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Voykit pocket guide · United Kingdom
Woodbury, Devon
Woodbury
Treat Woodbury as a day trip or 1–2 nights, not a base: with a car the coast and Exeter are 15–30 min away; without one, getting in is awkward.
Woodbury is a small commuter village of about 1,600 people on the western edge of East Devon, useful mainly as a quiet, car-based base for Exeter, Exmouth and the commons. The village itself has a 15th-century church, two pubs and a takeaway; the real draw is Woodbury Common and the surrounding coast and estuary. Without a car it is awkward: the nearest station is a request stop with no pavement on the walk in.
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Local name
- Woodbury
- Best months
- May–Sep
- Avoid
- Dec–Feb (wet, short days, some seasonal closures)
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- GBP
- Money
- Currency is the pound sterling (GBP, £). Cards and contactless work almost everywhere; some places are card-only.
- Daily spend
- Budget £45–75 excl. bed · Mid £75–130 excl. bed · High £130+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- EE, Vodafone (merged with Three in 2025) and O2 run the networks; prepaid SIMs sell in supermarkets, phone shops and airport vending machines, no registration needed.
- Emergency
- Police, fire, ambulance 999 or 112 · NHS non-urgent 111 · Police non-urgent 101
- Plugs
- Types G · 230 V · 50 Hz · Three-pin Type G only; European, US and Australian plugs need an adapter. Bathrooms have two-pin shaver sockets only.
- Tipping
- Restaurant with table service: 10–12.5% if no service charge is on the bill; check before adding more.; Pub or bar: Not expected; 'and one for yourself' offers the bartender a drink.; Taxi: Round up or 10%.; Hotel porter: £1–2 per bag.; Tour guide: £5–10 per person for a day tour; free walking tours expect £10–15.
- Water
- Tap water is safe everywhere. Free refills are common; restaurants will bring tap water if you ask.
- Toilets
- Public toilets are scarce and some charge 50p–£1 or are card-only. Stations, museums, department stores and pubs (if you buy a drink) are the fallback.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee or tea in a café | £3–4.50 |
| Pub main course | £12–20 |
| Pint of local ale or cider | £4.50–6 |
| Bus 56 single, Exeter to Woodbury | £3–4 |
| Taxi, Exeter to Woodbury | £20–30 |
| eSIM or data SIM, about a week | £5–15 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- EXT · Exeter Airport
- About 15–20 min by road; limited routes, mostly UK and a few European cities
- BRS · Bristol Airport
- About 1 h 30 min–2 h by road via the M5
- LHR · London Heathrow
- About 3–3.5 h by road; rail via London is often easier
Typical fares
- Bus 56 Exeter → Woodbury
- about £3–4 single, roughly hourly
- Taxi Exeter → Woodbury
- £20–30
- Train Exeter St Davids → Exton
- request stop; ask the conductor to stop
Get around
The village centre is walkable in minutes. Everything else — the common, the coast, Exeter — needs a car or a taxi. Woodbury has no railway station; Exton is the nearest stop, a request stop, and the walk into the village has no pavement for part of the route, so it is not a safe arrival on foot. Bus service to Exeter: check the current route and times before relying on it.
See and do
Known for
- Woodbury Common
- Woodbury Castle Iron Age hillfort
- St Swithun's Church
- The Diggers Rest at Woodbury Salterton
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Exmouth | Drive via the B3179 and A376 | About 20–30 min by car (check) |
| Sidmouth | Drive via the A3052 | About 30–35 min by car |
| Budleigh Salterton | Drive via the B3179 and B3178 | About 15–20 min by car |
| Exeter | Drive via the A376 and M5 | About 20–25 min by car (check) |
| Seaton | Drive via the A3052 | About 40–45 min by car |
| Axminster | Drive via the A35 | About 45–50 min by car |
Sleep
- Woodbury village centre
- Walk to both pubs and the shop; very few beds, so book ahead.
- Woodbury Park / Castle Lane
- Hotel, golf and spa on the common edge; needs a car or taxi for everything else.
- Woodbury Salterton
- Quieter hamlet 5 min by road, with the Diggers Rest inn as the anchor.
- Castle Brake Holiday Park
- Holiday park with caravans and lodges; self-catering, car essential. Location and rates: check.
- Webbers Park, Castle Lane
- Family-run camping and touring park with pitches and holiday homes; car essential.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Please | Please |
| Thank you | Thank you |
| Excuse me | Excuse me |
| A table for two, please | A table for two, please |
| Can I pay by card? | Can I pay by card? |
| Where is the bus stop? | Where is the bus stop? |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake at first meeting; 'hi' and first names quickly; avoid: Cheek kisses with strangers
- Conversation: Weather is a safe opener; understatement and self-deprecating humour; avoid: Asking about salary or class
- Queues: Join at the back; avoid: Pushing onto buses or trains before others get off
- Apologies: 'Sorry' is said constantly, even when not at fault; avoid: Taking it as an admission of blame
- Pubs: Buy rounds in a group; wait at the bar without waving money; avoid: Clicking fingers at staff
- Nations: Call Scots Scottish and Welsh Welsh; avoid: Calling the whole UK 'England'
Scams and watch-outs
- No railway station: the nearest stop is Exton, a request stop, and the walk into Woodbury has no pavement for part of the route.
- Bus 56 runs roughly hourly; last services are early in the evening, so check times before a night out in Exeter.
- Mobile coverage is patchy indoors; both pubs have free WiFi.
- Rural lanes have no lighting or pavement: walk facing traffic and wear something visible after dark.
- Many pubs and the farm shop close early on some weekdays: check hours before you drive out.
Very low crime; the real risks are rural lanes with no pavement or lighting, patchy mobile signal, and tidal or cliff edges on the nearby coast. In an emergency call 999 or 112.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Woodbury, Devon yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Woodbury Common
- Woodbury Castle Iron Age hillfort
- St Swithun's Church
- The Diggers Rest at Woodbury Salterton
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Visit Devon — East Devon: www.visitdevon.co.uk/
- Stagecoach South West — bus 56: www.stagecoachbus.com/
- National Rail — Exton station: www.nationalrail.co.uk/
- Wikivoyage: Woodbury (Devon), revision 5252766 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5252766
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Woodbury, DevonWoodbury
To this address, please
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
- Police, fire, ambulance999 or 112
- NHS non-urgent111
- Police non-urgent101
No embassies in Devon; the US, Canadian, Australian and Irish embassies are in London. Nearest consulates are in Exeter or Bristol.
Tipping: 10–12.5% in restaurants if no service charge is added; not expected in pubs.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/woodbury-devon). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.