Penzance Vintage Bus Day – Free Rides

Enjoy a day out with a difference, travelling by vintage buses & coaches across the West Cornwall peninsula, for free.

Enjoy a day out with a difference, travelling by vintage buses & coaches across the West Cornwall peninsula, for free.
Be transported back in time to different eras with some 40 vehicles dating from 1947 through to 2000. Many used to operate in Cornwall so the sights and sounds of bygone travel will be recreated for photographers and passengers alike.

All trips are free with no pre-booking or tickets required. The event hub is Penzance bus station and all trips go out and back – you can get off at the destinations and return on a later service.

Souvenir Programmes are available with vehicles details, route information and timetables so you can plan your day and find out more about the heritage. Illustrated articles to entertain you include: a feature article considering the coach services that have served Penzance over the decades.; the nuts and bolts of keeping the heritage fleets on the road; and a poem by Gray Lightfoot to put us in the mood for an enjoyable day.

Souvenir programmes can be purchased in advance by post via the website (£8 inc p&p) or from Sullivan’s Diner by the Bus Station for £6 from 8 April as well as on the day.

The event will start with a cavalcade through Penzance and along the Promenade from 09:30.

Trips start at 10:00 and run throughout the day, the final service returning by 17:00.

There will be early feeder services into Penzance from St Ives and Camborne – details will be provided on the website.

The event is jointly organised by two registered educational charities (the Thames Valley & Great Western Omnibus Trust and the Cornwall Bus Preservation Society) who are committed to preserving vintage buses & coaches so you can enjoy bygone travel and learn about the relevance to public transport today.

Both organisations will have stands at the event and visitors are welcome to come and find out more about the opportunities to get involved with the vehicle and archive preservation activities as volunteers.