Self-Catering & Resorts

Travel to Cornwall by car

It takes less than five hours to get from London or Birmingham to the heart of Cornwall by car.

Drive along the M4 motorway from London, or M6 from Manchester, and then the M5 to Exeter and finally either the A30, that is mostly dual carriageway, or the A38 passing Plymouth and Saltash into South East Cornwall.

Alternatively if you enter Cornwall from North Devon, there is the scenic A39 Atlantic Highway running through Bude, which you can join from Junction 27 on the M5.

Due to the high volume of traffic on Cornwall's roads during the summer months the main routes can become congested especially at weekends. Travelling overnight or outside peak rush hours is recommended to avoid long delays.

• To plan your journey use the AA Route Planner for a tailor made travel plan with timings and mileage
• For information on possible delays or roadwork's throughout the UK or in Cornwall visit Traffic Watch
• Travelling to Cornwall with a caravan? Check out this Caravan Towing guide

Travel to Cornwall by coach and bus

National Express operate a full service into Cornwall as far as Penzance, Megabuss also go to a few towns including Newquay and Falmouth.

Coach travel times from London or Birmingham to the city of Truro are around 7-8 hours

Many tour operators offer coach holidays to Cornwall, contact your local travel agent for details.

For information on public transport, including local bus timetables, once you are in Cornwall [click here].(https://www.firstbus.co.uk/cornwall/plan-journey/timetables).

If you are bringing a coach to Cornwall, did you know Cornwall Council now offers a weekly coach rover ticket. This is available for all car parks where coaches are permitted and costs £16.60 for 24 hours or £55.35 for 7 days and £38.75 for 4 days.

The A30 runs down through the centre of Cornwall, leaving the M5 at Exeter. It enters Cornwall at Launceston, crosses Bodmin Moor and passes Bodmin. Once past there roads branch off to St Austell and Newquay and a little further on, Truro.

The A30 continues past Penzance all the way to Lands's End.

Leaving Exeter, the other major road into Cornwall is the A38. This crosses the Tamar Bridge at Plymouth and serves the towns and villages of south-east Cornwall before terminating at Bodmin where it joins the A30.

Coming down the North Coast, the A39 (also known as the Atlantic Highway) is good for access to Bude, Wadebridge and Padstow, and all the lovely north coast beaches. It continues onto Truro and eventually Falmouth.

The A390 is the main road serving St Austell, running from Tavistock in Devon, across the Tamar at Gunnislake and onto Liskeard. From St Austell it continues down to Truro.

Running north. and adjacent to the Devon/Cornwall border, the A388 runs from Saltash up to Launceston.

The A94 runs from Falmouth to Penzance via Helston where the A3083 runs down to Lizard Point.

GWR operate high speed train services frequently from London Paddington station including the Night Riviera Sleeper Service to Penzance. There are also direct trains daily from Bristol and beyond. Find out more at www.gwr.com

Once in Cornwall, there's a great rail network for getting around the county, ideal for when the roads are busy in the summer. Give the driver a rest and grab a cheap day return to St Ives or Looe. Sit back and enjoy the scenery on the Tamar Valley Line or head to the beach at Newquay or Falmouth. For more info, go to GWR

For National Rail enquiries telephone 08457 484950.

The First Group co-ordinate bus services from many Cornish stations.

Park-and-ride schemes run in season at Liskeard (for Looe) and St Erth (for St. Ives).