YouTuber crosses Wales by bus in 10-hour public transport challenge

Molly Stubbs

A travel creator has documented a 10-hour journey across Wales using six different buses, travelling from St Davids to Chepstow in a single day.

John McAllister, who posts on his YouTube channel John Mac Travels, undertook the challenge “for a bit of fun”, taking six buses and spending £23.99 in total.

“It’s not necessarily something many people will think of doing for a days fun. But I really did enjoy myself and saw some parts of my country I’ve not seen for a long time (or ever),” John said.

The video was a recreation of the first piece of travel content John ever made for his channel, when he crossed Wales south to north using public transport in August 2024.

Starting at 7.30am in St David’s, John explained that the West to East route felt like it was going be more difficult due to rural areas and tight connections, commenting that “luck is really going to have to be on my side.”

Over the course of the trip, he travelled through Haverfordwest, Carmarthen, Swansea, Cardiff and Newport, documenting scenic countryside views and quick glimpses of castles, coastlines and market towns along the way.

Along the route, John shared facts about the different places he visited and praised the “spectacular” scenery around Solva in particular, as well as the “cracking” seat patterns on different busses.

He offered tips for anyone considering the trip themselves, including using the TrawsCymru app to track buses and allowing extra time for tight connections.

After arriving in Chepstow, John visited the castle and looked across the River Wye, where he shared his pride at having completed the journey in just over ten hours.

“It was a really nice way to see and experience some wonderful Welsh scenery,” John concluded. “Not bad. Not bad at all.”

A commenter joked: “I’m not sure I could enjoy bus journeys as much as you do. Really enjoyed as always! Thanks for sharing.”

Others among the video’s 13k viewers praised John’s content, with one saying: “More class content. Massively underrated channel.”

“Takes a bit longer west to east in my country (Australia); anything from 5 days up to 10+ days to get from Perth (west) to Sydney (east). Great video; would love to tour round Wales one day,” another added.

John’s videos, which he uploads every week, focuses on traveling the world “in an affordable and authentic way”. His most viewed video, at 128k plays, also features a slightly more gruelling bus journey overnight from London to Paris.