Amy
2026-06-28
“Great customer service and communications before the trip. Very clear and flexible as well.”
Planning your journey...
Group visits to the National Marine Aquarium in Plymouth start at 12 people, with free entry for the coach driver.
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The National Marine Aquarium sits on Rope Walk in Coxside, Plymouth, and has run group visits since it opened in 1998. Groups of 12 or more qualify for a discounted rate, making coach hire or minibus hire an efficient way for schools, clubs, and societies to travel together rather than arranging individual tickets and transport.
There is no on-site coach parking at the aquarium itself. Operators use the drop-off and pick-up point at the rear of the building to set down passengers before moving on to park. The nearest dedicated coach parking, Coach Station Drop-off Car Park, is 0.72 miles away, around a 14 minute walk, and charges a fee under permissive access terms. A licensed operator will factor this into the pickup plan so the group is not left waiting kerbside.
One coach driver per vehicle is exempt from the group headcount and receives free entry, which operators should confirm when booking the visit. School groups are accommodated, and parties booked onto the Interactive Tour have access to lunch space, useful for organisers planning a full day out rather than a short stop.
The aquarium is fully accessible via ramps and lifts, with disabled toilets and clear wayfinding signage throughout, so operators can plan for passengers with mobility needs without special arrangement. When you book minibus hire for the National Marine Aquarium, it is worth confirming group size and any accessibility requirements with the venue directly, since discounts and driver exemptions apply per coach rather than per passenger.
Break requirements follow GB drivers hours rules, so longer routes such as London need a scheduled stop each way.
The Short Version
The National Marine Aquarium opened in 1998 on Rope Walk in Coxside, Plymouth, and has welcomed group visitors ever since. Groups of 12 or more qualify for a discounted admission rate, with the coach driver entering free of charge. There's no on-site coach parking, so vehicles use the rear drop-off point before parking nearby. The venue is fully accessible, with ramps, lifts, and clear signage throughout, and school groups and Interactive Tour bookings can access lunch space for longer visits.
Availability varies by date and pickup point.
Send us the plan and we will quote the whole thing.
Get Your QuoteDisclaimer: Prices shown are guide prices only and are based on existing bookings. Final costs may vary depending on travel distance, locations, fuel prices, pickup and dropoff points, vehicle availability, travel dates, waiting time, journey duration, luggage requirements and any additional services requested.
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Get Your Quote| Vehicle type | Seats | Starting | Ideal for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minibus | 8 to 16 | from £180 to £350 per day | Small groups, airport runs and tight access |
| Mid-Size Coach | 24 to 35 | from £300 to £600 per day | Weddings, day trips and mid sized parties |
| Standard Coach | 36 to 49 | from £450 to £800 per day | School trips, match days and longer distances |
| Large Coach | 50 to 70 | from £600 to £1,200 per day | Festivals, stadium events and corporate away days |
Seats: 8 to 16
Starting per hour: from £180 to £350 per day
Ideal for: Small groups, airport runs and tight access
Seats: 24 to 35
Starting per hour: from £300 to £600 per day
Ideal for: Weddings, day trips and mid sized parties
Seats: 36 to 49
Starting per hour: from £450 to £800 per day
Ideal for: School trips, match days and longer distances
Seats: 50 to 70
Starting per hour: from £600 to £1,200 per day
Ideal for: Festivals, stadium events and corporate away days
Disclaimer: Prices shown are guide prices only and are based on existing bookings. Final costs may vary depending on travel distance, locations, fuel prices, pickup and dropoff points, vehicle availability, travel dates, waiting time, journey duration, luggage requirements and any additional services requested.
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Get Your Quote| Standard Minibus | Executive Minibus | Luxury Coach | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Comfortable Seating | |||
| Professional Driver | |||
| Passenger Seatbelts | |||
| Air Conditioning | Not included | ||
| USB Charging | Not included | ||
| Extra Legroom | Not included | ||
| Premium Interior | Not included | ||
| Leather Seating | Not included | Not included | |
| Onboard Entertainment | Not included | ||
| Luggage Space |
Comfortable Seating
Professional Driver
Passenger Seatbelts
Air Conditioning
USB Charging
Extra Legroom
Premium Interior
Leather Seating
Onboard Entertainment
Luggage Space

4.4/5 based on 439 reviews
Airport Transfers
Corporate Travel
Weddings
Shared Coach Parking
The details that affect your booking.
The National Marine Aquarium offers a group discount for parties of 12 people or more. This applies whether the group is a school, club, or society, making coach hire or minibus hire a cost effective way to travel together and book as a single party.
No, the aquarium does not have on-site coach parking. There is a drop-off and pick-up point at the rear of the building for passengers, and the nearest dedicated coach parking is about 0.72 miles away, a 14 minute walk, and charges a fee.
