div>
Last Updated on March 30, 2024
Devon Delights – Staycation in Exeter
What’s your favourite kind of Staycation? Without a car, I love to visit places where I feel as if I’m out of London, in the country, but that I can reach reasonably easily by train. A market town or Cathedral city is the perfect base for me – so that I can explore town and country if I’ve got time and so that I can find great places to eat and drink. Travelling to the West Country from London ticks every box. The train service from Paddington is fast and comfortable and there are plenty of charming places to choose from. Curiously, Exeter, just over 2 hours by train from London isn’t somewhere I’ve stayed before. An invitation to visit the new Hotel Indigo in the heart of the city was a great chance to explore.
The hotel is based in the 1930s modernist building which used to house the House of Fraser. That in turn was built on the site of Colson’s – a local milliner who opened a department store there as far back as 1792. The multimillion-pound project to restore and convert the building to a hotel finished in 2022 and the hotel opened its doors in December. But, you’ll find a host of tributes to the original building and to the locality. It’s a stone’s throw from the Cathedral and many of the ‘Cathedral Heritage’ rooms have a Cathedral view. Other ‘Colson’s Department Store’ rooms are themed around Colsons. Most intriguingly for me, the third theme, ‘The House that Moved‘, is named after a Tudor house that was moved from its original site in 1960 to avoid demolition. That in turn led to the publication of a children’s Book by David Rees.
You’ll find more tributes to the heritage of the building and locality in the hotel – with the original shop signage panelling Coulson’s bar, reception decked out to look like a shop counter and with the lifts lined with reproductions of shop receipts
Staying at Hotel Indigo Exeter
With 104 bedrooms and suites, there are plenty of options if you plan on staying at Hotel Indigo Exeter. My own room, on the 8th floor, was a large balcony suite with a stunning wrap-around balcony.
A super kingsize Hypnos bed with Egyptian cotton linen made for a comfortable night’s sleep, while the bathroom was beautifully designed with a freestanding tub looking out to the Cathedral and a well-powered shower. Complimentary toiletries, white fluffy bathrobes and plenty of towels added a luxurious touch.
Impressively, the room came with plenty of power points and USB plugs in all the right places (above the desk and on both sides of the bed). There was a good quality hairdryer, a Nespresso machine, a kettle and teabags, together with soft drinks, water and milk in the fridge and a few biscuits for snacking. The WiFi worked perfectly and the spacious room was so beautifully designed I didn’t want to leave.
Fine weather and the presence of an outdoor dining table on the balcony (together with a sofa, armchairs, coffee table and a lounger!) convinced me that a room-service breakfast on one of the days was a necessity.
I took a tour of the hotel to check out some of the other rooms and discovered that there’s a huge range of room types. Standard rooms are larger than normal and comfortable, with compact but well-equipped bathrooms, walk-in showers and complimentary toiletries. The larger rooms sometimes have balconies. All the rooms have those comfy Hypnos beds, a mini fridge, safe and a flat-screen TV. So whether you opt for one of the suites or a more compact room, you’ll be comfortable.
Eating and Drinking at Hotel Indigo.
The main restaurant at Hotel Indigo, Coulson’s, has its own bar and is perfect for an aperitif before dinner. The menu is contemporary European with as much produce as possible sourced locally in Devon and I enjoyed dinner there on the first night.
I started my meal with truffled goat’ cheese served with beetroot and apple. The whipped goat cheese was light and delicately flavoured with truffle, a good counterpoint to the earthy heritage beetroot. Apple gel worked well to cut through the flavours adding a freshness to the whole dish. Beautifully plated, it was a good pairing with the Albarino wine that was paired with it for me by Jamie, the restaurant manager
Trying my best to stick to the healthier options I picked herb-crusted halibut with courgette verde and roasted balsamic tomatoes on the vine, which fitted the bill perfectly. I was impressed with the fresh flavours and loved the courgette verde (finely diced, buttery courgettes while the roasted balsamic tomatoes were bursting with flavour. Another good pairing with the minerally Albarino
After coffee I had a chance to journey up to Becketts, the Hotel’s stunning rooftop bar. It’s definitely the best place in town for a nightcap with fabulous views from both indoors and (if the weather is nice enough) outside.
Coulson’s also serves lunch and afternoon tea, together with an excellent breakfast for hotel residents. There’s a full buffet with delicious pastries, breakfast cereals and a range of cold meats, cheeses, fish and breads. And there’s a concise a la carte menu of freshly cooked dishes included in the breakfast price. On the first morning I indulged in the Full English (minus eggs), which, with a large pot of tea was quite enough to keep me full till supper time.
On the second day I had a room service breakfast, the ultimate decadence, with perfectly cooked Eggs Benedict and a bowl of yoghurt, granola and fresh fruit. With a fresh cafetiere on the side and a cheeky mimosa, I was ready for the journey home.
The third bar at the hotel is called The Dugout, a cosy area with its own entrance that serves bar food to complement the drinks on offer. With large-screen TVs, it’s a popular match-day destination. I didn’t have a chance to try it out, but I can imagine that whether you happen to be staycationing or simply want a no-frills place to hang out for the evening, it is absolutely perfect.
