*UPDATED 3rd August 2022*
The X38 connects Devon's two cities with each other and with Dartmoor. It runs every six return journeys Monday to Saturday daytimes with two journeys each way on Sundays and is operated by Stagecoach.
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The X38 starts from stand 4 at Exeter Bus Station:
The X38 serves the Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital, with buses to Plymouth using this stop on Barrack Road:
Buses to Plymouth use stop Aon the left and buses to Exeter use stop B on the right at the Bull Ring on West Street:
Buses to Plymouth use stop A on the left, buses to Exeter use stop B on the right, adjacent to the Gulf (formerly Jet) garage:
There are lots of things to do in Buckfastleigh:
Buses towards Plymouth use stop B on the right and buses towards Exeter use stop A on the left on Leonards Road:
The X38 starts from stop A13on Royal Parade:
... and also serves stop B3 on the Viaduct:
Timetables
You can see the full timetable on the following websites:
Here are your links for live scheduled departure times from major stops towards Plymouth:
- Exeter Bus Station, stand 4
- Wonford, RD&E Hospital
- Ashburton, Bull Ring, stop A
- Buckfastleigh. Station Approach, stop A
- Ivybridge, BP Garage, stop B
...and back towards Exeter:
- Plymouth, Royal Parade, stop A13
- Ivybridge, Town Hall, stop A
- Buckfastleigh, Jet Garage, stop B
- Ashburton, Bull Ring, stop B
Fares
The cheapest day ticket that is valid throughout route X38 is the Stagecoach Southwest Explorer at £8.30 for an adult paying via the Stagecoach app. Paper tickets from the driver are £9.10. It is valid on all Stagecoachbuses throughout Devon, Cornwall and Somerset.
Look up single and return fares on Stagecoach's website.
For shorter journeys within Exeter, the Exeter Dayrider,at £4.20 on the app, is valid. It can be used on the X38 between Exeter Bus Station and Shillingford St Georgeand on all Stagecoach buses in Exeter.
The Exeter Plus Dayrider at £6.20 on the app, is valid on the X38 as above, but can be used further afield on other routes, as far as Okehampton, Crediton and Ottery St Mary.
For shorter journeys at the Plymouth end, you have the following day tickets:
Plymouth Inner Dayrider at £3.90 on the app, valid from the City Centre to Laira Flyover.
Plymouth Outer Dayrider at £4.20 on the app, valid from Plymouth to Ivybridge on the X38 and on all Stagecoach buses in their Plymouth Outer zone.
Plymouth Dayrider Plus at £5.80 on the app, valid from Plymouth to South Brent on the X38 and on all Stagecoach buses in their Plymouth Plus zone.
All of the above tickets are cheapest on the Stagecoach app. It will cost you more to buy them as a paper ticket from the driver.
If you're only travelling between Plymouth Bus Station and Ivybridge, Rue St Pierre, then you can use the Plymouth Skipper ticket at £5.40, which is valid on all buses in and around Plymouth, regardless of operator.
If you're travelling from further afield and need to use the buses of other operators, then the Devon Day ticket at £9.60 for an adult is for you. It's valid throughout the X38 and on all buses of most operators (including Stagecoach and Plymouth Citybus) throughout Devon, plus on a few routes that cross the county border.
If arriving by train, you can use an Exeter Plusbus ticket on the X38 on the same section of route as the Exeter Dayrider.
Plymouth Plusbus is valid on the X38 as far as Crabtree Close.
Connections
See an interactive map of all bus routes in Devon here. Click here for a map of all bus routes in Exeter, here for Ivybridge and here for Plymouth. See Stagecoach's network maps showing their routes only here.
Change in Exeter for:
- Stagecoach 5/5A/5B/5C to Crediton, Okehampton and Barnstaple
- Stagecoach 55/55A/55B/155 to Tiverton and Barnstaple
- Stagecoach 44/44A to Honiton and Axminster
- Stagecoach 57 to Exmouth
- Stagecoach 9/9Ato Seaton and Honiton
- Stagecoach 2towards Dawlish
- Stagecoach 6/6Ato Okehampton and Bude
Change in Ashburton for:
Stagecoach 88 to Newton Abbot
Change in Buckfastleigh for:
Stagecoach 88 to Totnes
Change in South Brent for:
Stagecoach Gold to Totnes and Torquay
Change in Plymouth for:
- Stagecoach 3 to Dartmouth
- Stagecoach 1to Tavistock
- Go Cornwall 12 to Launceston and Bude
- Go Cornwall 11to Liskeard and Bodmin
- Go Cornwall 72 to Looe and Polperro
The X38 passes close to the following railway stations:
Alternatives
You could catch the train between Exeter St Davids and Plymouth. An adult off-peak day return (travel after 0844 weekdays, anytime at weekends) costs £12.10.
Here are your bus alternatives:
- Stagecoach 88 provides additional buses between Ashburton and Buckfastleigh
- Stagecoach Gold provides extra buses between South Brent and Plymouth
- Plymouth Citybus 20Aprovides extra buses between Ivybridge and Plymouth
Long Distance Footpaths
- Exe Valley Way runs through Exeter
- Dartmoor Way passes through Ashburton, Buckfastleigh, near South Brent, Bittaford and Ivybridge
- Dartmoor Way High Moor Link starts in Buckfastleigh
- Two Moors Way passes through Ivybridge
- Erme-Plym Trail starts in Ivybridge
- South West Coast Path passes through Plymouth
All of the information in this post is correct at the time of writing, but please check the relevant links before travelling.
Click here to discover more amazing bus routes in the South West of England.
