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Campuses and visitors

Penryn Campus, Cornwall

The Penryn Campus is set in 100 acres of countryside, close to the waterside town of Falmouth, and boasts beautiful views over the Fal estuary. 

On this page:

Penryn Campus map

Download a PDF version of the Penryn Campus map.

Directions, public transport and parking

The Penryn Campus is approximately two hours’ drive from Exeter.

  • From the north, take the A30 west from Exeter until you reach the A39 signposted Truro.
  • Drive through Truro, following the signs A39 to Falmouth.
  • Follow the A39 towards Falmouth until you come to the Treliever roundabout, where you will see signs to the Penryn Campus.

Sat nav

  • Use postcode TR10 9FE
  • If your sat nav does not recognise this, please try TR10 9EZ; this will not take you directly to campus, but will get you near enough that you will be able to follow signs to the campus entrance.
  • Please be aware that this is a relatively new postcode and may not be recognized by your sat nav system if it is not up-to-date.

Parking

  • The Penryn Campus has limited car parking and we encourage visitors to use public transport where possible.
  • Find out more about public transport and parking on the Falmouth Exeter Plus website.
  • The campus operates an Automated Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) system in which you pay as you leave.

By coach

National Express coaches stop in Penryn. For timetables, visit the National Express website or for passenger information phone: +44 (0) 08717 818181. The U1 bus service from Truro Bus Station drops you direct to the campus. For bus services within the southwest, visit the Traveline SouthWest website.

By rail

The Penryn Campus is approximately two and a half hours by train from Exeter. The campus is in Penryn, which has its own station. There is a frequent direct service to Truro from London, the Midlands and North and other major British cities. At Truro, change to the branch line service to Falmouth and leave the train at Penryn. The station is approximately a 15 minute walk from the campus.

For timetabling, visit the National Rail Enquiries website or phone: 08457 48 49 50.

NB: There is no taxi rank at Penryn station. Taxis should be booked by prior arrangement, phone: 01326 373007. Alternatively, the U1 bus service from Truro Bus Station drops you direct to the campus. For timetabling visit the Traveline SouthWest website.

By taxi

Abacus and Falmouth Taxis (01326 212141) are Falmouth's largest taxi firm and offer short and long distance journeys including airport transfers to UK airports.

By plane

Newquay airport

The closest airport to the campus is Newquay. Eastern Airways operates direct flights from London Gatwick, and EasyJet operates direct flights from Manchester – both flights are approximately 75 minutes. Connecting flights are available to other destinations.

Car hire and taxi services are also available at Newquay Airport.

For public transport connections visit the Traveline South West website.

NB: Newquay Airport is approximately 40 km from Penryn. If you’re using public transport you'll need to take a bus from the airport to Newquay, and then another bus to Penryn (typical total journey time one and a half to two hours). The campus is roughly three quarters of an hour to an hour's drive by car from Newquay.

Car hire

For information regarding car hire companies in Cornwall, refer to the Visit Cornwall website.

Address

The address for enquiries to the Penryn Campus is:

University of Exeter
Penryn Campus
Penryn
Cornwall TR10 9FE

About the Penryn Campus

The Penryn Campus offers the very latest academic, research and residential facilities set in 100 acres of countryside close to the waterside town of Falmouth, with beautiful views over the Fal estuary. 

Made up of around 6,000 students, it offers a close-knit friendly community, in an arrangement that is unique as we share the campus with Falmouth University; a leading specialist arts institution. This combination creates a vibrant community of students from science, engineering, humanities and arts backgrounds.

We excel in tackling some of the world’s biggest challenges through our research, which then informs our teaching. 

The environment and sustainability underpin much of the ethos of the Penryn Campus. These themes consequently recur throughout our degree programmes as well as in student societies, clubs and the running of the campus. It is no coincidence that this campus is home to the £30 million Environment and Sustainability Institute (ESI), and puts the University and Cornwall at the forefront of research into the solutions to problems of environmental change.

Our campus is constantly developing; most recently the £12 million Stella Turk Building, named after a prominent female Cornish scientist, has established a new centre of excellence for research and teaching, building on the success of the £12 million Science and Engineering Research Support Facility (SERSF). The Stella Turk building supports growth in the  Business School, the Centre for Ecology and Conservation, Renewable Energy and Camborne School of Mines. It is also the home for Law, Energy policy and Mathematics

Other recent additions include the Renewable Energy Facility (REEF) and a £1.2 million Masters Suite. A £4 million sports centre and nursery, and a prestigious Green Flag Award for our grounds, help make this campus a great place to study, work and live.

In 2023 we welcomed the European Centre for Environment and Human Health to Penryn Campus. The centre’s move, from the Knowledge Spa in Truro, enabled our Truro teaching facilities for students at the University of Exeter Medical School to be expanded.