The Retreat Spa
Whether or not you fancy indulging in a massage, facial or manicure, don’t miss out on booking a session at The Retreat Spa. Small but perfectly formed with two hydrotherapy pools, loungers, a sauna and a steam room, it’s a great place to unwind after a hard day shopping or sightseeing! I must have stayed for around an hour, feeling envious of the couples who were indulging in a glass of fizz but trying really hard to focus on the healthier option of fruit and herb water!
The spa facilities themselves are clean and elegant and with Elemis treatments, I’ll definitely be booking in for a facial if I get the chance to visit again.
For those who want to push the boundaries of ‘healthy’ even further, there’s a compact but well-equipped gym available for residents.
Exploring Exeter
For a newcomer to Exeter, the easiest way to get to know a bit more about the City is to go on one (or more) of the free Red Coat walking tours. They take around 90 minutes and there are a range of options every day, making it easy to pick a tour that covers your own interests.
I joined the ‘Forgotten Exeter’ tour which starts from the Hooker Statue on Cathedral Green (you’ll find your guide is unmistakably wearing a red top of some sort). Our group of around 8 people was a mix of all ages, some couples or friends and some people who had come along by themselves. The tour focuses on the North West corner of the city within the city walls and mine finished at Tuckers Hall on Fore Street.
Whether or not you want to take part in a walking tour, it’s worth checking out Tuckers Hall, a living guild which was built and has been owned by the Guild of Weavers, Tuckers and Shearmen since 1471 and still fulfils that function today. Throughout Exeter, you’ll find many other relics of the cloth trade that used to dominate the City in Medieval times.
There are more tours covering everything from a guided walk around the Roman city walls (70% still remain!), or the famous underground tunnels to a visit to the quayside and a canal trip. They are all free of charge and an excellent way to get under the skin of Exeter in a short time. Your guide will tell you anecdotes you might easily miss out on and best of all, for me, you won’t get lost or spend your time trying to work out where you are using Google Maps.
The Cathedral
A few minutes from the hotel, Exeter Cathedral was constructed between 1107 and 1400 thanks to ‘modernisations’ when Walter Bronescombe was appointed bishop in 1258, and much of the original Norman Cathedral was rebuilt in the Decorated Gothic style.
Perhaps its most notable feature is the 14th-century stone vaulted ceiling of the nave and quire. It’s the longest continuous medieval stone vault in the world and runs from the west wall of the nave to the Great East Window.
As there is no central tower, the vault can run all the way from the west wall of the nave to the Great East Window (about 315ft). at the far end of the quire, a distance of approximately 96m (315ft). Unless you are attending a service, there’s a fee to enter, but it’s worth noting that ground-floor tours are included in the entry and take place throughout the day.
Exeter Quayside
About a fifteen-minutes walk from the hotel is Exeter Quayside. The City was built on the banks of the River Exe, important for the woollen trade which led to the thriving medieval community.
It’s a lovely place to stroll – there are Red Coat tours that start at the Custom House, which was built in 1680 and now houses the Visitor Centre.
If you want to get out and about, you’ll find bike, canoe and kayak hire there and a climbing centre together with Cricklepit Mill, home to the Devon Wildlife Trust.
For me, as is all too often the case, the main draw was that I spotted one of my favourite restaurants had a newish branch there. I first came across Rockfish at Brixham way back in 2012 when we visited the fish market there and then went for breakfast at Rockfish. Of course, fish is what it is all about – Mitch Tonks, founder of the group, specialises in fish and opened his first West Country fishmongers in 1996. Rockfish at Exeter has a prime spot on the quay and you can dine indoors or al-fresco on stunning fish dishes at reasonable prices (I particularly like the unlimited chips offer!).I have to confess to a moment of indulgence when I ordered lobster – but it was definitely worth it – and a snip of the price I’d pay in London for the same kind of thing.
There are plenty of shops and a wealth of restaurants and breweries – the kind of place where you can browse and chill out for a few hours.
Useful Tips for a Staycation in Exeter
Getting to Exeter
Exeter is an easy train journey from Central London with a regular service from London Paddington to Exeter St David’s (it’s then about 10 minutes to Exeter Central). Great Western Rail offers standard and first-class accommodation and the journey takes just over 2 hours.
I particularly enjoyed the trolley service complimentary tea, coffee and snacks in first class and the airconditioned carriages were comfy and a relaxing way to travel. Like many of the UK’s older cities, there’s limited parking in Exeter City Centre so travelling by train is a good option. And you’ll get to see some stunning countryside as you travel through Berkshire, Wiltshire and Dorset to Devon
Hotel Indigo
Hotel Indigo is part of IHG Hotels and Resorts portfolio with 135 locations open worldwide and a quality global pipeline of 124 hotels. Owned by Hotel Exe Limited, Hotel Indigo Exeter is managed by Castlebridge Hospitality who already manage three UK Hotel Indigo hotels: Hotel Indigo Bath, Hotel Indigo Chester, and Hotel Indigo Stratford upon Avon.
Room rates for Hotel Indigo Exeter start from £125 B&B
The hotel is situated at 3 Catherine Street, Exeter, EX1 1EU, telephone 01392 301801 or [email protected], https://exeter.hotelindigo.com.
For more information on Colson’s please visit https://colsonsrestaurant.co.uk/
For more information about Exeter, check the Visit Exeter website
For Rockfish opening hours and other locations check their website
