From a Suffolk garage in 1927 to a Diss coach depot today.
Simonds Coach & Travel is part of Transport Made Simple, and we operate coach holidays, day trips, private hire and a small network of local bus services from a purpose-built depot at Roswald House, Oak Drive, Diss.
Thank you for taking the time to get to know us. Simonds has been carrying people safely, warmly and with a great deal of pride since 1927, and it's a real privilege to help write the next chapter of that story.
Our holidays are chosen with genuine care - our team travel the routes, check the hotels and walk the gardens themselves, so every trip in our programme is one that one of us fell for first and wanted to share with you. Our day trips are the heartbeat of what we do, full of familiar faces, door-to-door care and friendships made over a flask of tea on the way home. And for schools, clubs, businesses and celebrations, our private hire team keep the region moving every single day, treating every journey as if their own family were aboard.
None of it works without our people - our drivers, travel coordinators, office and garage teams - who turn up for you with warmth and pride, year after year. They are the reason a name from 1927 still feels like family, and I couldn't be prouder to stand alongside them.
Whether you're booking your first day out or your fortieth holiday with us, you are very welcome here. We can't wait to travel with you.
A brief history
Roland Oswald Simonds (1902–1976) began as a mechanic with C. Lacon Chapman in Botesdale, Suffolk in 1922. By 1928 he had taken ownership of the village garage on The Street - offering car repairs, servicing, repainting, and cycle spares.
Buses arrived in December 1937, when the road service licences of Edward E. Sheppard of Rickinghall transferred to R. O. Simonds along with two Bedford buses. Four months later the operations of Bertie Calver of Botesdale were acquired, and the first new Simonds coach was supplied in June 1939. Progress slowed during the Second World War - part of the Simonds premises were commandeered in 1942 for military storage - but the business resumed with a new utility bus in 1945.
Through the late twentieth century the fleet grew steadily; a double-decker was a regular on the Bury St Edmunds service between 1955 and 1978, and large single-deckers were added through the 80s. The original Botesdale garage was eventually outgrown, and Simonds moved to its current purpose-built depot in Diss.
In May 2024 the business became part of the Transport Made Simple Group, which also owns Central Connect (buses) and Flagfinders (coaches). Simonds continues to operate as a separate brand from the Diss depot, with the existing team and a programme of fleet, network and tour investment under the new ownership.
Travel with us.
Browse the holiday programme online, or request the printed brochure.