Jane's Midlife Journey

In the summer, there are a whole range of Open Top Bus routes available if you want a ride with a view along the Bournemouth coast and beyond.

Morebus Breezer Buses

There are seven Breezer Bus routes taking you along the coast in either direction.

Jurassic Breezer 30/31 (Swanage to Weymouth/Dorchester)

Route

The No 30 Jurassic Breezer Bus runs from Swanage to Weymouth, sometimes continuing on to Dorchester. It passes through the following:

• Corfe Castle – a pretty village with ancient castle ruins
• Wareham – riverside market town
• Lulworth Cove – beach and clifftop walks
• Durdle Door – famous arched rock
• Weymouth – popular beach resort town
• Dorchester – historic market town with Thomas Hardy connection

The No 31 Jurassic Breezer runs in a loop between Wool and Durdle Door and Lulworth Cove four times a day.

From Bournemouth, you can catch the No 50 to Swanage to pick up the 30/31 services.

Times

This service is seasonal, running between 24th May and 14th September. Buses are roughly hourly, with seven services throughout the day (two services a day continue from Weymouth to Dorchester).

Price

If you want to explore, you can purchase a Zone ABC Dayrider ticket, which can be used on any bus on the Morebus network all day for £10.80. Or if you just want to travel there and back, the routes are included in the government’s £3 fare cap.

Campsite Connect 35 (Swanage to Wareham)

Route

The No 35 Campsite Connect Bus route travels from Swanage, via Corfe Castle, to Wareham and continues to various Wareham Forest campsites.

Times

This is a seasonal service, running three times a day from Swanage and four times to Swanage between 24th May and 15th September.

Price

Ticketing information is the same as above i.e. £3 per trip or £10.80 all day.

Purbeck Breezer 40 (Poole to Swanage)

Route

The No 40 Purbeck Breezer Bus runs from Poole to Swanage, passing through the following:

• Upton – Country Park
• Farmer Palmers – popular children’s attraction
• Wareham – riverside market town
• Corfe Castle – pretty village with ancient castle ruins
• Langton Matravers – village on the edge of the Purbecks
• Swanage – seaside resort with excellent fish & chips

From Bournemouth, this is a great way to visit Corfe Castle. Take the 50 to Swanage (option to stop on the quay for fish & chips), then the 40 to Corfe Castle. Afterwards, either retrace this route, or continue on the 40 to Poole. From here, depending on the time, you can travel back to Bournemouth on the 70 or take the regular m2 bus.

Times

This service runs all year, with a reduced timetable from September until May. During the summer months, it runs roughly hourly from early in the morning until around midnight.

Price

As above, i.e. £3 per trip or £10.80 for a Dayrider ticket.

Purbeck Breezer 50 (Bournemouth to Swanage)

Route

The No 50 Purbeck Breezer Bus runs from Bournemouth to Swanage, passing through the following:

• Sandbanks – popular beach
• Studland – stunning walks to Old Harry Rocks
• Swanage – seaside resort with steam railway

This service crosses the mouth of Poole Harbour on the Sandbanks chainlink ferry. Crossing the ferry by car costs £10.80 return. In addition, there are often long queues, which the bus doesn’t have to wait in on the outward journey, making it a great option for exploring the Purbecks and Swanage.

From Bournemouth, the bus takes just over an hour to reach Swanage, where you can alight either at Banjo Pier and walk along the seafront, or continue into town and the terminus at Swanage Station.

Times

This service runs all year. During peak times, it runs roughly every 30 minutes from around 7 am until late evening, with a reduced timetable (roughly hourly) from September until May.

Price

Ticketing information is as above, i.e. £3 per trip or £10.80 all day.

Harbour Breezer 60 (Poole)

Route

The No 60 Harbour Breezer Bus runs along Poole Harbour Between Sandbanks and Rockley Park stopping at the following:

• Sandbanks – popular beach
• Poole – shops and park
• Poole Quay – quayside dining and entertainment, ferry to Brownsea Island
• Hamworthy Park – popular harbourside park with paddling pool
• Rockley Park – caravan park

Times

The service runs all year, with a reduced service between September and May. Note: Not all the buses go as far as Rockley Park, roughly half the services start/finish in Poole.

