Explore 14 fabulous locations in Cornwall
Cornwall is a county on England’s rugged southwestern tip. It forms a peninsula encompassing wild moorland and hundreds of sandy beaches, culminating at the promontory Land’s End. The south coast, dubbed the Cornish Riviera, is home to picturesque harbour villages such as Fowey and Falmouth. The north coast is lined with towering cliffs and seaside resorts like Newquay, known for surfing.
1. BEACHES: SENNEN & PERRANPORTH
Cornwall's Sennen Cove has crystal clear water and, with the swell coming straight in from the Atlantic, is great for surfing all year round. Sennen Beach is situated just around the corner from Land's End and is the most westerly beach in mainland Britain.
Saint Piran built a Christian oratory behind the beach, whose ruins still stand today. Today, Perranporth's Atlantic swell attracts surfers from far and wide.
2. BUDE
Bude is a paradise for nature lovers, adventure seekers, and those eager to experience responsible and sustainable tourism. It has been a thriving seaside resort town since Victorian times, and has built a strong reputation as a holiday destination due to beautiful, award winning beaches, the famous Bude Sea Pool, rugged cliffs, wide open spaces and stunning coastal landscapes.
PLAY @ FREEWAVE SURF ACADEMY
3. FALMOUTH
Falmouth is a town on the coast of Cornwall. It’s known for its deep natural harbour on the Fal Estuary, and beaches like Swanpool and Gyllyngvase. The National Maritime Museum Cornwall has interactive galleries and a flotilla of model boats. On Pendennis Point, Pendennis Castle is a well-preserved 16th-century fortress built by Henry VIII.
4. FOWEY
Set in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, this pretty harbour town is situated on the west side of a deep estuary, where the Fowey River reaches the sea. The town has been in existence since well before the Norman invasion, with the local church first established some time in the 7th century; the estuary of the River Fowey forms a natural harbour which enabled the town to become an important trading centre.
STAY @ LYDCOTT GLAMPING
5. LAND’S END
Land's End is the most westerly point of mainland England. However, it is not the westernmost point on mainland Great Britain, as this title narrowly goes to Corrachadh Mòr in the Scottish Highlands.
6. NEWQUAY
Newquay is a town on the north coast of Cornwall. It’s known for sandy Fistral and Watergate Bay beaches, where waves from the Atlantic Ocean create strong surf. On the seafront, the Blue Reef Aquarium features an underwater tunnel going through a coral-reef tank with pufferfish, sharks and rays.
PLAY @ CORNISH WAVE SURF & ADVENTURE
PLAY @ NEWQUAY ACTIVITY CENTRE
7. PADSTOW
A pretty harbour with lively streets and a thriving foodie scene, situated on one of the most beautiful stretches of coast in Britain. Padstow is a town and fishing port on the north coast . The town is located on the west bank of the River Camel estuary.
8. POLZEATH
The small seaside resort village, Polzeath, is situated in the civil parish of St Minver. Polzeath has a sandy beach and is popular with holiday-makers and surfers. The main street runs along the seafront and has a parade of shops catering for holidaymakers and residents. There are pubs, cafés, restaurants, a caravan site and several camping sites in the immediate area.
9. PORT ISAAC
Port Isaac is a stunning, traditional fishing village in North Cornwall that is home to the TV series Doc Martin starring Martin Clunes and the Fisherman’s Friends shanty singers. With narrow winding streets lined with whitewashed cottages overlooking a small harbour, Port Isaac typifies Cornwall at its best.
10. ST AGNES
Tucked into a stunning and unspoilt spot on the north Cornish coast, St. Agnes sits in both a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and a World Heritage Site.
STAY @ BEACON COUNTRY HOUSE & LUXURY SHEPHERD HUTS
11. ST AUSTELL
St Austell was a village centred around the parish church, until the arrival of significant tin mining in the 18th century turned it into a town. St Austell is named after the 6th-century Cornish saint, St Austol, a disciple of St Mewan. In a Vatican manuscript there is a 10th-century list of Cornish parish saints. This includes Austoll, which means that the church and village existed at that time, shortly after 900. St Austell is the main centre of the china clay industry in Cornwall.
STAY @ THE CORNWALL HOTEL & SPA
12. ST IVES
St Ives is famous for its surf beaches, like Porthmeor, and its art scene. The seafront Tate St Ives gallery has rotating modern art exhibitions, focusing on British artists. Nearby, the Barbara Hepworth Museum and Sculpture Garden, in the modernist artist’s former studio, displays her bronzes and other works.
13. ST MICHAEL’S MOUNT
The tidal island, St Michael's Mount, is located in Mount's Bay near Penzance. The island is a civil parish and is linked to the town of Marazion by a causeway of granite setts, passable between mid-tide and low water.
14. TRURO
Truro is a cathedral city and civil parish in Cornwall, England; it is the southernmost city in the United Kingdom, just under 232 miles west-south-west of Charing Cross in London. Truro's dominant feature is its Gothic-revival cathedral, designed by architect John Loughborough Pearson, rising 249 ft (76 m) above the city at its highest spire. It was built in 1880–1910 on the site of St Mary's Church, consecrated over 600 years earlier.
EAT CORNISH PASTIES
EAT SCONES
EAT SEAFOOD
WHEN TO GO: The best time to visit Cornwall is in June or September when the weather is still good but it's not as busy.
HOW TO GET THERE: It takes less than five hours to get from London or Birmingham to the heart of Cornwall by car. The most popular route for trains to Cornwall from London is London Paddington to Newquay, which is served by Great Western Railway (GWR).
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