Cornwall is rugged coastlines and sleepy seaside villages. It is full of hiking opportunities, swimming spots and knick knack stores, basically there is something for everyone. It is a stunning part of England and reminds us a bit of home in New Zealand. However, do note that the crowds can be daunting over the summer so it is best to visit in the fringe season, even if you do have to chance the weather. We visited for a week in September and got very lucky with some beautiful sunshine and only a couple of days of fog. The first stop on our glamping adventure was the gorgeous Port Isaac area. We stayed at Cornish Tipi Holidays in, well, a tipi, in our own private camping area complete with fire pit and picnic table. It was wonderful, but cold, so bring extra warmth! The whole property is stunning with a water filled old quarry surrounded by forest where you can go trout fishing and use any of the boats for free. Magical.
The nearby town of Port Isaac is one of those quintessential Cornish villages that you imagine you will visit. It is a beautiful spot to walk around and to have a sundowner from the top of the trail overlooking the village.
There is plenty to do in this part of Cornwall and on one of the days we rented some bikes in Wadebridge and cycled part of the Camel Trail Cycle Route along the estuary to the town of Padstow. Honestly, this was a bit hyped up and if we were here again we would not bother. Yes it was pretty, but there is not much to really look at. Once we arrived in Padstow it was absolutely bustling, we could only imagine, with a shiver, what it would have been like in August. The town itself is very nice with plenty to do, the walk around the hills at the harbour is particularly nice with sweeping views over the opposite beaches.
The main reason we came to Padstow was to eat, and boy did we eat. We had our first taste of Cornish crab in a little pot which was just the ticket to wet the appetite before lunch. We then enjoyed a few beers at the Padstow Brewery Tasting Room, before heading to the Michelin recommended Caffè Rojano by Paul Ainsworth (you need to book in advance). The food here was stunning and we were seated at a fantastic table in the sun room. The pasta was sensational and the fish burger was delicious. Highly recommend.
The next section of our road trip had us heading down to St Ives. If you’re peckish then a stop off in Hayle is a must. It is home to one of the most famous places to grab a Cornish pasty – Philps Bakery. We love pies so pasties are right up our alley, but I must admit that, while delicious, NZ pies still take the medal. Note that these things are huge so make sure you are hungry.
St Ives is another Cornwall hotspot so can get very busy. However, the town is busy for a reason, it is full of fantastic places to eat and plenty of walks to do. We started in the Porthmeor Beach Carpark and did a section of the Coastal Path to Clodgy Point. This is just an idea as you can make your hike as long as you want it to be. The Coastal Path runs around the whole of Cornwall so there are endless walks to embark upon.
Once your appetite is nicely built up, it’s a good idea to stroll into town for some lunch. We visited The Crab & Rum Shack which is very reasonably priced and has fantastic food and rum cocktails. Andrew and I opted for the whole crab and hacked away at it with claw crackers, resulting in bits of crab everywhere. Certainly a very fun experience, but one that is not repeated again in a hurry.
It was then time to head over to the Lizard Peninsula where we would be based for the next three nights. We stopped via the lovely village of Marazion that has the most gorgeous views out to St Michael’s Mount. It is a tidal island that is linked to the village of Marazion by a man-made causeway of granite setts. It is only passable between mid-tide and low water, so we had to be content with admiring from afar. Historically it is very interesting, it was a Cornish counterpart of Mont-Saint-Michel in Normandy, France (with which it shares the same tidal island characteristics and the same conical shape), and it was given to the Benedictine religious order of Mont Saint-Michel by Edward the Confessor in the 11th century.
The Lizard Peninsula is a beautiful part of Cornwall and a bit less busy than some of the more famous spots. Saying that, visiting in the fringe season is still recommended. We stayed in a Bell Tent at Little Trethvas Glamping right near the town of Lizard. It was a beautiful spot, well-equipped and exceptional value for money.
It was in Lizard that we got our first taste of the Cornish fog. Braving the fog, we decided to head down to do part of the Coastal Path around Lizard Point. While we obviously could not see much, we enjoyed the moody and mysterious atmosphere it lended to the area. You could just imagine the smuggling that went on in these coves in the dead of the night. After hiking in the dreary weather we felt we really deserved a pasty from Ann’s Pasties on our way out the town. We wolfed them down while watching the fog dissipate from a local football pitch.
The Lizard is full of gorgeous little villages and beaches just waiting to be explored. The tiny village of Cadgwith Cove is all steep hills and narrow roads, with a lovely pub for an afternoon beverage. Gunwalloe and Poldhu Cove are lovely beaches to visit, one to chill (Gunwalloe) and one to swim (Poldhu). Gunwalloe is home to the fantastic Halzephron Inn which is a good place to have dinner. This was one of our favourite dining experiences on the trip and I highly recommend it.
Once the fog disappeared we were treated to some gorgeous beaches, our favourite was the stunning Kynance Cove. It is a bit of a walk down to the beach but very much worth it. I recommend going at low tide when the beach is at its best and you can get to all areas of it. We started with a walk along the cliffs of the Coastal Path which greeted us with some fantastic views. It was then time for some relaxing and swimming in the beautiful blue waters.
The final spot we visited on the Lizard Peninsula was Helford River. Here you can rent a motor boat and drive yourselves down the river, towards the mouth of the sea. We picked up some takeaway food from The Ferry Boat Inn, the food is fantastic so you should definitely do this, to eat on a deserted beach. We also moored the boat for a quick drink at the Shipwright Arms. It is a wonderful way to spend an afternoon and a very relaxing way to enjoy the area.
It was then time for our journey to take us to the Roseland Peninsula. We caught the short King Harry Ferry (vehicular chain ferry) over, and then took the short drive down to St Mawes. St Mawes is a sweet little town and can easily be explored on foot with one of the main sites being the St Mawes Castle. This is where my sister-in-law spent many a summer growing up and it was fun having her show us around. We had a fantastic meal at the Watch House, the best fish and chips I’ve ever had.
The Roseland Peninsula has many other beautiful towns that we drove through such as St Just in Roseland and Veryan. We stopped for a wander around occasionally before making our way up to the greatly anticipated Eden Project.
The Eden Project is somewhere that Andrew has wanted to visit since he was a little boy after seeing it in the Guinness World Records for the most scaffolding used. What all little boys dream of I’m sure. Well, it did not disappoint. This project completely blew us away. The Eden Project is basically two biomes (including some extensive grounds) that have plants that are collected from many diverse climates and environments. It is located in a reclaimed china clay pit near the town of St Austell. The biomes are huge and incredibly well done (and very warm!). In one of them you can even enjoy a G&T at a table in your meditteranian surroundings. It is definitely worth a good few hours and was a huge highlight of our trip.
For the next few nights we based ourselves in a glamping pod at Bay View Farm, just outside of Looe. This spot has the most gorgeous sweeping views of Looe Bay and it was an absolute delight to sit at our picnic tables, with a wine, and simply admire the view.
Looe is a nice large(ish) town to pop into for supplies, delicious baked goods and seafood snacks. It has plenty of pubs and cafes to choose from, as well as a nice long sandy beach to admire. I think the average age of the town is about 70, which we learnt the hard way when we found that none of the pubs served food past 8pm!
One of our favourite walks we did while in the area was from Talland Bay to Polperro. I adored Polperro. It is such a special Cornish town, renowned for smuggling (obviously). It is lovely to wander through the narrow streets, popping into stores and galleries. There is a fantastic pub there called the Three Pilchards, which is fantastic for drinks and food.
Overall, our time in Cornwall was a delight – filled with plenty of activities, some relaxation and of course stunning scenery. A week long trip seemed like enough time to get a flavour of the area, however you could spend much much more hopping around the endless bays and beaches. Cost wise, it can be as cheap or as expensive as you like, there are plenty of nice restaurants and cheap pubs to suit everyone.
Here is a breakdown of our costs for 2 people for 7 days:
Accommodation – £368 (NZ$718)
Food/Drink – £543 (NZ$1,060)
Car hire / Petrol – £256 (NZ$500)
Trains – £109 (NZ$213)
Activities – £134 (NZ$261)
Miscellaneous – £108 (NZ$211)
Total spent – £1,518 (NZ$2,963)
