Cornwall is the last county before the Atlantic, a long granite peninsula running roughly 80 miles south-west from the Devon border at the River Tamar to Land's End, with the Isles of Scilly a further 28 miles offshore. Nowhere in the county is more than about 20 miles from the sea, and the two coasts have entirely different personalities. The north coast takes the full weight of Atlantic swell: high cliffs, wide surf beaches at Watergate Bay, Perranporth and Fistral, and a wind that shapes the hawthorns into permanent lean. The south coast is softer and more sheltered, cut by drowned river valleys where the sea pushes inland past oak woods to yacht moorings at Fowey, Falmouth and the Helford.
Between the two lies a landscape most visitors underestimate. Bodmin Moor covers the county's interior with granite tors, bronze-age stone circles and reservoirs. The old mining districts around St Agnes, St Just and Camborne carry UNESCO World Heritage status, their engine houses standing on cliff edges above shafts that once ran out under the seabed. Further west, the Penwith peninsula holds some of the oldest continuously farmed field systems in Europe, small irregular plots bounded by stone hedges laid down in the Bronze Age.
Cornwall also has its own language, its own flag and a long habit of considering itself separate. The Cornish were recognised as a national minority by the UK government in 2014. That identity shows up in place names beginning Tre-, Pol- and Pen-, in male voice choirs and Methodist chapels, in midsummer bonfires on the hilltops and in the fierce local defence of the correct way to build a cream tea. Add the mildest winters in mainland Britain, thanks to the Gulf Stream, and you have a county where palms and tree ferns grow outdoors and the swimming season stretches well into October.
Top things to do in Cornwall
The county packs an unusual density of major attractions into a small area, most within an hour's drive of each other.
- The Eden Project — two vast linked biomes built in a former china clay pit near St Austell, one holding the largest indoor rainforest anywhere, the other a Mediterranean climate of olives and citrus. The summer Eden Sessions bring big-name acts to an outdoor stage beside the domes.
- St Michael's Mount — a tidal island in Mount's Bay topped by a medieval castle and chapel, reached on foot across a granite causeway at low water and by boat when the tide covers it. The subtropical terraced garden clings to the rock face below the castle walls.
- The Minack Theatre — an open-air amphitheatre carved into the cliff at Porthcurno, built largely by hand by Rowena Cade from the 1930s onwards. Plays and concerts run through the season with the Atlantic as backdrop; book well ahead and bring a cushion and a coat.
- Tintagel Castle — ruined 13th-century fortifications spread across a headland and island on the north coast, linked by a footbridge and tangled up with the Arthurian legend since Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote about it in the 1130s.
- The Lost Gardens of Heligan — a Victorian estate garden near Mevagissey that vanished under bramble after the First World War and was rediscovered and restored from 1990. Walled kitchen gardens, a jungle valley of tree ferns and a productive working farm.
- Tate St Ives and the Barbara Hepworth Museum — the modernist gallery above Porthmeor Beach shows work by the artists who made St Ives a colony from the 1920s, while Hepworth's studio and sculpture garden survive almost exactly as she left them.
- The South West Coast Path — around 300 miles of the national trail run around Cornwall. Standout day sections include Zennor to St Ives, the cliffs from Boscastle to Tintagel, and the Rame Head loop in the far south-east.
- The Camel Trail — a level, traffic-free cycle route on a former railway line running from Padstow through Wadebridge to Bodmin and on towards the moor, following the Camel Estuary for its first and prettiest stretch. Bike and e-bike hire is easy to find at both ends.
- National Maritime Museum Cornwall — Falmouth's harbourside museum covers small boats, navigation and Cornwall's sea history, with an underwater viewing chamber below the waterline.
Getting to Cornwall
Great Western Railway runs direct trains from London Paddington down the length of the county. Truro is roughly four and a half hours, with Penzance, the end of the line, at about five hours on the fastest services and closer to five and a half on average. There are frequent departures through the day. The overnight Night Riviera sleeper leaves Paddington late in the evening and arrives in Penzance for breakfast, which is a civilised way to gain a day. Branch lines run from the main route to St Ives, Falmouth, Newquay and Looe, and the short St Erth to St Ives line is worth riding for the views over the estuary even if you have a car.
By road, the A30 is the main artery, coming off the M5 at Exeter and running the spine of the county to Penzance. It is dual carriageway for most of its Cornish length following the Chiverton to Carland Cross upgrade, though it still backs up badly on summer Saturdays when holiday lets change over. The A38 and A390 serve the south coast towns. Reckon on around five hours from London in clear conditions and considerably more in late July and August; travelling midweek or early morning makes a real difference.
Cornwall Airport Newquay has scheduled flights from London, Manchester, Edinburgh and several other UK cities, plus seasonal European routes, and sits about 20 minutes from Newquay itself. The Isles of Scilly are reached by Skybus from Land's End, Newquay or Exeter, or by the Scillonian III ferry from Penzance.
