Taunton (England)

By air

The nearest airports are at Bristol Airport (BRS), to the north-west and Exeter Airport (EXT), to the south-west, both about away.

By road

By road, leave the M5 motorway at exit 25. Taunton has a railway station on the main line from London Paddington (typical journey time 2 hr 5 min) to Exeter (25 min), Plymouth (1 hr 30 min), and Penzance (3 hr 40 min). Bristol is 35 min away by rail.

By train

Taunton station has many rail connections:

• First Great Western operate direct trains to London Paddington and to Worcester and Great Malvern.
• CrossCountry operate services to Taunton from Birmingham, Leeds, York, Newcastle, Edinburgh and Glasgow.
• Both companies run direct trains to Bristol and Cheltenham Spa, Exeter, Paignton, Plymouth, and Penzance.
• For train times, see National Rail Enquiries.

By bus

Buses link to Wellington, Bridgwater, Yeovil, Exeter, and Chard.
South West Falcon operates a service connecting Bristol, Taunton, Exeter, and Plymouth. A single fare from Plymouth to Bristol is £28. Tickets can be booked online in advance, but reservations are not strictly required.

Traffic in Taunton is awful. A park and ride service (the Taunton Flyer) provides transport between the town centre and a large car park at Silk Mills.
The best options are to walk or take a bus. However, the bus and railway stations are a good 15 minutes' walk apart!

By bus

Buses are frequent during the week, but evenings and Sundays are very limited. Buses operated by Firstbus - They are expensive.

• Museum of Somerset

  phone: +44 1823 255088
  address: Castle Green, TA1 4AA
  Volunteer-run museum of local history.

• Somerset Cricket Museum

  phone: +44 1823 275893
  address: 7 Priory Ave
  Small volunteer-run museum about cricket.

• Brewhouse Theatre

  phone: +44 1823 283244
  address: Coal Orchard TA1 1JL
  Professional and community theatre.
• Watch cricket at

  County Ground

  address: St James St TA1 1JT
  Somerset CCC play in the First Division of the County Championship.

• Go to the races at

  Taunton Racecourse

  phone: +44 1823 337172
  address: Orchard Portman TA3 7BL
  But only in winter, as (unusually) this is only a jumps course, with meetings every fortnight or so Oct-March. The course is near M5 but there's no junction with B3170, you need to exit at jcn 25 onto A358 west, then left onto Bridgewater Rd to zigzag around town.

• Taunton Deane servicesTaunton Deane services both northbound and southbound have a WH Smith that sell all kinds of supplies and souvenirs including wooden carvings, aluminium lettering and even Buddha statues.

All of the major fast food chains are represented, including two branches each of Subway and McDonalds. The town has a range of coffee shops, including the major chains Starbucks, Costa and Caffè Nero.
Restaurants include:

• Pizza Express

  phone: +44 1823 352245
  address: 20 Bridge Street, TA1 1UB

• @Tristans

  phone: +44 1823 332117
  address: 11 East Reach, TA1 3EW

• Castle Bow Restaurant

  phone: +44 1823 272671
  address: in Castle Hotel, see Sleep
  Has a national reputation for cooking excellence, although the prices and formality reflect its fame. The hotel also has Brazz (open daily, breakfast 8-10AM, lunch noon-3PM, dinner 6-9PM, two-course set menu £12).

• Willow Tree

  phone: +44 1823-352835
  address: 3 Tower Lane
  Cozy restaurant with superb food, open only in the evening.

• The Skewer House

  phone: +44 1823 335711
  address: 41 Bridge Street TA1 1TP
  Traditional and authentic Portuguese food.

• The Perkin Warbeck

  phone: +44 1823 335830
  address: 22–23 East Street, TA1 3LP
  JD Wetherspoon's pub. Its name comes from the supposed heir to the throne who marched an army into Taunton and was executed at the castle.

• The Coal Orchard

  phone: +44 1823 447330
  address: 30 Bridge St, TA1 1UD
  JD Wetherspoon's pub.

• The Plough Inn

  phone: +44 1823 324404
  address: 75 Station Road,

Budget

• Holiday Inn Taunton

  phone: +44 870 400 9080
  address: Deane Gate Avenue
  There is also a Holiday Inn Express nearby.

Mid-range

• Corner House Hotel

  phone: +44 1823 284683
  address: 4 Wellington Rd
  45-room hotel spread over three buildings, but with no lift.

Splurge

• Castle Hotel

  phone: +44 1823 272671
  address: Castle Green, TA1 4AD
  Upscale hotel, some rooms still need an overhaul. Often booked out for weddings. With good restaurant.

• West Somerset Railway, run by volunteers. Recapture the age of steam.
• Glastonbury, a place of pilgrimage, .
• Cheddar Caves and Gorge, .