London–Calcutta bus service

The bus service from London, England to Calcutta, India (now Kolkata) was considered to be the longest bus route in the world. The bus service, which started in 1957, was routed to India via Belgium, Yugoslavia and North Western India. This route is also known as the Hippie Route. It took about 50 days for the bus to reach Calcutta from London. The voyage was over 10000 mi one way and 20300 mi for the round trip. It was in service until 1976. The cost of the trip one-way was £85 in 1957 and £145 in 1973. This amount included food, travel and accommodation.

Route
The bus service was operated by Albert Travel. The maiden journey set out from London on April 15, 1957. The first service arrived in Calcutta on June 5, 50 days later. During its journey the bus traveled from England to Belgium, and from there to India via West Germany, Austria, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and North Western India. After entering India, it eventually reached Calcutta via New Delhi, Agra, Allahabad and Banaras.

Facilities on the bus
The trip was equipped with reading facilities, separate sleeping bunks for all passengers, fan-operated heaters, and a kitchen. There was a forward observation lounge on the upper deck of the bus. The trip was more like a tour than just a trip. The bus provided radio and a music system for parties. It had time to spend at tourist destinations in India, including Banaras and the Taj Mahal on the banks of the Yamuna. Shopping was also allowed in Tehran, Salzburg, Kabul, Istanbul and Vienna.

Later history
After some years the bus met with an accident and became unusable. Later the bus was purchased by Andy Stewart, a British traveler. He rebuilt it to be a mobile home with two levels. The double-decker was renamed as Albert and was traveled from Sydney to London via India on October 8, 1968. It took about 132 days for the bus to reach London. Albert Tours was a company based in England and Australia and it operated on London–Calcutta–London and London–Calcutta–Sydney routes.

The bus reached India through Iran and then it traveled to Singapore through Burma, Thailand and Malaysia. From Singapore, the bus was transported to Perth in Australia by ship, and from there it traveled by road to Sydney. The charge for this service from London to Calcutta was £145. The service had all the modern facilities as before. The bus service was discontinued in 1976 due to political conditions leading up to the Iranian Revolution and the escalation of tensions between Pakistan and India. The Albert Tours completed about 15 trips between Kolkata to London and again from London to Sydney, before the service ended permanently.