Exeter
Magnificent in warm, honey-coloured stone, Exeter's cathedral is one of Devon’s most impressive ecclesiastical sights. Dating largely from the 12th and…
Must-see attractions in Devon
Plymouth
For a glimpse of ancient Plymouth, head down to this historic harbour area, where part-cobbled streets are lined with Tudor and Jacobean buildings, and…
Exeter
A fixture on the city's cultural scene since Victorian times, this hulking red-brick museum recently received a £24 million revamp. It's a treasure trove…
Plymouth
This heavily beamed distillery has been concocting gin since 1793, making it the oldest working producer of the spirit in England. Four to six tours per…
Plymouth
The UK's biggest – and perhaps best – aquarium is lodged beside the Barbican harbour. There's a huge amount to see, but the highlight is the impressive…
Exeter
Prepare to crouch down, don a hard hat and possibly get spooked in what is the only publicly accessible system of its kind in England. These medieval…
Plymouth
Around 60,000 tonnes of fish pass through this market, making it the second biggest by volume in England after London's Billingsgate. It's an amazing…
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Torquay
Expect stalactites to drip water on your head and temperatures to dip to 14°C in these atmospheric caves. Hour-long guided tours lead through a maze of…
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Dartmoor National Park
The enchanting blend of landscapes here make this garden one of the best in Devon. Its 3 hectares encompass wildflower meadows and South African planting,…
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Torquay
There are 413 tiny buildings, inhabited by 13,160 even tinier people, on display at this Lilliputian attraction, the epitome of English eccentricity…
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Torquay
This innovative, 32-hectare zoo is by far and away Paignton's top draw. Spacious enclosures recreate habitats from savannah and wetland to tropical forest…
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Dartmoor National Park
Three miles northeast of Chagford, this outlandish architectural flight of fancy was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens for self-made food-millionaire Julius…
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Dartmoor National Park
Founded as a Cistercian monastery and abbey-church in the 13th century, Buckland Abbey was one of Henry VIII’s ‘acquisitions’ during the Dissolution of…
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Plymouth
Francis Drake supposedly spied the Spanish fleet from this grassy headland overlooking Plymouth Sound (the city's wide bay); the bowling green on which he…
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Dartmoor National Park
This plunging gorge is the deepest in the southwest, and can be reached via a 1.5-mile rugged riverside hike past a series of bubbling whirlpools …
Exeter
On fine sunny days the people of Exeter head to the quay. Cobbled paths lead between former warehouses that have been converted into antique shops, quirky…
Dartmoor National Park
At first glance, Dartmoor can come as something of a shock to the senses. The largest stretch of open moorland in the southwest, Dartmoor covers an area…
Plymouth
The Mayflower Steps mark the approximate final UK departure point of the Pilgrim Fathers – the band of settlers who founded New England's first permanent…
Plymouth
The red-and-white stripes of Smeaton's Tower rise from the middle of the Plymouth Hoe headland. For an insight into past lighthouse keepers' lives, head…
Exeter
The earliest parts of Exeter's Guildhall date from 1330, making it the oldest municipal building still in use in the country. An ornate barrel roof arches…
Exeter
The historic home of the Earl of Devon, Powderham is a stately but still friendly place built in 1391 and remodelled in the Victorian era. A visit takes…
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Dartmoor National Park
Morwellham Quay is part of the southwest's Mining World Heritage Site and offers intriguing insight into the copper boom that gripped west Devon in the…
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Torquay
At 182 hectares, Cockington provides a welcome oasis of calm, green space, just a mile from Torquay's seafront bustle. Walking trails wind through fields,…
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Dartmoor National Park
One of the last remaining patches of ancient woodland left on Dartmoor, this lovely 214-hectare forest was badly marred by the introduction of fast…
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Exeter
This eccentric museum is a must for cinephiles. It contains a hoard of film-themed memorabilia amassed by Scottish film-maker Bill Douglas, best known for…
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Higher Moorland Visitor Centre
Dartmoor National Park
At the tourist office–visitor centre, heritage displays include those on tin workings, gunpowder factories, ecology and legends – there's also a stunning…
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Dartmoor National Park
The remains of 24 Bronze Age houses (often called huts) dot a sprawling 1.45-hectare site that is encircled by an arching 1.5m-high and 7m-wide perimeter…
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Exeter
For a sense of what life's like on the farms tucked into East Devon's red-soil hills, head to one of the auctions at Exeter Livestock Market. Join farmers…
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Plymouth
Plymouth's main museum was closed for a multi-million-pound redevelopment at the time of writing. It's set to reopen in 2020, with the transformation of a…
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Dartmoor National Park
A century ago, this dramatic building would have thundered to the sound of clanging hammers and grinding metal. It was one of the busiest tool factories…
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Dartmoor National Park
In the early 1800s, Princetown's infamous jail was home to French and American prisoners of war. It became a convict jail in 1850, and today still houses…
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Dartmoor National Park
Legends swirl around this spooky patch of old-growth oak forest. According to local legend, it was a sacred site for the Druids, who conducted magical…
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Torquay
Built in 1196, this impressive abbey is a setting for arts and cultural events, but it's the wonderful gardens that are of most interest – particularly to…
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Dartmoor National Park
These two parallel stone rows are up to 260m long, with large stone slabs, or 'terminal stones' at the eastern end. In the centre, hunt out the circular…
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Dartmoor National Park
Remnants from Tavistock's now vanished abbey sit in this traditional but excellent museum alongside artefacts of the town's copper-mining heyday. Look out…
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Torquay
The collection at Torquay's town museum is eclectic, taking in everything from samurai suits of armour to Egyptian mummies and taxidermied butterflies…
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Dartmoor National Park
Okehampton's castle dates back to Norman times, and is strategically sited on top of a rocky escarpment. Later it became a sumptuous residence for Hugh…
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Plymouth
A child-friendly jaunt through the story behind the sailing to America of the Pilgrim Fathers aboard the Mayflower in 1620. It makes good use of cartoons,…
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Dartmoor National Park
St Pancras' immense 40m tower has seen it dubbed the Cathedral of the Moor. Inside, search out the boards telling the fire-and-brimstone tale of the…
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Plymouth
Now severely faded, the vast painting covering an entire side of a three-storey house was created by Robert Lenkiewicz (1941–2002; www.robertlenkiewicz…
