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The Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro (Treliske) is the biggest hospital in Cornwall providing emergency and specialist healthcare. The Emergency Department is based at the Royal Cornwall Hospital alongside critical care facilities, high-tech operating theatres, maternity services, cancer care, pain clinics and a wide range of outpatient services from eyes, ears and skin to specialist therapies. Additionally, there are excellent education and training facilities at Royal Cornwall Hospital.
The majority of clinical services are provided in three main ‘wings’ or areas at the Royal Cornwall Hospital:
- Trelawny Wing which includes the Emergency Department, critical care unit and operating theatres,
- Tower Block which includes the children’s ward, more operating theatres, a female surgical ward, specialist medical wards and nuclear medicine department,
- Princess Alexandra Wing which includes maternity services, therapy department, gynaecology care, dermatology services and a renal unit.
Please remember, all of our hospital sites are smoke-free. This includes outside and in the car parks.
Site access and parking restrictions
When arriving at the Royal Cornwall Hospital, please be aware that there some current, and upcoming constraints around parking and access due to ongoing remedial estates works.
There are now 50 fully accessible parking bays in Car Park 1C – across the main road from the hospital (on the corner opposite the Microbiology Building). This is in preparation for the closure of Car Park 1A when major works begin for the new Women and Children’s Hospital. Although further from the hospital, access is largely level. Construction of the Northern Access Road (NAR) and the re-prioritisation of traffic is now complete. (The NAR is expected to fully open in April 2026 provided an alternative access to the hospital from the A390.) Further improvements are also being sought for the safety of pedestrians .
Eye Unit, Tower Block, and Princess Alexandra Wing
There is no direct access to the Tower Block via the Main Tower Entrance at this time.
Alternative entry routes are via the Link Corridor Entrance, and via the Eye Unit Entrance behind the Tower Block and to the east of the Emergency Department. (The Eye Unit entrance is well signposted as you approach the Tower block area in a vehicle.)
There are 6 fully accessible parking spaces in the area to the east of the Emergency Department (which may be used for ambulance overflow, if required). There are a further two designated (non-compliant) blue badge parking bays, additional short stay parking spaces, and drop-off zones along the approach to the Eye Unit Entrance.
There are 10 accessible parking bays and six drop off spaces outside the front of the Princess Alexandra Wing.
Link Corridor (north side)
There is often a temporary mobile scanner located on the north side of the Link Corridor entrance across the accessible parking bays.
Alternative accessible parking for the Link Corridor entrance is located either on the south side of the Link Corridor in the area adjacent to the Emergency Department, or a few metres away from the north entrance to the Link Corridor, outside the Sunrise Centre.
Trelawny Wing and Dolphin House
The nearest accessible parking bays for Trelawny Wing can be found in Car Park 1A opposite the Trelawny Wing Main Entrance.
The small car park next to Dolphin House has two accessible parking bays. Should you not be able to park at Dolphin House, the nearest alternative is Car Park 1C (on the corner opposite the Microbiology Building).
North Buildings (including Alliance PET CT scanner, Diabetic and Endocrine Centre, and Cornwall Mobility)
Please be aware that from the end of April 2025, a temporary one-way system will be in place for users of and visitors to the North Buildings at the back of the hospital, beyond the helipad. This is while Cormac Ltd complete the configuration of the new Northern Access Road between the hospital site and the Health and Wellbeing Innovation Centre. Parking or waiting outside the PET CT scanner will not be possible. We recommend all users park in Car Park 1C.
Mermaid Centre
The Mermaid Centre car park now has five fully compliant accessible parking bays and a drop-off zone. If you need to find alternative parking, please use Car Park 1C, across the road from the Microbiology Building, or try around the corner outside the Sunrise Centre.
Tenvennick Unit
There are two non-compliant accessible parking bays which have been allocated outside the Tenvennick MRI Unit. There are no immediate alternatives if these are occupied. Our recommendation would be to try to park in accessible parking areas outside ED and enter the hospital via the Link Corridor, or park in accessible bays in Car Park 1A at the front of the Trelawny Wing entrance where wheelchairs can be borrowed.
Latest visiting information
Updating your personal information
Please help ensure that the information we hold about you is up-to-date via this link – https://forms.office.com/r/YJD9z62gLX, or using the QR code below. We will ensure your information is processed in line with UK Data Protection laws.
Contact details
- Telephone: 01872 250000
- Address: Royal Cornwall Hospital, Treliske, Truro, TR1 3LJ
Get directions to the hospital
Parking and public transport
Parking at the Royal Cornwall Hospital
The main visitor car parks are within the hospital grounds. They can be busy, so please allow some time before your appointment to park. If someone is driving you to hospital, you may find it easier to get them to drop you off before parking their car.
