I've always thought that Cornwall, with it's beautiful coastlines and pretty harbour villages, would be an amazing area to see by tour bus, but in all my years of holidaying there, I'd never seen or heard of any in the area.
That all changed on our first night in Perranporth last September, when an Atlantic-Coaster open-top double decker bus came cruising past us, promoting tours to St. Ives and Padstow. We both turned our heads, and I think we knew there and then what we'd be doing that weekend. We looked the tour operator up back at the caravan, and decided it would be the perfect way to ease ourselves in to our holiday. It just so happened that the tour bus came right in to our holiday park, Perran Sands, which was clearly a sign we had to go.
Two days later, on our second full day in Cornwall, the morning sea haze parted and transformed in to blue skies and blistering sunshine, blessing us with the perfect weather for sight-seeing. We stocked up on cold drinks, and drove along to the touring reception, where the tour buses pick up at Perran Sands, having decided we'd get on the first bus that arrived and see where we ended up. We didn't have to wait long for a bus to come rumbling along, and I was pleased to discover it was the route that would take us west along the North coast of Cornwall from Perranporth to St. Ives. (I bloody love St. Ives).
We bought our tickets from the (very grumpy) driver, which came to just £18 for the two of us, and made ourselves comfortable on the upper deck. It was already half full with other sight-seers, but everyone was spaced out enough that I didn't feel too concerned about catching Covid.
We left Perran Sands around 11:30am, and headed in to Perranporth. Its first stop was at one of my favourite places- Perranporth Beach. The tide was out past Chapel Rock, and the beautiful golden sandy beach was already filling up with people and their dogs enjoying the late summer sunshine. It looked so idyllic, I was tempted to get off the bus to do the same, but alas, the beach would have to wait. I settled for a few photos while passengers came and went, and then we were on our way again.
From Perranporth, the Atlantic Coaster took us along the North coast of Cornwall, through beautiful countryside, pretty Cornish towns, and stunning coastlines including stops in St. Agnes, Portreath, Porth Towan, Hayle, and St. Ives- and others in between. Apart from Perranporth and St. Ives, I had never visited any of the other places before, despite three and a half decades of holidays in the area. It was great to see lots of places I'd never seen before, and to view Cornwall through new eyes. We passed so many beautiful beaches and estuaries, rugged coastlines with azure seas, working harbours with boats beached at low tide and the scent of seaweed heavy in the air, and peaceful seaside villages sheltered by hills laden with orange and purple heathers. In between, we'd pass miles of crop and dairy farms backing on to the sea, and moors of heather and scrub, drifting from scorching sunshine in to chilly pockets of sea haze that felt like we were cruising through the clouds.
St. Agnes was a sleepy little village strung with colourful bunting that looked like a good place to stop for a quiet drink in one of its pubs or cafes.
I instantly fell in love with Portreath, a pretty seaside village on the North Coast surrounded by green hills blooming with heather on three sides, and edged by a beautiful sandy beach on the fourth. It looked so picturesque, and I'm still dying to go back and visit it properly on foot. Hopefully we will this September.
There was so much to see in the bustling port town of Hayle, from the harbour to a beautiful estuary. The tide was out when we drove along it, but the scenery was still gorgeous.
Like most city tour buses, you could get on and off the buses at the designated stops to explore places as many times as you wanted, but as we were both still recovering from the pain of the journey down, we just rode the bus in a loop, which took a little under four hours. We did have to disembark in St. Ives for ten minutes while the driver had a break- which was no hardship as we had a gorgeous view of the harbour and sea to enjoy. It was so beautiful in the hazy sunshine, and the water looked turquoise and crystal clear under the blue sky. It was lovely to take it all in, and watch the boats and paddle-boarders on the water. I will never tire of seeing St. Ives; it's one of my favourite places, and easily one of the most beautiful places in England.
After our quick break in St. Ives, we were back on board, and enjoying the journey in reverse, noticing things on the other side of the road that we'd missed on the way down, like cute little graveyards hidden behind thickets of trees. It wasn't as interesting on the way back, but I still enjoyed the views and being out in the sunshine, as well as getting a second look at the places that had caught my eye on the way in.
The only issue we had with the Atlantic Coaster was that its returning drop off point at Perran Sands wasn't the same place it picked up. The bus stop was across the road from the holiday park, and quite a walk from the touring reception, where we'd left the car, which really isn't practical for people with disabilities or chronic pain. And probably not for people with young kids or the elderly, either. Even if you're abled-bodied, it will leave you with a trek back to your accommodation because Perran Sands is huge. Neither of us could comfortably walk it, so we had little choice but to get off the bus at the stop before in Perranporth, and grab a taxi back to the site instead. Luckily, it was only a mile down the road, so it only cost us a fiver, but still...
We had a forty-five minute wait for a taxi, so we treated ourselves to gelato from a great little ice cream shop just behind Perranporth Beach car park called Pavilion Ice, and ate them on the sea front with a gorgeous view of the beach. The Ferrero Rocher and Kinder Bueno gelatos I had were so delicious, and just what I needed in that heat. I'd highly recommend them. I'm definitely going back to try some other flavours this September.
Despite the slight inconvenience, neither of us minded sitting on the sea front in the scorching sunshine for almost an hour. Perranporth Beach is another of my favourite places, and really, who can be unhappy sitting under cornflower-blue skies, looking out at a golden sandy beach and aquamarine sea, and watching the waves roll on to the shore?? Not me, that's for sure. It was a beautiful day, and nice just to relax, take in the view, people-watch, and see all the cute dogs having so much fun on the beach. I could've sat there all day.
It was nearing five P.M. by the time we got back to our caravan to put our feet up with a cold drink after an enjoyable day of sight seeing. Our trip filled the day nicely, without taking the whole day, but if you used the Atlantic Coaster to get off and explore some of the destinations on foot, you could easily spend the entire day sight-seeing and making memories, and really get your money's worth.
We had a great time exploring the Cornish coast in the late summer sunshine, and it was a great way to see more of Cornwall- and scope out places to go back and explore on our future travels- without over-exerting ourselves. Chronic pain limits how far I can go on foot, but taking the Atlantic Coaster allowed me to take in all of those beautiful places and even spot new things in places I knew well, while saving energy sitting reasonably comfortably on my backside. And all for the bargain price of £9! Not bad for over three and a half hours of sight-seeing.
We enjoyed the Atlantic coaster so much, we're already planning to take one again on our next trip to Cornwall. There are other tours I'd love to take, including one that goes down to The Lizard peninsular, on the south coast, and another that travels west along to Land's End. The Padstow tour sounds great, too, but being more familiar with the places on its route, I'd rather explore other areas first.
If you're ever in Cornwall and want to do some inexpensive sight-seeing, give the Atlantic Coaster a try. I couldn't recommend it to you more.
What's the best place you've ever explored by tour bus?
