Cheap Coach & Bus Tickets in the UK and Europe

2024 Bus and Coach Winter Sales with Omio

From travel with National Express and Flixbus in the UK, to OUIBUS, Alsa, Avanza, Eurolines and RegioJet throughout Europe, Omio is the official coach and bus travel partner able to offer the widest range of Winter Sales deals this Christmas season. Book early to get the best offers on a fantastic range of destinations, so you can spend more on the festivities!

Find Your Best CoachTicket with Omio

Omio is the booking and comparison site for trains, buses, flights and ferries. We are also the official partners to major bus companies all across Europe. We work closely with bus and coach companies such as National Express, Flixbus and many more. With Omio you can always find the best coach ticket for you in the UK and all over Europe, helping you to save both time and money. All payments are protected and secure and we offer mobile tickets on thousands of routes, thanks to our cooperation with over 1,000 travel companies, so you can find the best ticket for your journey.

Travel by coach with Omio

Ready to plan and book your coach tickets for your next journey? Use our search tool at the top of the page to look up departure and arrival times for bus journeys on your chosen route and to book cheap coach tickets. In need of inspiration? Look further down our page or click the buttons below for a selection of popular coach journeys, how to save money on coach travel and expert travel advice.

Coaches in the United Kingdom

As the birthplace of London's iconic red double-decker buses, it is no surprise that bus travel is a popular method of inter-city, urban and rural travel in the UK. Buses are also used to transport travellers between airports and urban areas. Even with the strength of the trains in the UK, buses and coaches have long played an important part in helping travellers traverse the UK. During the weekend, coach journeys can run on a reduced service but most locations are still reachable. Planning a coach trip in the UK can offer travellers a lot of options in terms of price and destinations, while also being one of the most convenient ways to get around.

Explore more of the UK

Brits might like to travel abroad for their holidays, but there are plenty of great travel opportunities within the country just waiting to be discovered. London has the draw of a capital city, as does Edinburgh, but the UK’s other cities are just as tempting. Travel to Manchester or Liverpool for friendly Northern hospitality, visit Oxford or Cambridge to experience that beloved University experience or head to Brighton for city life by the sea.

It’s not just the UK’s cities that have lots to offer, the countryside is just as spectacular. Explore the wild and expansive landscape of the Pembrokeshire Coast in Wales or marvel at natural wonders such as the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland or Cheddar Gorge in Dorset. With Omio, exploring the UK has never been easier, our app lets you choose from trains, buses and flights so you can find the best way to travel for your journey.

Popular coach journeys in the UK

There are plenty of coach routes throughout the UK, making coach holidays popular amongst Brits. Bus connections are often a cheaper alternative to train journeys, and the well-connected system means they serve all popular destinations throughout the country. Coach routes also serve extremely rural areas that train services don't operate to, making it possible to get to some of the UK’s most remote destinations without having to drive. Coach and bus services in the UK take great advantage of the extensive network of motorways that cross the country, as well as some of the smaller or regional road networks to provide services to just about anywhere. This can be important in places such as Wales, where there are no motorways.

Coaches to and from London

Coaches to and from the English capital remain the most popular journeys to take by coach in the UK, and travellers can find a wide variety of short distance and long-distance services from London. One of the busiest routes is between London and Oxford, which takes just under two hours. The Oxford Tube is one of the most popular services offering coaches from London to Oxford, with buses leaving every 20 minutes during peak hours and hourly during the night. For long-distance journeys leaving London, the Megabus offers an overnight sleeper coach service from London to Edinburgh, taking just over nine hours. There are also several bus routes which drive straight past world-famous attractions such as Stonehenge or the Angel of the North near Newcastle. Booking coach and bus tickets between the UK and Europe is a great way to travel to the continent on the cheap. Popular journeys such as coaches from London to Paris start from London Victoria Coach Station, travelling to Europe by bus offers a cheap alternative to high-speed​ rail options.

Major bus companies in the UK

As coach travel is a popular way for many to journey across the UK and Europe, it can often mean that cheap coach tickets are easy to come by. Regular services by a variety of national and regional coach providers will often offer cheap tickets to some of the UK’s most popular destinations. National Express, Megabus, Flixbus and Scottish Citylink are some of the main coach companies found across the UK bus network—all of which offer cheap travel to locations throughout the UK. Since the appearance of other large national coach providers in the coach travel market, most coach companies offer low fares and no-frills services. Besides these, there are many regional services provided by companies such as Arriva Bus, Metro Bus and Stagecoach. Some coach companies also offer journeys to continental Europe.