Price

This route is within Zone A, so a Dayrider ticket costs £5, or £3 per trip.

Beach Breezer 70 (Rockley Park to Hoburne Park)

Route

The No 70 Beach Breezer Bus starts at Rockley Park and runs along (or near) the coast to Hoburne through Poole, Bournemouth and Christchurch, passing through the following:

• Poole – shops, park, quayside dining
• Compton Acres – subtropical gardens
• Alum Chine – beach with gardens
• Bournemouth – seaside resort town
• Boscombe – beach and pier
• Hengistbury Head – nature reserve, sand spit, up market beach huts
• Christchurch – harbourside market town with ancient priory
• Mudeford – quaint fishing village
• Hoburne – caravan park

Note: Unlike in previous years, the 70 no longer runs down the cliff to Boscombe Beach. If you wish to visit Boscombe Beach, alight at Monkey Island and walk down through Boscombe Chine to reach the beach. Enjoy the climb on the way back to the bus stop!

Times

Running hourly throughout the day, this is a predominantly seasonal service, starting in May and running through to September. During the winter, a shortened service between Alum Chine and East Cliff in Bournemouth operates.

Price

This route is also with Zone A, so £3 a trip or £5 for a Dayrider ticket.

City Sightseeing Bournemouth

Hop on Hop off Bus (Bournemouth – Poole – Bournemouth)

Route

The City Sightseeing Hop On Hop Off Bus travels on a circular route between Bournemouth and Poole, with 25 stops taking in key attractions. The entire circuit takes around 90 minutes to complete.

The service includes a running commentary of the sights you pass along the way, although this is pre-recorded. If the bus gets stuck in traffic, the commentary and the sights no longer align and it can get rather confusing, as you are told something about a place you passed some time ago, or haven’t reached yet…

In the morning, there are two additional pick ups from the station and the hotels along the East Cliff. There isn’t a corresponding drop off service; to get back to the station or your hotel, you’re on you own.

Times

The bus runs hourly, departing from Bournemouth Pier at 10 am, with the last departure at 5 pm. The service runs between 5th April and 28th September.

Price

An adult day ticket costs £17 (two day and combination bus/cruise tickets are also available).

Christmas Magical Tour

Not in an open top bus for obvious reasons, but another tour option is the Christmas Magical Tour, which takes place in December. Ride in a festively decorated bus, which will take you on a route which includes some of the area’s best Christmas decorations. Listen to festive classics as you cruise the neighbourhood looking at the lights. The tour runs throughout the festive, departing from central Bournemouth. It takes around 90 minutes and costs £10 per person. Children under 4 can go for free but don’t get a seat.

New Forest Tour

In addition to the services mentioned above, you can also take the X1/X2 bus to New Milton or Lymington or the X3 bus to Burley, Ringwood or Fordingbridge to connect with one of the three New Forest Tour buses for some more open top bus action.

Routes

The New Forest Tour has three bus routes: Red, Blue and Green, covering all the main attractions within the forest, with some of the key ones indicated below.

Red

• Lyndhurst – town with New Forest Centre
• Burley – town with cider farm, tea rooms, galleries
• Ringwood – market town with good pubs and restaurants
• Fordingbridge – market town with famous medieval bridge
• New Forest Wildlife Park

Blue

• Lyndhurst
• Brockenhurst – village with good trails for walking/cycling
• Lymington – pretty town with quayside and ferries to the Isle of Wight
• Beaulieu – Country estate with Motor Museum
• Exbury Gardens
• Hythe Ferry – ferry to Southampton

Green

• Lyndhurst
• Brockenhurst
• Burley
• New Milton – seaside town, Motorcycle museum
• Barton-on-Sea – seaside town
• Milton-on-Sea – seaside town, Hurst Castle

Times

Buses only run during peak summer; between 5th July and 14th September in 2025. Dates for 2026 are TBA.

Price

An adult day ticket costs £20.50. There are also 3 day (£28.50) and 5 day (£42) and group options. This includes free travel on the X1/X2/X3/X6 to connect with the tour.

• Updated: December 2025

I hope you found this information useful. For more inspiration on things to do in and around Bournemouth, check out my 101 Things to do in Bournemouth here.