Bus & coach

To plan your journey across Britain by bus and coach, use the VisitBritain journey planner.

Coach travel and Tours

Britain's coach services are privatised and run by several different companies. Many of these companies offer special tours to popular historical destinations around the UK.

Travelling by coach

Britain's coaches are privatised and lots of operators run thousands of routes across the country. Coach travel is usually a lot cheaper than train travel, but takes longer.

The main coach companies are:

• National Express - Nationwide coach travel
• Megabus - Budget coach company famously offering £1 fares around Britain
• easyBus - Low-cost airport transfers
• Scottish citylink - Scotland’s main coach travel company

Many coach companies offer special tours to and from popular tourist destinations all over Britain. Coach tours are a great way to see the sights of Britain. They normally last for a few days and the price includes a hotel stay and sometimes discounted rates to popular attractions. Some companies offer discounts for group bookings.

Here's a list of some UK coach tour operators:

• Andrews of Tideswell - Nationwide tours
• City Sightseeing - Open-top bus tours around Britain
• Cooks Coaches - Nationwide tours
• Original London Sightseeing - London sightseeing tours
• D-Way Travel - Nationwide tours
• Dans Luxury Travel - London sightseeing tours
• David Palmer Travel - Nationwide tours
• Karen Platt Garden Tours - Nationwide tours
• Paul James Coaches - Nationwide tours
• Scottish Tours - Scotland tours
• Scot It Scotland - Scotland tours
• Telford's Coaches - Nationwide tours
• Trafalgar Tours  - Nationwide tours

You can buy coach tickets from our online shop (National Express only), on operator websites or at coach stations. You usually can't buy tickets on board a coach, so it's best to buy them in advance. Tickets are often cheaper the further in advance you book them.

Buses

Public buses outside London are run by a number of private companies. They're a great way to get around cities and towns, and run regularly.

Every city and town in Britain has a local bus service. These services are privatised and run by separate companies. For local timetables and route information, check Traveline.

The cost of a bus ticket normally depends on how far you're travelling. Single and return fares are available on some buses, but you normally need to buy a ticket for each individual journey (single tickets only).

You can buy your ticket when you get on board a bus, by telling the driver where you're going. 1-day and weekly travel cards are available in some towns, and these can be bought from the driver or from an information centre at the bus station. Tickets are valid for each separate journey rather than for a period of time, so if you get off the bus you'll need to buy a new ticket when getting on another bus.

For information on London Buses check out Transport for London's bus pages.