Custom House
Exeter's Quayside is 10 minutes walk from the city centreand is a charming mix of past and present. The Custom House constructed in 1681, with its elaborate plaster ceiling made by John Abbott of Frithelstock is believed to be England's oldest purpose built custom house and remained in continuous use by HM Customs and Excise until 1989, reminding us of Exeter's former dependence on international maritime trade. Celia Fiennes, who visited Exeter in 1698 described its Long Room "a large room full of desks and little partitions for writers and accountants; it was full of books and files of paper". Near to the Customs House are the old bonded warehouses, which have found a new lease of life as craft, and bric-a-brac shops, bicycle and boat hirers etc., alongside is the Quay House Visitor Centre with it's video presentations. River and canal trips can be taken from the quayside.