The main car parks use automated number plate recognition on entry and exit and are ‘pay on foot’. You will need to put your registration number into the payment machine to pay for your parking before you leave. The system is ticketless. Once you have paid, the number plate recognition system will raise the barrier for you to exit the car park.
If you have any difficulty making a payment at the pay station, please use the intercom or call into the Saba office in the lower end of the main visitor car park. If you have any difficulty exiting the car park at the barrier, please use the intercom on the car park barrier to contact the Saba office.
Car parking charges for the Royal Cornwall Hospital:
- Up to 15 minutes: Free
- 15 mins to 2 Hours: £3.60
- 2 to 4 hours: £7.20
- 4 to 6 hours: £11.10
- 6 to 24 hours: £17.00
Free parking applies to blue badge holders, frequent attenders and parents of sick children staying overnight.
Disabled Blue Badge Holders – How to validate your free parking
- Arrive at the car park, the barrier will raise, and the camera will read your number plate
- Park your car
- After your appointment enter your vehicle registration number into the payment machine in the car park, to show your parking fee
- Scan the barcode on the rear of your Blue Badge Card. It will go from orange to green
- The balance on the payment machine will change to zero
- Return to your car and the drive to the exit barrier, this will raise automatically, and you can drive away.
Motorcycle parking
Designated motorcycle parking is provided, and locations can be found on the Truro hospital site map (PDF) using the key section provided. There are no parking charges for motorcycles.
Frequent attenders
People who frequently attend outpatient appointments (at least 3 times a month for at least 3 months) will be able to obtain a free parking pass, for each visit, following confirmation by the clinic/department being visited. This is in addition to the free parking currently offered by the patient departmental permit scheme.
Parents of sick children
Parents or guardians of sick children who are staying overnight will be able to obtain a free parking pass following confirmation by the ward. Free parking will apply between 7.30pm and 8am and can be for a maximum of two vehicles. The pass can be obtained from the Saba Lodge (the office is closed between Midnight and 6.00am) and is in addition to the patient departmental permit scheme. If the Saba Lodge is closed a refund can be made by contacting Saba during their opening hours.
Where confirmation is needed for a free parking pass, a member of the ward or department team will need to provide written authorisation to be presented to Saba including details of the ward contact details.
Concessionary tickets for long-term patients and visitors
- 5-day tickets: £25.00
- 7-day tickets: £34.00
- Monthly tickets: £85.00
(If you need to buy a concessionary long-term ticket, you’ll need to ask the ward or department you are visiting for a form.)
There are also a few ‘pay and display’ spaces near to the entrance to the Tower Block building. If you use one of these don’t forget to make a note of what time your ticket expires.
We also have free pick-up and drop-off spaces close to the entrances at all of our hospital buildings, but don’t forget to check signs for time limits and, of course, only use a disabled space if you’re displaying a Blue Badge.
There are also a few designated permit spaces for patients who need to attend hospital for long-term treatment. These spaces are free and next the department you will be visiting. If these spaces are available, we’ll let you know when you receive details of your appointments.
Saba UK manage car parking on behalf of the Royal Cornwall Hospital NHS Trust.
Royal Cornwall Hospital patient and visitor car parks have been accredited with the Park Mark award, a national standard which means they have low crime, and measures in place to ensure the safety of people and vehicles. You can learn more about the scheme on the British Parking website.
Other parking options
Park and Ride Truro:
- Langarth TR4 9AN
- Tregurra TR1 1RH
Cornwall Council runs a Park and Ride service – ‘Park for Truro’ – at both Langarth (near Threemilestone) and Tregurra (near Waitrose). All Park and Ride buses come through and stop at the hospital site. It’s open from 7am to 7pm, Monday to Saturday. The service is quick and efficient running every ten minutes during peak times. For more information, including timetables and costs, visit the Park for Truro website, alternatively you may call them directly on 01872 279270.
Public transport
Many bus routes stop at the Royal Cornwall Hospital and there are frequent connections from Truro train station. For public transport information, you can call Traveline on 0871 200 22 33.
Help with transport
If you need help to get to the hospital, there are several community transport schemes that could help. If you receive Income Support or other benefits, you might also be able to reclaim your travel and parking expenses; visit our ‘Practical help and advice‘ page for more information.
Facilities at the Royal Cornwall Hospital
Facilities for disabled people
For information about disabled parking, on-site wheelchairs, interpreters, adult changing rooms, and other considerations, please view our ‘Practical help and advice‘ page.
Pharmacies
The Royal Cornwall Hospital has two pharmacies. The general pharmacy department is in the Tower Block, near The Royal restaurant. There’s also a Rowlands pharmacy in the Link Centre, next to the Trelawny Wing; it dispenses for the emergency department and outpatients. This leaves the general pharmacy to concentrate on inpatients, specialist medicines and medicines for patients going home. Neither pharmacy dispenses FP10 prescriptions written by GPs. Patients can pick up their medicines from Rowlands in the same way as in a high street pharmacy. The usual exemptions will apply to payments, and staff can advise on the national pre-payment schemes for patients receiving regular prescriptions.
Opening Hours
Monday to Friday (5 days) 8.40am to 6pm
Saturday and Sunday including Bank Holiday (2 days) 8.30am to 5pm
Rowlands Pharmacy Opening Hours
Monday to Friday 9am to 6pm
Saturday 9am to 1pm
General Office
The General Office provides a front-line cash service and a point of contact for patients who are eligible to claim travel expenses for hospital appointments.
What we do at the General Office:
- Help patients that qualify for travel reimbursements. We can advise whether patients are in receipt of the relevant benefits and provide advice on the methods of transport that can be reimbursed in full.
- Receive payments for invoices and donations to any of the hospital’s wards or departments.
- Accept donations to the Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust Charitable Fund
- We encourage patients to leave valuable items and large sums of cash at home, but if this isn’t possible, we can keep patient’s cash and valuables safe and secure.
- Receive lost property items (we’ll keep them for three months)
- Provide travel information on how to get to your hospital appointment
- Provide information and leaflets in alternative formats, such as large print, braille, audio format, or in another language. See our Accessible Information Standard page for more information.
Opening Hours
9.00am to 4.15pm, Monday to Friday
Location
1st floor of the Trelawny wing at the Royal Cornwall Hospital (just past the main Trelawny reception on the left)
Phone
Laptops, mobile phones and other electronic devices
You can use these in the hospitals, however they can be disruptive for other patients on the wards so we ask that you are respectful, use headphones if possible and switch them off if a member of staff asks you to.
They can sometimes interfere with medical equipment, so if you are asked to switch them off by one of our staff, please do so straight away.
Free Wi-Fi Access
There is free Wi-Fi available in all of our hospitals, including the wards, coffee shops and restaurants.
The Wi-Fi network is called NHS Wi-Fi.
This is an open network and you don’t need a password. To get access, connect to the network in the usual way and a short registration form should pop up automatically. Your device will then stay connected for 24 hours, after which you’ll need to reconnect by filling out the form again.
If your device can’t find the NHS Wi-Fi network, it means we haven’t got access in that part of the hospital yet.
Restaurant and café information
Our restaurants, cafés and shops are open to visitors, patients and staff, and their opening hours are listed below. (You should also ask for advice from a doctor or nurse if you’re on a special diet and thinking of using the restaurants.)
The Royal:
- Monday to Friday: 7am until 4pm
Selection of delicious, freshly prepared hot and cold food available in our restaurant. Including our grab and go section, daily chef specials and offer of the day.
Trelawny Café:
New opening hours: 6.30am to 9pm every day from 13 October 2025
Monday to Friday menu at the Trelawny Café:
Freshly prepared sandwiches, jacket potatoes, paninis, pasties, breakfast items as well as snacks and delicious cakes. As well as daily hot specials.
Saturday and Sunday menu at Trelawny Café:
Selection of curries, jacket potatoes, pasties, soup and hot bap of the day.
Fresh pizza available from 6pm every day.
Knowledge Spa coffee shop:
Monday to Friday, 8am to 3pm.
Freshly prepared sandwiches, paninis as well as snacks, delicious cakes.
League of Friends Coffee Bar, Tower Block entrance
Monday to Friday, 9am to 3pm.
Serving a range of snacks and drinks.
League of Friends Refreshment Bar, Mermaid Centre
Open during clinic hours, Monday to Friday. Serving a range of snacks and drinks.
WH Smiths, Trelawny Wing entrance
- Monday to Friday: 7am to 8pm
- Saturday: 8am to 6pm
- Sunday: 9am to 6pm
Newsagent, confectionery, snacks, cards, gifts and flowers. A trolley service also visits the wards each day.
Vending machines
- Tower Entrance – Snacks, Hot Drinks
- Renal – Cold Drinks, Snacks
- Maternity – Hot Drinks, Snacks
- The Hub – Snacks
- KSPA – Snacks, Hot Drinks, Cold Drinks
- ED Foyer – Snacks, Hot Drinks, Cold Drinks
- Main Entrance – Snacks, Cold Drinks
- 1st Floor Trelawny – Hot Drinks
- Ground Floor Trelawny – Snacks, Cold Drinks, Hot Drinks
ATM / Cash Machine
There is a cash machine located in the main entrance to Trelawny wing. It does not charge for withdrawals.
Post Box
There is a Royal Mail post box located in the main entrance to Trelawny wing. You can buy stamps at WH Smiths.
Page last reviewed: 1 April 2026