From 1957 to 1979, overland bus services ran London to Calcutta in ~50 days through 10+ countries; closed by the Soviet-Afghan War and Iranian Revolution.
Key Takeaways
The first service, “The Indiaman,” used a refurbished AEC Regal III with 100k miles already on it; fare was £85 London-Calcutta.
Route crossed France, Italy, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and into India via Delhi, Agra, Allahabad.
At peak, 32 operators ran variants; some terminated in Kathmandu, Mumbai, or extended by ship to Sydney.
Albert Travel’s double-decker (bought for AU$400) completed 14 Sydney-London round trips before Iran became impassable in 1976.
Adventures Overland announced a New Delhi-London revival covering 20,000 km across 18 countries in 70 days, delayed from 2021 by Covid.
Hacker News Comment Review
Commenters flagged the 2022 datestamp matters: the “revival expected April next year” claim in the article is now years stale, and Iran’s hostility to British travelers makes the route questionable.
Debate over whether the journey qualifies as truly “by bus” given required ferry crossings between England and the continent.
Notable Comments
@Markoff: Notes a current overland resource for the Turkey-Iran-Pakistan-India corridor and that Prague-Istanbul by Flixbus with one Sofia transfer still works in 2026.