Parking is the main practical headache. Popular harbour towns such as St Ives, Padstow and Polperro have narrow streets and very limited central parking, and several either discourage or effectively prevent driving into the centre. Use the signed edge-of-town car parks and walk in, and expect summer charges to be steep. A car is still worth having for reaching coves and moorland trailheads, but plan to leave it parked for whole days.
Best time to visit Cornwall
Spring is arguably the county's best-kept secret. From March the great gardens — Trebah, Glendurgan, Caerhays, Trelissick — come into their own with magnolias and camellias, the coast path is lined with thrift and sea campion, and temperatures climb through the teens by late May. Accommodation is far cheaper than in summer and the roads are clear, though the sea is still cold enough to want a wetsuit.
Summer, from June to August, is when Cornwall is at its warmest and busiest. Days are long, the beaches are patrolled by RNLI lifeguards, and the events calendar fills with regattas, food festivals and open-air theatre. It is also when prices peak, popular beaches fill by mid-morning and restaurants need booking weeks ahead. School holidays in late July and August are the most crowded fortnight-by-fortnight period of the year.
Autumn suits many people better. September keeps much of the summer warmth, the sea is at its warmest of the whole year after months of heating, and the crowds thin sharply once schools return. October brings quieter beaches and good surf, with storms starting to roll in. Prices drop substantially through both months.
Winter is mild by British standards, rarely dropping below freezing on the coast, but wet and windy. Some seasonal businesses close from November to February, particularly in the smaller villages. In exchange you get empty cliff paths, dramatic seas at Porthcurno and Bedruthan, log fires in old inns, and Mousehole's harbour Christmas lights in December. Storm watching is a legitimate reason to come.
Where to stay in Cornwall
Cornwall is long, and the single most useful decision is which coast to base on. St Ives works well for a first visit: four beaches within walking distance, the Tate, a dense grid of galleries and restaurants, and a rail link. It is also extremely busy in August and parking is genuinely difficult, so it suits people happy to arrive by train and walk.
Padstow on the Camel Estuary is the food capital of the north coast and a good base for families, with the Camel Trail on the doorstep and the beaches of Constantine, Trevone and Harlyn a short drive away. It is not cheap. Newquay and Watergate Bay are the surf centres, better for active groups and families who want lessons and board hire on tap; Newquay's town centre has a livelier late-night character than most of the county.
On the south coast, Falmouth is a proper working town as well as a resort, with a university, a deep-water harbour, good pubs and ferries across to St Mawes and up the Fal. It rewards a longer stay. Fowey is smaller and more genteel, steep-streeted and set above a beautiful estuary, popular with sailors. Mevagissey and Charlestown put you close to Heligan and Eden.
For quiet, look west and inland. Penzance and neighbouring Newlyn are unpolished and interesting, with Newlyn still landing much of the county's fish, and they make a sensible base for Land's End, the Minack and St Michael's Mount. Mousehole, St Just and the villages of the Lizard peninsula suit walkers and couples who want early nights and dark skies. Bodmin Moor and the north-east around Boscastle and Port Isaac offer the most space per pound.
Food and drink in Cornwall
The Cornish pasty holds Protected Geographical Indication status, which means the real thing must be made in Cornwall, crimped on the side rather than the top, and filled with beef, potato, swede and onion. Bakeries worth the queue include Philps in Hayle and the Chough Bakery in Padstow. The other unmissable ritual is the cream tea, served the Cornish way with jam spread first and clotted cream on top — the reverse of the Devon method, and a point locals will make.
Seafood is the county's real strength. Newlyn is one of the busiest fishing ports in England, and Padstow, Looe and St Ives all land daily. Expect hake, monkfish, John Dory, gurnard, hand-dived scallops, Porthilly oysters from the Camel and mussels from the Fal. Rick Stein's operation in Padstow runs from the flagship Seafood Restaurant down through a bistro, café, deli and a very good fish and chip shop, with further outposts in Falmouth, Porthleven and St Merryn. Also in Padstow, Paul Ainsworth at No. 6 holds a Michelin star for cooking built on West Country produce, and his Caffè Rojano is the more relaxed alternative. Elsewhere, look for the harbourside cafés at Porthgwidden and Porthmeor in St Ives and the fish sheds around Newlyn.
Cornwall's drinks scene has grown fast. St Austell Brewery supplies pubs across the county with Tribute and Proper Job, while Verdant, Harbour and Firebrand cover the craft end. Vineyards at Camel Valley and Knightor produce sparkling wines that win international awards, and there are gin distilleries at Tarquin's near Wadebridge and Curio on the Lizard. Truro's Lemon Quay hosts a farmers' market twice a week, Falmouth and Penzance both hold regular producer markets, and the Cornish Food Box and Trevaskis Farm shop are useful for self-caterers stocking up. Round off with Cornish sea salt, saffron cake, hog's pudding and a scoop of Roskilly's ice cream from the Lizard.
