Plymouth’s Mayflower and Citadel: A Guide to the Barbican District
About the Tour
Plymouth’s maritime history stretches back centuries, and the Barbican district will give you a glimpse into its storied past.
On this walking tour, you’ll explore the historic heart of a city that launched voyages of both discovery and conquest. You’ll also find out how Plymouth’s strategic location shaped not just British history but world events – from the sailing of the Mayflower to Napoleon’s final defeat.
The tour starts at the iconic Mayflower Steps Memorial where, in September 1620, the Pilgrim Fathers departed on their momentous journey to the New World. You’ll weave through the Barbican district’s narrow, cobbled lanes, and past Tudor and Elizabethan buildings that have survived centuries of change. Along the way, you’ll discover how this bustling port connected England to global trade networks, and played a crucial role in the development of Britain’s naval power.
You’ll climb to Plymouth Hoe’s commanding viewpoint to see the impressive Royal Citadel that’s guarded the harbor for over 300 years, and find out how the fortress’s guns kept watch over the town after the English Civil War. The tour ends back near the Mayflower Museum, where you can hear more of the story of the famous voyage that forever linked Plymouth to American history.
During this 45-minute tour, you’ll have a chance to:
- Visit Island House, where local tradition says Pilgrim leaders gathered before their voyage
- Explore the Elizabethan Gardens, a tranquil oasis hidden among the bustling harbor streets
- Discover the connection between Plymouth Gin Distillery and the Royal Navy
- Stand where crowds once gathered hoping for a glimpse of Napoleon Bonaparte aboard HMS Bellerophon
- See the spot where Sir Francis Drake allegedly insisted on finishing his game of bowls before battling the Spanish Armada
- View Smeaton’s Tower lighthouse, a marvel of engineering from the 1700s
- Learn about the Tolpuddle Martyrs and their fight for workers’ rights
- Admire the magnificent views across Plymouth Sound to Cornwall and the Tamar estuary
Step into Plymouth’s seafaring past and discover how this historic port helped shape the modern world.
Tour Producer
Penelewey Tours
Hi, I’m Becky Frost, a proud Cornish storyteller and founder of Penelewey Tours and Penelewey Audio Story Tours, also known as PAST. I create immersive walking audio tours and GPS guided audio experiences on the VoiceMap platform, bringing history, culture, and place vividly to life across Cornwall, the South West of England and beyond.
I specialise in historical walking audio tours, indoor audio guides, and place based storytelling for heritage sites, cultural organisations, cities, and coastal towns. My work covers research, scriptwriting, narration, and delivery of audio tours from concept through to launch, ensuring each experience is authentic, accessible, and thoughtfully paced.
As a fisherman’s daughter raised by the sea, storytelling has always been part of my world. My work is rooted in landscape, memory, and the voices of ordinary people, those whose stories are often walked past rather than truly heard. Through carefully researched and locally voiced audio tours, I invite listeners to slow down and connect with the layers of history beneath their feet.
My greatest fascination lies in the Celtic period, shaped by the movement of people, ideas, trade, and shared culture, alongside Cornwall’s long history of resilience and its ongoing fight to retain identity and land. These themes run quietly through my work, blending local history with wider European narratives in a way that feels grounded and human.
I have been commissioned to create audio interpretation for one of Cornwall’s most significant historic religious buildings, alongside developing audio tours for towns, cities, and coastal places across the region. Accessibility and inclusivity sit at the heart of everything I do, audio tours allow people to explore independently, at their own pace, using their own devices, supporting different learning styles and access needs.
My narration is delivered in a clear English accent with a soft Cornish tone, warm, calm, and welcoming, designed to feel like walking alongside a local rather than being lectured. I write, research, and voice my tours myself, ensuring clarity, care, and authenticity from start to finish.
We don’t walk past history with audio tours, we walk through it.
Preview Location
Location 2
Tolpuddle Martyrs Memorial
In 1834, six farm labourers from the Dorset village of Tolpuddle were sentenced to transportation to Australia for forming a trade union, an act then considered criminal under an old oath-swearing law. Their crime was not ... Read More
How VoiceMap Works
Major Landmarks
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Mayflower Steps Memorial
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Tolpuddle Martyrs Memorial
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The Mayflower Museum
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Island House
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Plymouth Gin Distillery
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Elizabethan Gardens
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Royal Citadel
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Sir Francis Drake Statue
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Napoleon Commemorative Stone
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Hoe Cannons
Getting There
Route Overview
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Start locationThe Barbican, Plymouth PL1 2LR, UK -
Total distance3km -
Final location2 The Barbican, Plymouth PL1 2LR, UK -
Distance back to start location89.92m
Directions to Starting Point
The tour begins at The Mayflower Steps Memorial on Pilgrims Way, The Barbican Plymouth. There is ample parking at Lambhay Hill Car Park just a short walk from the start point or paid street parking along Madeira Road. From Lambhay Car Park you can walk down the steps in the far corner of the car park to Madeira Road, with the water on your right walk down the hill to Pilgrims Way where you will see the portico pavilion. There are bollards along the street and entrance to Pilgrims Way so you shouldn't have any cars around you at the start point.
Tips
Places to stop along the way
The Mayflower Museum
Plymouth Gin Distillery
There are plentiful cafes and restaurants along the route, some in the town and some with beautiful views across Hoe Park and Plymouth Sound.
Hoe Park
Best time of day
To walk the full route including the Elizabethan Gardens it is best to walk between the hours of 9am and 5.30pm. The Barbican is a busting part of the city and can become very busy on Saturdays and during the summer season.
Precautions
There are some steps involved along the route and some small hills, these are not too demanding but not all steps have hand rails.
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