Exeter Cathedral Christmas Market

Exeter’s market takes over Cathedral Green, the lawn in front of the west front of the cathedral, and it is a compact, manageable market in an unusually handsome setting — the cathedral has the longest uninterrupted medieval vaulted ceiling in the world, and the sculpture-covered west front makes a backdrop no purpose-built site could match.

Strongly South West

The trader list is dominated by Devon and Cornwall makers and producers, which is the practical reason to come. Expect West Country cheese, cider, chocolate, gin, seafood, wool, ceramics and prints. It is a better bet for edible presents than most markets, and the food and drink stalls are disproportionately good for a market of this size.

Practical shape of a visit

Cathedral Green is small enough to see properly in an hour or two, which makes Exeter a good market for people who find the big city ones exhausting. The cathedral runs its Advent and carol services throughout, the Royal Clarence and the pubs around the Close are immediately adjacent, and the quayside — worth a walk in daylight — is fifteen minutes downhill.

Getting there

Exeter Central station is a five-minute walk from the Green; Exeter St Davids is about twenty minutes on foot or a short bus ride, and is the stop for most long-distance trains from London Paddington and Bristol.

When to go

It opens on 13 November, early by UK standards, and the first fortnight is noticeably quieter. It stays open until nine on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, which is when the cathedral floodlighting does its work. Sunday is a short day — 11am to 5pm.

Worth knowing

It closes on 13 December, which is early. Like Bath, this is a market people plan to visit in the week before Christmas and find already gone. Check the date.

Devon in one afternoon

The reason to come here rather than to a bigger market is the concentration of South West producers in a small space. If you are buying edible presents, this is among the most efficient markets in the country: Devon and Cornish cheese, cider and cider brandy, chocolate, fudge, gin, smoked fish and preserves, largely from producers who are at the stall themselves.

What else to do while you are there

The cathedral is the obvious one, and its Advent and carol programme runs throughout the market. Beyond that, the Royal Albert Memorial Museum is free and five minutes away, and the quayside — a twenty-minute walk downhill — is worth doing in daylight before the market lights up. Exeter is also a practical base for a wider Devon trip, with Topsham, Dartmoor and the coast all close.