Yes, one coach driver per vehicle is exempt from the group headcount and receives free entry to the National Marine Aquarium. Operators booking group visits should confirm this driver exemption directly with the venue when arranging tickets.
Yes, school group visits are available at the National Marine Aquarium, and groups booked onto the Interactive Tour also get access to lunch space. This makes it practical to combine coach travel with a full day visit for students.
Coach hire questions for the National Marine Aquarium
Common questions from group organisers booking coach or minibus travel to the National Marine Aquarium in Plymouth.

The National Marine Aquarium offers a discounted group rate for parties of 12 people or more, covering schools, clubs, and societies. Booking coach hire for a group of this size keeps the trip organised under one arrival and one ticket booking.

There's no coach parking on site, so operators use the drop-off and pick-up point at the rear of the building to set passengers down first. The nearest coach parking is 0.72 miles away, roughly a 14 minute walk, and carries a parking fee.

The aquarium is fully accessible via ramps and lifts, with disabled toilets and clear wayfinding signage throughout the building. Groups booking minibus hire for the National Marine Aquarium can plan visits without arranging separate access routes.
No account, no deposit to enquire, no waiting on hold.
1. Tell Us The Journey
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2. We Match An Operator
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3. You Get One Clear Price
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4. Travel Together
Your driver arrives at the agreed pickup and the group travels as one.
BusRoute is a UK coach and minibus booking platform. We do not own vehicles. We connect groups with licensed operators who do, which means you are matched to the operator best placed to run your journey rather than to whoever happens to own the nearest coach.
Every operator we work with holds a valid PSV operator licence and full passenger insurance. Drivers on school and youth bookings are DBS checked as standard.
2026-06-28
“Great customer service and communications before the trip. Very clear and flexible as well.”
2026-06-22
“Good and accommodating bus-rental Great at following up with news and update for the journey, and good at accommodating the bus-rentals for our needs. :-)”
2026-07-24
“We booked Bus Route for our group of 35 passengers travelling from London to Ipswich return trio and the experience was excellent from start to finish.On our way to the venue, the road was unexpectedly closed when we were only about 15 minutes away. Our driver remained calm, patient, and professional throughout, finding an alternative route without any stress or delay on our part. We really appreciated how composed and experienced he was in handling the situation.The coach was clean, comfortable, and the air conditioning worked perfectly, which made a huge difference as we were travelling during an extremely hot day. Everyone in our group was able to relax and enjoy the journey.Overall, we had a fantastic experience on both the outbound and return trips. The service was reliable, comfortable, and well-organised. I would highly recommend Bus Route to anyone looking for coach transport for a large group. Thank you for helping make our trip so enjoyable!”
2026-06-27
“Very helpful, great communication and would definitely use again!”
2026-07-04
“Excellent customer service from start to finish. Easy booking system and cost was the best we could find. Driver was brilliant with all our group and we will definitely be using this company again”
2026-07-04
“Booked for a hen do for 20 girls. Seamless experience! Drivers were great, very prompt and swift communication throughout. Very reasonable quote too compared with other providers. Would recommend!”
2026-07-06
“Great service on time nice comfortable bus would highly reccomend”
2026-07-27
“Really good, clean vehicle, friendly driver, who was talkative n helped with our bags,”
2026-06-27
“Fantastic trip. I was a little concerned that the bus might not turn up but can’t compliment the service enough on time lots of communication and driver was really nice. The busses themselves were clean and actually of a lot higher quality than I was expecting will definitely use again.”
2026-06-24
“Absolutely amazing company everything went smoothly & the students loved it door to door pick up and drop off. Worth every penny”
2026-06-27
“Great communication throughout, arrived on time for both ends of our journey, driver was great”
2026-07-27
“We booked through this company as we needed to organise transport for guests to our son’s wedding. The staff were amazing from our first contact. On the day the driver was cheery courteous and helpful.”
2026-07-04
“Great service! I hired BusRoute to provide a shuttle bus service for guests at my wedding in Gordon, Scotland. The bus was perfect and arrived promptly both for drop-off and pick-ups. The customer service and the communication with the company was fantastic. And it was very affordable. Two thumbs up!”
2026-06-27
“Driver arrived promptly. He was very polite and ensured we were happy throughout the journey. Arrived at our destination safely and on time. Minibus had air conditioning and plenty space for all our luggage and passengers.”
2026-06-27
“We hired two buses for our event last Saturday. The drivers were prompt and accommodated all our needs. I just want to say a huge thank you to the team which were absolutely lovely, we definitely will be using this service again in future.”
