In 1888, the women and girls who made matches at the Bryant and May factory in Bow walked out over their pay and conditions, and their strike became one of the most famous in British history. The factory is now the Bow Quarter, a gated estate of flats, and Bow around it is a mix of Victorian terraces, post-war estates and new homes near the Olympic Park. Minibus hire Bow customers book is mostly school trips, family days out and runs to Stansted, which is one of the quickest airport runs from anywhere in London.
Bow sits in the east of Tower Hamlets, between Mile End, Bromley-by-Bow, Old Ford and Stratford, with the A12 and the A11 meeting at the Bow roundabout. From our base in SE1, it's about twenty-five to thirty-five minutes outside the rush hour, through the Rotherhithe or Blackwall tunnel or along the Mile End Road.
Minibus hire Bow for school trips
Bow's primary and secondary schools book us for museum visits, theatre trips, swimming, sports fixtures and residential trips. The Olympic Park is five minutes away, with the London Aquatics Centre, the VeloPark and the ArcelorMittal Orbit, and the South Kensington museums are about forty-five minutes. London Stadium tours and the Orbit's slide suit older pupils.
Closer to home, Three Mills Island, on the River Lea at Bromley-by-Bow, has the House Mill, the largest surviving tidal mill in the country, which opens for tours. Mile End Park's Ecology Pavilion runs nature sessions. Victoria Park, on Bow's northern edge, has playgrounds and space for a school sports day.
For a school trip, send us the pupil and staff numbers, the destination and the times, and we'll confirm everything in writing. On the morning, the driver pulls up at the school at the time you've set.
Minibus hire Bow for Stansted runs
From the Bow roundabout, the A12 runs straight to the M11, and Stansted is about thirty-five to forty-five minutes outside the rush hour. Many cheap flights to Europe and beyond leave from Stansted early in the morning, and families heading off with suitcases, car seats and buggies book us for the run.
At four or five in the morning, the A12 is clear and the run is quick. For departures, tell us the flight time and we'll suggest a pickup. In the school holidays, the first flights leave around six and the security queues are long, so many families aim to be at the terminal two hours ahead. For the return, give us the flight number and we'll match the pickup to the landing. London City is about fifteen minutes from Bow, Southend about forty-five, Heathrow about an hour and Gatwick an hour and a quarter.
Victoria Park and Roman Road
Victoria Park hosts summer concerts and festivals, and on those days the roads around the park close or fill with crowds. Families and groups book us to get there and back, and we'll drop outside the closures and agree a meeting point for the return.
Roman Road, Bow's main shopping street, has a market, cafés and independent shops, and it's a popular spot for a family lunch. The street market traditionally trades on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Bow Church, standing on an island in the middle of the Bow Road, has been there since the fourteenth century.
Family events and community groups
Bow has a large Bangladeshi community, along with long-standing East End families and many newer residents, and weddings, engagements and birthdays here can be big. The minibus collects guests from homes across Bow and Mile End, drops at the ceremony or the venue and brings them back. Community groups, mosques and churches book us for days out to the coast and the countryside. Banqueting halls along the A13 and in Ilford host many Bow weddings, and a minibus loop saves families running several cars back and forth.
For events where timings depend on prayer times or religious festivals, tell us and we'll plan around them.
The Bow roundabout and the flyover
The Bow roundabout, where the A12 Blackwall Tunnel Northern Approach meets the A11 under the Bow flyover, is one of the busiest junctions in east London, with cycle routes, bus lanes and heavy traffic. It slows badly at peak times and when there's an incident in the Blackwall Tunnel. Minibus hire Bow families book for an early flight is planned with a margin for the roundabout, and for school trips we'll pick a time that avoids the worst of it.
Bow Road and Mile End Road have bus lanes and a cycleway, so pickups happen on side streets. Bow Church on the DLR and Bow Road on the District line sit close together, and both make handy meeting points for a group.
For minibus hire in Bow, call 020 7183 0567.