We hope you enjoyed the 2026 South East Bus Festival.
 

We are very grateful to all the vehicle owners and drivers that brought buses and coaches to the event and to the volunteers who helped with the advance preparations and on the day. Also to our guest speaker, Shane Hymers from Kent County Council, to Roy and Terry Blackman for giving the live slide show and to Mike Hodges for putting together the continuous slide show.

​

The 2027 South East Bus Festival will take place on Saturday 3rd April.

​

 

The annual South East Bus Festival takes place at Kent Showground, alongside the A249 near Maidstone.
 

The event brings together a huge number of buses and coaches, old and new, from across the South East and beyond. It all started back in 2011 with the 'M&D 100' event that celebrated the centenary of the formation of the Maidstone & District bus company.

The vehicles attending usually represent all decades from the early 20th century through to the present day, giving a good indication of how bus design has developed over the past hundred years, and covering a wide range of manufacturers and operators.

​

Vehicles that attended the 2026 event ranged from the oldest, built in 1931, through to two brand-new vehicles delivered in 2026, with 141 buses and coaches in total.

 

At the recent events around half of the buses and coaches attending have not been to any of the previous bus festivals, ensuring plenty of variety each year. In 2026, eighty-five entrants had not been before, that's 60%!

You can see an album on the event's Facebook page containing 209 photos taken at the 2026 event by clicking here. ​

​

Heritage Transport Show
The bus festival takes place as part of Kent Showground's Heritage Transport Show which attracts around 700 to 800 cars, commercials, military vehicles, tractors and motorbikes, ensuring a great day out for people with interests in all types of motor vehicles.

It offers a wide mix of attractions, including a frequent free bus service around the vast showground site, lots of sales-stands and displays of model buses inside the huge exhibition hall, slide shows and a talk by a guest speaker.

To find out more about what happens on the day please click the links below the photo at the top of this page or the square menu button if viewing on a mobile device.

The gates open to the public at 10am and the event closes at 4pm.

The showground is located on the A249 at Detling, near Maidstone, Kent, between Junction 7 of the M20 and Junction 5 of the M2.

Keep up to date with Facebook
You can keep up to date with news about the South East Bus Festival, by visiting the event's Facebook page.

As well as postings giving lots of useful information, details of vehicle entries are published as they are received, so take a look at the page and 'like' it to receive notifications of updates.

You'll find it at @southeastbusfestival or click the Facebook icon at the top of this page.