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Arriving in Penzance

Travel distances

St Ives to Penzance

St Ives to Penzance on the map

Start and finishThe route by roadSee the stops along the way on their own map ↓

Open this route in Google Maps ↗ for live traffic and turn-by-turn directions.

Distance

9 miles

by road

By car

About 20 minutes

in normal traffic

By bike

About 1 hour

steady pace

By foot

About 3 hours

estimated at a 3mph walking pace

Before you set off

The A30 approach to Penzance at Long Rock and the Eastern Green roundabout is slow on summer weekends, and parking on the promenade fills by late morning. The St Ives Bay Line is busy in July and August, so travel outside the morning rush into St Ives if you can.1

Which way to go

The fastest route

Take the A3074 out of St Ives through Carbis Bay to Lelant, then the A30 west past St Erth and Long Rock into Penzance.2 The B3311 through Nancledra is shorter on the map but narrow and slower.

The scenic route

For a far more rewarding trip, take the St Ives branch railway line from St Ives station to St Erth and then connect to the main line train to Penzance. The branch line is one of the most scenic short railway journeys in England, following the shoreline of St Ives Bay with views across to Godrevy Lighthouse. Total rail journey is around 30 minutes.

Caravans and motorhomes

The A30 is wide and well-suited to caravans for the full length of this short route. It is the main trunk road west and handles all sizes of vehicle. No concerns for towing.

Stops along the way

Stops along the way — tap or hover a pin for a photo, the detour and a link to its guideStart and finishThe route by road

  1. Start

    St Ives

  2. Carbis Bay

    1.2 miles off the main route, adds roughly 8 minutes

    Between St Ives and Lelant on the branch line, a sheltered south-facing beach that is one of the safest in West Cornwall for young children.

  3. Marazion

    2.5 miles off the main route, adds roughly 14 minutes

    The town facing St Michael's Mount across the bay. Walk the causeway at low tide or take the boat at high water.3

  4. Newlyn

    1.7 miles off the main route, adds roughly 15 minutes

    A mile beyond Penzance, Cornwall's biggest fishing port and home of the Newlyn School of painters, with the Newlyn Art Gallery on the seafront.

  5. Arrive

    Penzance

Practical information

Parking

Penzance is well served by car parks, with the main long-stay options at the railway station and along the promenade. For St Ives, the park-and-ride at Lelant Saltings station is by far the easiest option: leave your car, buy a combined parking-and-rail ticket, and ride the branch line into town.

Train and bus

The St Ives Bay Line runs to St Erth, where you change for the main line into Penzance,1 about thirty minutes in all.4 First Kernow buses also run between the two towns in around forty minutes.5

The best time to travel

Any time of year. By train out of season, when the bay is wild and the carriages are quiet.

About the St Ives to Penzance journey

At just 10 miles, the journey from St Ives to Penzance is the shortest of the St Ives routes and one of the most rewarding, particularly by train. The two towns bookend the far western tip of Cornwall and have been rivals as well as neighbours for centuries. The branch railway between them, opened in 1877, runs along the very edge of St Ives Bay, so close to the water at some points that spray reaches the windows in rough weather.

What to do in Penzance

Penzance is the end of the main line from London. The Jubilee Pool, the Art Deco seawater lido on the promenade, is one of the finest outdoor pools in the country,6 and Penlee House holds the best collection of Newlyn School painting.7 Chapel Street, with the Egyptian House, runs down to the harbour.

Read the Penzance guide

Going the other way: Penzance to St Ives

Returning from Penzance to St Ives, the branch railway is the obvious choice for the same reasons it works in the other direction. If driving, the A30 is fast and direct. The view of St Ives from the hill above Carbis Bay, the town and its harbour appearing suddenly as the road crests the rise, is one of the classic Cornwall moments.

Related journeys

St Ives to Truro26 miles

St Ives to Truro

40 mins by car (About 40 minutes)2hr 30mins by bike (About 2 hours 30 minutes)

St Ives to Truro is 25 miles by road, about 40 minutes by car via the A30. Find the fastest route, scenic alternatives, parking and public transport options.

St Ives to Falmouth26 miles

St Ives to Falmouth

45 mins by car (About 45 minutes)3hr 30mins by bike (About 3 hours 30 minutes)

St Ives to Falmouth is 36 miles by road, about 55 minutes by car. Find the fastest route, scenic alternatives, parking, and public transport options.

Truro to Penzance26 miles

Truro to Penzance

40 mins by car (About 40 minutes)2hr 45mins by bike (About 2 hours 45 minutes)

Truro to Penzance is 26 miles and about 40 minutes by car, or 35 minutes by direct train. Routes, the Marazion approach, parking and where to stop.

See every Cornwall journey →

Article Sources
  1. Great Western Railway (no date). Plan your journey: timetables and branch-line services in Cornwall [online]. Available at: https://www.gwr.com/plan-journey Great Western Railway[↩]
  2. OpenStreetMap contributors (2026). Road network, road classifications and place names. Copyright and licence [online]. Available at: https://www.openstreetmap.org/copyright OpenStreetMap[↩]
  3. St Michael’s Mount (no date). Home page [online]. Available at: https://www.stmichaelsmount.co.uk St Michael’s Mount[↩]
  4. National Rail Enquiries (no date). Train times and journey planner [online]. Available at: https://www.nationalrail.co.uk National Rail[↩]
  5. First Kernow (no date). Bus services, routes and timetables in Cornwall [online]. Available at: https://www.firstbus.co.uk/cornwall First Kernow[↩]
  6. Jubilee Pool (no date). Home page [online]. Available at: https://jubileepool.co.uk Jubilee Pool[↩]
  7. Penlee House Gallery & Museum (no date). Home page [online]. Available at: https://penleehouse.org.uk Penlee House[↩]
  8. Project OSRM (no date). Open Source Routing Machine: route shape and detour calculations [online]. Available at: https://project-osrm.org Project OSRM
  9. Ordnance Survey (no date). National Grid references used to position each place on the route map [online]. Available at: https://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk Ordnance Survey
  10. Google (no date). Google Maps: live traffic and turn-by-turn directions [online]. Available at: https://www.google.com/maps Google Maps