A weekend away in Devon

Two and a half hours from Southampton lies beautiful Exeter, which makes the perfect destination for a little weekend away.

I’ve previously written about day trips you can make on the south coast in places like Bournemouth, Winchester and Poole. Exeter, on the other hand, is a tad further away and requires more than one day, perhaps. It’s between two and a half to three hours on the train and about the same with the car, so staying overnight is definitely something I would recommend.

A big part of my boyfriend’s family comes from Exeter, so last weekend we went down there for a wedding. Apart from the wedding, which was held at the University, we spent the next day strolling through the streets of Exeter, visiting Topsham and Darts Farm.

Exeter is in Devon, and Devon is supposed to be one of the most beautiful counties of England, so if you want to see more of it, it’s better to go by car. There are loads of places to stop on the way there depending on which route you take; Salisbury and Dorchester are a few options. Topsham and Darts Farm, where we went in Exeter, are definitely easiest to reach by car.

Exeter itself is a beautiful little town, especially the area around the cathedral. It reminds me a bit of Winchester, so it goes without saying it’s lovely! Exeter also got quite a good variety of shops if you fancy doing some shopping, although most of the shops you will find here in Southampton too.

Exeter Cathedral 

The main reason we went to Exeter was for the family wedding. The wedding was held at the University of Exeter's halls, which was a beautiful venue. It definitely felt like I was in Harry Potter, but Mayflower Halls will always be the best halls in my opinion. Completely unbiased, of course!

My wedding date!

Reed Halls - the wedding venue

Topsham is only about a 10-minute drive from Exeter city centre and it’s your typical beautiful little English village with a lovely river running through it. We spent a little hour here going for a walk and dreaming through antique shops.  Topsham is also where Darts Farm is located.

Sunny Topsham

Darts Farm was awarded the best farm shop in 2016 and has been featured on the BBC for being one of the top ten destination farm shops. They sell all types of organic food and drinks, offer bike hires and even have a spa. We had a lovely time here walking around in the sunshine before we started our journey back home to Southampton again.

Walking around Darts Farm

The boyfriend and the lama

I hope you're enjoying the summer as much as I am!

Alexandra