2026-06-18
“The booking process with Busroute was easy, and follow up communication excellent. Despite a 6a.m. start the bus was there at 5.40, ready to load and ensure a prompt getaway. Our driver was very friendly, helpful and courteous and helped with unloading at the airport. The return to Swansea from the airport was equally easy and comfortable with an ontime pick-up and arrival back in Swansea. I highly recommend BusRoute and0 their partners.”
2026-06-27
“Busroute were able to accommodate my plans effectively and for a good price. It was easy to communicate with the team from planning phases to the day itself - Peter was an especially huge help in making ideal plans a reality. The team are very open to questions, feedback, and care greatly about offering the best experience for you.”
2026-07-20
“Great driver and polite, the company was easy to work with, no issues”
2026-06-18
“Driver was early was easy to book and a very good price in comparison to other places i looked”
2026-06-19
“Driver was friendly and helpful. Booking process was easy and service was exceptional.”
2026-06-28
“Great customer service and communications before the trip. Very clear and flexible as well.”
2026-06-22
“Good and accommodating bus-rental Great at following up with news and update for the journey, and good at accommodating the bus-rentals for our needs. :-)”
2026-07-24
“We booked Bus Route for our group of 35 passengers travelling from London to Ipswich return trio and the experience was excellent from start to finish.On our way to the venue, the road was unexpectedly closed when we were only about 15 minutes away. Our driver remained calm, patient, and professional throughout, finding an alternative route without any stress or delay on our part. We really appreciated how composed and experienced he was in handling the situation.The coach was clean, comfortable, and the air conditioning worked perfectly, which made a huge difference as we were travelling during an extremely hot day. Everyone in our group was able to relax and enjoy the journey.Overall, we had a fantastic experience on both the outbound and return trips. The service was reliable, comfortable, and well-organised. I would highly recommend Bus Route to anyone looking for coach transport for a large group. Thank you for helping make our trip so enjoyable!”
2026-06-27
“Very helpful, great communication and would definitely use again!”
2026-07-04
“Excellent customer service from start to finish. Easy booking system and cost was the best we could find. Driver was brilliant with all our group and we will definitely be using this company again”
2026-07-04
“Booked for a hen do for 20 girls. Seamless experience! Drivers were great, very prompt and swift communication throughout. Very reasonable quote too compared with other providers. Would recommend!”
2026-07-06
“Great service on time nice comfortable bus would highly reccomend”
2026-07-27
“Really good, clean vehicle, friendly driver, who was talkative n helped with our bags,”
2026-06-27
“Fantastic trip. I was a little concerned that the bus might not turn up but can’t compliment the service enough on time lots of communication and driver was really nice. The busses themselves were clean and actually of a lot higher quality than I was expecting will definitely use again.”
2026-06-24
“Absolutely amazing company everything went smoothly & the students loved it door to door pick up and drop off. Worth every penny”
2026-06-27
“Great communication throughout, arrived on time for both ends of our journey, driver was great”
2026-07-27
“We booked through this company as we needed to organise transport for guests to our son’s wedding. The staff were amazing from our first contact. On the day the driver was cheery courteous and helpful.”
2026-07-04
“Great service! I hired BusRoute to provide a shuttle bus service for guests at my wedding in Gordon, Scotland. The bus was perfect and arrived promptly both for drop-off and pick-ups. The customer service and the communication with the company was fantastic. And it was very affordable. Two thumbs up!”
2026-06-27
“Driver arrived promptly. He was very polite and ensured we were happy throughout the journey. Arrived at our destination safely and on time. Minibus had air conditioning and plenty space for all our luggage and passengers.”
2026-06-27
“We hired two buses for our event last Saturday. The drivers were prompt and accommodated all our needs. I just want to say a huge thank you to the team which were absolutely lovely, we definitely will be using this service again in future.”
2026-06-18
“The booking process with Busroute was easy, and follow up communication excellent. Despite a 6a.m. start the bus was there at 5.40, ready to load and ensure a prompt getaway. Our driver was very friendly, helpful and courteous and helped with unloading at the airport. The return to Swansea from the airport was equally easy and comfortable with an ontime pick-up and arrival back in Swansea. I highly recommend BusRoute and0 their partners.”
2026-06-27
“Busroute were able to accommodate my plans effectively and for a good price. It was easy to communicate with the team from planning phases to the day itself - Peter was an especially huge help in making ideal plans a reality. The team are very open to questions, feedback, and care greatly about offering the best experience for you.”
2026-07-20
“Great driver and polite, the company was easy to work with, no issues”
2026-06-18
“Driver was early was easy to book and a very good price in comparison to other places i looked”
2026-06-19
“Driver was friendly and helpful. Booking process was easy and service was exceptional.”
What people usually want to know
<p>Drive times allow for coach speed limits and required breaks.</p>
Within an easy drive
Exeter to National Marine Aquarium, 45 milesNobody circling for parking while the rest of you wait.
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