Please leave your car at home if you can! Falmouth is expected to be very busy during the Funchal 500 Tall Ships Regatta, with many visitors attending from outside the county and from throughout Cornwall.
We are encouraging you to leave your car at home and walk, car share or use the extended and increased train and bus services. You could even make a day of it and use one of the Fal River Links ferries that will be adding a stop at the Docks, enabling passengers direct access to the ships!
For travel information during the event, please listen to updates on BBC Radio Cornwall, Pirate FM or Atlantic FM.
Falmouth Road Closures
Falmouth Town Centre will be pedestrianised during the event. Road closures will be in place from Wednesday 10th to Saturday 13th September inclusive. The following roads will be closed from 11am to 11pm:
The Moor (north east of the roundabout, including Webber Street),
Market Street
Church Street
Arwenack Street (up to Swanpool Street)
Quay Hill
Quay Street
Custom House Quay
There will be no access to Church Street car park as this area will become the Regatta Shopping Village with a local food, crafts and gifts marquee, and a Skinner’s beer tent with entertainment. Custom House Quay car park will also be closed to vehicles, allowing car-free enjoyment of the bars and facilities on the quay.
Come by bus
There are direct services to Falmouth from Truro, Camborne / Redruth, Penzance / Helston and Penryn / Tremough. Standard timetable information is available on www.cornwallpublictransport.info. You can find door-to-door information on www.travelinesw.com or phone them on 0871 2002233. The Tourist Information Centres have public transport timetables.
There will be increased bus capacity on services to Falmouth from major nearby towns. More information will be posted on www.falmouthtallships.co.uk and will be available from the local Tourist Information Centres.
Trains
Truro is the nearest mainline station, from where the Maritime Line takes you to Falmouth.
During the event, the Maritime Line will have an extra coach, enabling the trains to carry increased numbers of passengers. Falmouth Docks station is situated close to the Docks entrance.
Due to the increased length of the trains, they will not be able to stop at Falmouth Town Station. Due to the expected number of passengers, the trains will not stop in Perranwell, Penryn or Penmere between 9.30am and 4pm.
We will create a link on our website when timetable information when is made available by the transport provider, or find out more from the local Tourist Information Centres
Access to Falmouth and the Docks by Ferry
You can reach Falmouth by passenger ferry from St Mawes, which runs a regular service into the evening. There will be increased parking at St Mawes.
Trip boats leave from Truro, Tolverne and Trelissick, enabling you to take in the scenic upper Fal whilst avoiding travel congestion in Falmouth. There is also a shuttle from Mylor. Ponsharden Park & Float allows you to leave your car on the outskirts of Falmouth.
The St Mawes Ferry that normally lands at Custom House Quay will add an extra stop at the Docks. Enterprise Boats will run a morning service from Truro via Trelissick direct to the Docks. Newman’s will operate an early morning trip from Tolverne to the Docks. For a list of operators and their timetables, see www.falriverlinks.co.uk for more details.
There will also be a shuttle service from Prince of Wales Pier to the Docks if you do not fancy walking all the way.
Private boats do not have access to the Docks.
Car Parking in Falmouth
Church Street and Custom House Quay car parks will be closed from 6pm on Tuesday 9th September to noon on Sunday 14th September.
On the days that the Docks are open to the public, the car park at the junction of Tinners Walk and Bar Road will be for disabled parking only.
Other long stay and short stay car parks are open as usual. Please note that there is no return within three hours to short stay car parks.
Additional parking will be available at Ships & Castles Leisure Centre and on the Hornworks (Castle Drive, Pendennis Headland, TR11 4NG). Tickets can be bought in advance from Ships and Castles Reception in person, or by telephoning 01326 212129. Tickets for Wednesday 10th, Thursday 11th and Friday 12th September are £6. Tickets for Saturday 13th are £10. Credit and Debit Cards are accepted. This car park opens at 8am.
There is also additional car parking at the Rugby Club, Dracaena Avenue, TR11 2EQ. Buy tickets on the day for £5.
Park and Ride / Float is available from Ponsharden, with some of the ferries continuing direct to the Docks.
Car Parking around Falmouth, Race Day
The Parade of Sail on Saturday 13th September can be viewed from places around the coast. Temporary car parks will be established at the following locations:
St Mawes
Where: Fields on Upper Castle Road.
Time open: tbc
Cost: £10 per vehicle.
Facilities: tbc
St Anthony Head, Roseland Peninsula
Where: Fields near St Anthony Head, just before the National Trust Car Park
Time open: from 10am
Cost: £10 per vehicle.
Facilities: toilets (including disabled toilets), first aid. Food and drink: bring your own; ice creams available.
Warning! Due to the narrow roads on the Roseland Peninsula, there will be traffic restrictions between Gerrans and St Anthony Head. West-bound traffic only (towards the car park) between 11am and 4pm, and East-bound traffic (from the car park) only between 4.30pm and 7pm.
Rosemullion, near Mawnan Smith
Where: Fields off Old Church Road, overlooking Falmouth Bay.
Time open: from 8am
Cost: £7 per vehicle
Facilities: toilets (including disabled toilets), first aid. Food, drink & ice creams
Disabled Visitors
On Wednesday 10th, Thursday 11th and Friday 12th September, the car park at the junction of Tinners Walk and Bar Road is reserved for Blue Badge holders only, on a first come first served basis. This is the nearest car park to the Docks entrance gate, for access to viewing the large tall ships.
Designated disabled parking spaces can also be found in all car parks in the town, including The Dell and the Maritime car park in Bar Road, which are close to the Docks and to Regatta Entertainment Centre on Event Square. Normal car parking fees apply to Blue Badge holders in all car parks, please refer to the notice boards near the Pay and Display machines for exemptions.
There is no wheelchair access on the ferries. Due to the steep exits to the landings, the ferries are not suitable for the less able. Please check with the operator if you have concerns.
Falmouth Event Map and Area Map
For an overview map of activities in Falmouth, download the Falmouth Event Map from our website, www.falmouthtallships.co.uk. A map with the vantage points for the Parade of Sail will be available later. You will be able to download the Area Map from our website in the near future.
Both maps will be available in print before the event.