Getting Here

It's easy to reach the South West Coast Path ....

By Car

The south west is well served by major trunk roads (M5, A303, A30) and most of the gateway start and finish points along the Coast Path are served by a network of A and B roads. However, they can all become very busy during the main summer season.

Car parks are readily available at all coastal towns. At more remote locations along the Coast Path you will find informal car parks, normally managed by landowners or Parish Councils. Some car parks are free, but there are normally charges (Pay & Display, staffed ticket kiosk, honesty box).  Driving directions can be obtained from the Google Map links on each walks page, and where possible we’ve included Postcodes of car parks for use by sat navs.

If you are planning to walk for two days or more, you will need to arrange longer term car parking. The accommodation listing maintained by the South West Coast Path Association and Luggage Transfers has details of those places that can offer long-term parking, but you are advised to confirm this with the proprietor when booking.

If you arrive in the region at one of the airports, ferry terminals or many of the mainline train stations, you can easily arrange to hire a car - click on the button for more details.

By Train

Catching the train. is a great way to get to the Coast Path, as you don't have to worry about returning to the start of your walk to pick up your car. The world famous Great Western Railway built by Isambard Kingdom Brunels stretches down to Penzance, and branch lines head off to many of the resorts along the path - and the views out of your window are stunning. To make it easy to plan a walk along the Coast Path using the train, we've created a number of short break ideas - just click on the button to find out more.

Both ends of the Path can be reached from London by a combination of train and bus: 
To get to the Minehead end of the Path, take a train to Taunton (about 2 hours from London), and then a bus or bus and steam train to Minehead (about 1¼ hours). 
To reach the Poole Harbour end of the Path, take a train to Bournemouth (about 1 ¾ hours from London), and then two buses to South Haven Point via Sandbanks ferry (about 1 hour) 
Barnstaple, Newquay, Hayle, St Ives, Penzance, Falmouth, Par, Looe, Plymouth, Paignton, Dawlish, Exmouth, Weymouth and Swanage are towns along the Path with a rail service.

You can find out times, and prices click on the Trainline button, and if you book a ticket, we'll get a small commission which we'll put towards makin this website and the path even better.

By Coach

The following towns along the route of the Path are served by long distance coach/bus:
Minehead, Ilfracombe, Braunton, Barnstaple, Fremington, Instow, Bideford, Northam, Westward Ho!, Bude, Newquay, Perranporth, St Agnes, Hayle, Carbis Bay, St Ives, Penzance, St Erth, Porthleven, Mullion, Lizard, Falmouth, (St Austell), Plymouth, Brixham, Paignton, Torquay, Teignmouth, Dawlish, Starcross, Sidmouth, Lyme Regis, Charmouth, (Bridport), Weymouth, Swanage.

Click on the coach button, for timetable and booking information from National Express who are the main operator of coach services.

By Air

The nearest airports to the Coast Path are:

Exeter: approx 11 miles/18km from the path in South and East Devon

Newquay: 1 mile from the path in North Cornwall

By Ferry

You can reach the continent from our two main ports:

Plymouth (on the Path) - from France and Spain

Poole (5 miles/8km from Poole Harbour end of the Path) - from France

Both of these are served by Brittany ferries.

Local buses - getting around whilst you're here

Local buses run a fairly regular service along most of the coast, meaning that there are many sections of the path that you can do a day’s walk, without having to retrace your steps to the path. To help you find out times, on our walk maps you can find the nearest bus stops, and clicking on these will bring up timetable information.

If you are using the bus, it is better to catch it out a the beginning of the day, rather than the end, as that way, you’ve no worries about missing it if you end up taking longer than you anticipated, or if you are quicker not having to wait for it.