Types of coach services in the UK

Both long distance and short distance buses are available in the UK. Nationwide coach companies, such as National Express, operate alongside many smaller, regional companies who may serve one particular area. Large nationally operated coach services are usually the best choice for intercity journeys, and smaller services are an excellent choice when travelling through some of the more rural areas of the country. Municipal services are also available within urban areas and often are the best way to travel within cities at night when many or all of the train services have stopped running.

Onboard Facilities and Services

Most large coach companies now include WiFi and air conditioning as standard facilities for their services. Passengers requiring child seats may also find that the transport company can provide these, however, it is always best to check ahead of time. Most on-board facilities are only provided on services from larger companies covering long distance journeys. Many UK transit coach services offer low-entry vehicles for those with limited mobility, clear stop displays and announcements. Free Wi-Fi is becoming more prevalent on some regional coach and bus networks.

How to find cheap coach tickets: get the best price for you

Compared to other methods of transport, finding cheap coach tickets is much easier. Often, next-day coach departures can cost less than £20, even for longer journeys. But there are always more savings to be made! Our list of tips is all you need to find cheap coach tickets.

• Be flexible: If you want to find the cheapest coach ticket for your desired route then be open to what your travel. The cheapest buses depart during off-peak hours so keep this in mind before you search.
• Book well in advance: Perhaps the oldest trick in the book, but by purchasing your trip in advance yu can ensure to get the cheapest price. We recommend scouting for tickets at least one month before your departure date.
• Check overnight bus routes: Depending on the route, overnight buses can be much less costly than daytime coaches. There’s also the bonus of saving money on accommodation.

Coach routes that cost less than £10

To showcase the potential savings passengers can make by switching to bus travel, we’ve found some of the most popular coach routes in the UK for under £10. We're not talking about minor bus routes either, but some of the most popular connections in the UK. Not to mention an array of our selected bus routes take around the same time as their train counterpart. Browse our results below and start saving money on your coach ticket.

Coach and Bus Tickets: Travel in the UK - FAQs

We get that sometimes taking the coach can be a tad more complicated than it needs to be. At Omio, we care about our customers getting from A to B without getting a headache in between. That’s why we’ve answered our most regularly asked questions regarding bus and coach tickets and travel in the UK so you can feel at ease before boarding your coach!

Travelling by coach in Europe

European coach travel is one of the most efficient and cheapest ways to explore the continent. This makes taking the coach around Europe so popular. There are plenty of bus companies which provide thousands of connections city to city and country to country. With Omio you can search, compare and book coach trips in Europe with ease. You can also explore our most popular European bus destinations below for some inspiration!

Popular Coach Routes Across Europe

Coaches from London to Paris	Duration: 8h30	from £17,00
Coaches from Barcelona to Madrid	Duration: 7h35	from £30,00
Coaches from Paris to London	Duration: 9h00	from £17,00
Coaches from Paris to Brussels	Duration: 6h10	from £9,00
Coaches from Madrid to Barcelona	Duration: 7h35	from £30,00
Coaches from Madrid to Valencia	Duration: 4h15	from £15,00
Coaches from Paris to Amsterdam	Duration: 6h30	from £14,00
Coaches from Budapest to Vienna	Duration: 2h45	from £8,00
Coaches from Madrid to Malaga	Duration: 5h50	from £16,00

BlaBlaBus is now called BlaBlaCar Bus

BlaBlaBus has had another rebrand! Once called Ouibus and then BlaBlaBus, it's now called BlaBlaCar Bus. Don't worry, we're a bit confused too. But whether it’s BlaBlaBus or BlaBlaCar Bus, the good thing is that everyone still knows what you’re talking about and the quality of service remains the same!

Popular Coach Routes in Spain

Popular Coach Routes in France

Tips to get you through a long coach journey

Long coach journeys can be tough if you're not fully prepared. The boredom can take over, and falling asleep against a window can be difficult. If you're well prepared, long bus journeys can be a breeze, check out our top tips below to see what you should prepare before you set off on your coach holiday.

• Bring plenty of food and snacks, such as sandwiches and fruit, as well as plenty of water.
• Have something to rest your head on: pick up a travel pillow for maximum comfort.
• Don’t forget a blanket, scarf or comfy jumper: what you wear will contribute to your overall comfort, make sure you're wearing something comfy and have a small blanket in case the A/C is blustery. If the coach ride is really long, a travel pillow will make a world of difference to your comfort.
• Planning on sleeping? Pick up some earplugs to block out the sound of chatty travellers.
• Speaking of getting some shuteye, an eye mask will be useful to block out the light.
• If you suffer from travel sickness, get yourself some sea-bands that go around your wrists, or some motion sickness tablets.
• Don’t forget some entertainment! Pack a book or kindle as well as a couple of magazines. If you have a tablet or laptop, download some films or a TV series before the journey. If you're only bringing your phone, make sure to have some podcast episodes downloaded beforehand.

Popular coach routes: