Northern • Southern route

There are two main routes into Devon. Join the M5 motorway at Bristol and follow it southwest passing Taunton and Cullompton to the eastern outskirts of Exeter at Junction 31. Here the route splits:

Northern route

The A30, skirting the northern fringes of Dartmoor passing Okehampton on its way into Cornwall. North Devon can be visited by leaving the motorway at Junction 27, marked Tiverton and following the North Devon Link Road, the A361, to Barnstaple. From here the whole of North Devon is within easy reach. Visit the rolling coombes and hidden hamlets of Exmoor or the towns of Bideford, South Molton and Ilfracombe. The glorious sandy beaches of Croyde, Saunton and Woolacombe lie close by or explore the North Devon coast between Clovelly, Hartland and the Cornish border. The A361 heads north to Ilfracombe whilst it transforms into the A39 Atlantic Highway to head southwest into the Duchy.

Southern route

The A38, leaves the M5 at Junction 31 where the motorway terminates and heads southwest running to the south of Dartmoor passing Ashburton and Buckfastleigh on its way to Plymouth with junctions on its route allowing you to visit the resorts of Torbay as well as the estuaries and beaches of South Devon at Dartmouth, Kingsbridge and Salcombe.

Another option is to take the A303 through southern Somerset to Ilminster before continuing through East Devon to Exeter.

Trains leave London Paddington daily at regular intervals for Penzance, with very convenient interchanges at Reading and Taunton.

The main stations for Devon would be Exeter St. Davids, Exeter Central, Plymouth and Tiverton Parkway depending on your final destination. One of the most romantic ways to travel is by sleeper.

You can purchase rail tickets online at thetrainline.com.

Please remember that, if booking in advance, two single tickets are often a lot cheaper than a return ticket!

Plan your Devon journey here, with an interactive map, links and information offering comprehensive bus travel throughout Devon.

• Flybe, Easyjet, Thomson, Air France and a number of other airlines fly to a range of UK and European destinations from Exeter International Airport.
• Bristol Airport offers an even wider range of flights and lies just 90 minutes away up the M5 motorway. Simply fly into Bristol Airport and hire a car to explore Somerset, Devon and the whole southwest.
  Please note there are no connecting flights between Exeter and Bristol Airports.