Organise a Visit

In 1858, the RNLI made the decision to re-establish a station in Exmouth, which officially opened in 1859. Since then, Exmouth RNLI has remained at the forefront of coastal rescue operations. Today, our station is equipped with cutting-edge lifeboats and technology, ensuring we’re ready to respond to emergencies at a moment’s notice.

We invite you to visit us, learn more about our work, and discover the vital role we play in keeping our coastal community safe.

Launch a Memory

We work hard to ensure that everyone who has added a name to lifeboat 13-03 can see it. However, please be aware that there are times when the lifeboat may not be in the station. This could be for a number of reasons — most importantly, when it’s out saving lives at sea. For this reason, we cannot guarantee that you’ll be able to view the name you’re looking for on the boat itself.

Most of the time, you’ll be able to visit the station and see the names on the lifeboat’s hull. However, as the lifeboat sits on its launch and recovery system, the names are above eye level and maybe a little difficult to read. By the end of the month, we hope to have new signs in place outside the station displaying the starboard and port decals. The names on the wheelhouse roof aren’t visible, but a display board inside the station shows all the decals on the wheel house roof, making it easy to find a specific name.

Tour guides will be on duty at weekends and on weekdays during School Holidays, at the times shown in the orange boxes below. Half term in October this year is from 26th until the 31st,

DECEMBER viewing dates

Saturdays and Sundays, 11.00am to 3.00pm

Ways to Visit the Station

There are lots of ways to visit the lifeboat station and see the names on the hull:

VIP Station Tour Experience – Limited Availability
For a more exclusive, behind-the-scenes visit, you can pre-book our VIP guided tour. You’ll enjoy full access to the station, learn more about the RNLI’s lifesaving work, and get a close-up view of the lifeboat.
Book your VIP Experience on Eventbrite.

Standard Station Tour – Free
Join one of our free, shorter tours of the station, which last around 30–45 minutes. You may make a booking here

Drop-in Tours – Free
At weekends and during school holidays, we offer free, shorter tours for passers-by when a guide is available. These usually last 15–30 minutes and do not require booking.

Midweek Tours – Free
As we move into the time of year when the main boathouse doors may be closed due to bad weather or volunteer availability, we’ve arranged special midweek visits.
If you’d like to visit during the week, one of our volunteers can be available on Tuesdays and Thursdays between 12:00 and 13:00 to guarantee you can get in to view the names on the hull.
If you’d like a volunteer there during these times, please complete the booking form here to let us know. These visits usually last around 15 minutes.

Group Tours – Free
We also welcome group visits from schools, Cubs, Brownies, Scouts, and other societies. Details on how to book can be found below under Schools, Groups, and Individuals.

Exmouth is a busy operational lifeboat station so please be aware that the lifeboat may not be at the station when you visit due to operational requirements.

The RNLI’s Launch a Memory campaign offers a lasting tribute to commemorate a loved one or celebrate someone still among us by having their name on an RNLI lifeboat. R and J Welburn, Exmouth’s Shannon-class lifeboat, is the seventh Launch a Memory lifeboat. The appeal has raised over £1.08million for the RNLI, which will fund essential equipment and training required for the crews to continue saving lives at sea.

To find the location of a name on the lifeboat, track her here

To find out where the Exmouth Shannon, 13-03 R and J Welburn, is at any time, track her here

We aim to keep the lifeboat in the boathouse as much as possible. This helps us carry out maintenance more efficiently, since all the necessary tools are on site and the hull stays clean and free from marine growth—keeping the boat in top condition.

However, there may be times when the boat is moored in the Marina or on the wet mooring, just outside the Marina. This can happen for a few reasons, such as when the tractor (used to launch the boat) is undergoing scheduled maintenance, or if we know we won’t have the right crew available to launch from the boathouse during a certain period.

We’ll do our best to keep this page updated whenever the boat is planned to be out of the boathouse. Please note, though, that emergency call-outs, known as “shouts”, can happen at any time, and we can’t always predict them!

13-03 R and J Welburn

All Tours MUST be pre-booked. Before making travel arrangements please wait for the Lifeboat Visits Officer to confirm your booking. This could take up to a week.

There are three basic sections to the tour:

• Inshore Lifeboat
• All Weather Lifeboat
• Shannon Launch and Revovery System

For safeguarding reasons, the following guidelines must be adhered to:

• Children aged 0 to 4 years must have an adult for every 2 children.
• Children aged 4 to 7 years must have an adult for every 6 children.
• Children aged 8 to 11 years must have an adult for every 10 children
• Children aged 12 years and above must have an adult for every 15 children

We do not take any responsibility for the supervision of children.

If you would like to book a tour you can find the booking form here

Dedicated Group Tours for Schools and other Groups

We offer pre-arranged tours to schools, organisations, social groups and even large groups of family and friends during the week or at weekends, subject to operational requirements and volunteer availability throughout the year. Child/adult ratios must be in line with the safeguarding guidelines shown above.

The minimum number in any group is 6. Schools and groups with more than 6 children please see the Guidelines for schools

Please submit a visitors’ booking form, even at the start of any provisional enquiry.

This makes it much easier to establish what your needs are from the start and that you understand our terms and conditions. Upon receipt of a completed form, we will then contact you to discuss your proposed requirements.

The form is available here

After completing the on-line form click the box ‘Submit‘ and it will automatically be sent to visits@exmouthlifeboat.org.uk.

We have a high demand for Tours in the summer, so please book well in advance.

Please Note: For all visits, parking is available at the large council managed Foxholes car park opposite the Lifeboat Station – parking by the Lifeboat Station is for RNLI personnel only.