Hello! I am travelling england by train this summer and am leaving penzance and heading to port isaac and then tintagel. How close can I get by train to port isaac and then is there bus service to said town and then into tintagel? Is there perhaps a bus tour to these two places?
Posted by
Bainbridge Island
3298 posts
Can't wait to hear the answers,.
Posted by
Rockford, IL, USA
11 posts
Hi Laura,
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I'm planning to stay a couple of nights in Tintagel this summer also. As it's the first time I've visited, I can only relay the information I discovered from my planning and the recommendation of the B&B owner where I'm staying.
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Bodmin Parkway is the railway station to disembark and Western Greyhound runs the buses to both Tintagel and Port Isaac. Since I'm going straight to Tintagel, I was advised to take the 595 from Bodmin Parkway to Wadebridge to Camelford to Tintagel. The 584 bus will also get me to Tintagel, but takes longer because it goes through Port Isaac and Padstow; my B&B owner called it the scenic route. You can view downloaded timetables here. I think there is a National Express coach which runs very infrequently, but I wasn't able to match up times with my schedule. As a matter of fact, since I'm leaving Tintagel on a Sunday, the B&B owner arranged for a cab to take me to Bodmin after my stay since I couldn't find any buses that run on Sunday.
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While this is my first trip to Tintagel, I have stayed in St. Ives in previous years. There, Oates Travel runs day trips during the summer to various villages and towns in Cornwall. I've traveled to Port Isaac/Padstow; Truro; Fowey/Charlestown and the Minack Theater with them on each of my previous stays and enjoyed the experience. While the website doesn't currently list all their summer offerings, I usually stop in their office once I arrive to see what they have scheduled for the week (or so) that I plan to stay in St. Ives.
Posted by
Long Beach, California, USA
3398 posts
I have traveled quite a bit in this area of England and, to be honest, you should simplify your life and just rent a car. You can certainly get to these places via public transport but you will eat up a lot of time doing so. The countryside around these places is so beautiful that you will miss a lot if you are on buses and trains. Exeter is the perfect place to pick up and return a car for this region - just a thought! :)
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16895 posts
You could pick up a car near Penzance rail station, about $27/day for the cheapest manual car, not including insurance, for a 3-day rental, for instance through Auto Europe. Rick's book for England has some coverage of this region (but not the Great Britain book). www.travelinesw.com is mentioned in the Tintagel section and Penzance-Tintagel by public transport is described as 3 - 4 hours with 1 or more connections.