and includes rough ground and stiles, so is not recommended for the frail.

Buy

  • 🌍 Exmouth Indoor Market, 12 Strand. Indoor market with a variety of stalls offering gifts, tourist trinkets, clothing, sweets, local produce, pet supplies, and jewellery and haberdashery. Includes a café. 

Eat

The town centre, inland from the beach, has a range of restaurants, cafes, takeaways and pubs, and is busy at night. The beachfront has a few cafes and restaurants open during the day but just a couple of lower-end places open at night, when the beach is nearly deserted.

Drink

Sleep

Go next

Littleham is a suburb about 3 miles east of Exmouth town centre that retains a bit of its pleasant village atmosphere and quaint old buildings (including Castle Cottages, along Castle Lane to the east). There is also The Clinton Arms pub, and the Tythe Cottage Restaurant which sells traditionally cooked food including breakfast, lunch, evening meals and Devon cream teas.

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