West Hoe Park in Plymouth has been part of the city’s seafront for generations, but most people don’t really stop to think about how long it’s actually been there.
If you grew up here, you’ll know it for one thing above all else…
The miniature railway.
A simple ride along the Hoe, right next to the sea, that somehow became part of growing up in Plymouth for thousands of families.
School holidays. Weekend trips. A small moment that felt much bigger when you were a kid.
West Hoe Park has always been a low-key, family-focused attraction, not a theme park, not a big commercial site, just a traditional seaside space built around simple entertainment: the train, a café, ice cream, and seasonal children’s activities.
But its history goes back much further than many realise.
The miniature railway is widely believed to date back to the post-war period, with local accounts placing its origins around the 1950s. Since then, it has been rebuilt, updated, and adjusted over time, but it has stayed in the same place on the seafront.
Earlier versions of the ride included different themed engines and carriages, reflecting how seaside attractions often changed and refreshed their look over the decades to keep things feeling new for visitors.
One of the strongest cultural links many people remember from the 1970s and 1980s is the association with Gus Honeybun — the animated rabbit known for appearing in regional television birthday messages on Westward Television.
While Gus Honeybun was never part of the railway itself, the character became strongly connected in local memory with that era of seaside childhood and days out in Plymouth.
It’s a reminder of how local culture and attractions often blend together over time.
What’s also interesting is that parts of the original railway remain on site today as static displays, no longer in operation, but still visible as part of the park’s history.
Alongside that, a modern version of the railway continues to run today, carrying families along the same stretch of seafront.
Different generation. Same location. Same simple idea.
And that’s why West Hoe Park has lasted.
It hasn’t needed to become something bigger.
It has just kept going quietly, consistently as part of everyday life in Plymouth.
With a café, ice cream, a bouncy castle, and families still coming down to the Hoe, it remains one of those places that generations have shared, even if their memories of it are slightly different.
So here’s the question…
Did you grow up going on the West Hoe train?
And what do you remember most about it?
Photographs and Video © Wayne Perry / Plymouth Post