St Mawes

[52user52]

I’ve booked a trip this summer going to St Mawes, we will be staying at The Tresanton for three nights. We’re not in the UK, and will be flying to London (Heathrow) and then not sure yet how to get from there. I know there is a train, it was over £600 (first class). So I was thinking if it would be worth renting a car (perhaps a bit outside of London?) and drive there. Would it be a hassle?
Really greatful for tips, never been in that area before.

Does the train have to be first class? I'm surprised you can't get a cheaper fare than that - have you shopped around?
Normally you'd hire a car from near the airport and that does give you flexibility but it's a long drive to Cornwall. Are you used to driving in the UK? If you mean to travel part way out of London to find a hire car for a better price and to avoid London traffic (ULEZ etc?) then that needs some research.
Cornwall is lovely but can be very busy in the summer months as it's so popular with holiday makers. The Tresanton should be fab. Truro nearby is good for a wander, Lost Gardens of Heligan and Eden Project.

The train would only get you to either Truro or Falmouth. You can get the foot ferry from Falmouth or I guess bus/taxi from Truro.

The Roseland Peninsula (where St Mawes is) is narrow roads or lanes so you need to be confident driving (and reversing) on those types of roads.

It is a pretty village though and The Tresanton has a good reputation. There’s lots of walking or you can get the ferry to Falmouth if you want more town stuff. If you wanted to do the bigger Cornwall attractions, you probably need a car.

Can't help with transport tips, but just to day that it is at the end of the Roseland Peninsula, the most beautiful part of Cornwall. We went there many times when I was a kid (late 1960s/early 1970s). The village of Gerrans and its extension, Portscatho, are so pretty. On Porthcurnick beach there is a café with gourmet food.

@52user52 In my view, you need a car. It will take 5 hours from Heathrow though. It’s a slog. As is the train! Train is less effort and you don’t need first class - go to Truro. You can also fly to Newquay. Have you looked into that? Then hire a car locally. It’s a long way to go for a few days. That hotel is top seaside style though. I’ve really enjoyed lunch on their terrace - just lovely.

A standard train ticket from Heathrow to Falmouth will cost about £90. You can buy a return ticket for about £180.

If you are travelling with someone else buy a Two Together rail card. It costs £35 and lasts a year. It gives you a third off all rail fares so your £180 rail ticket will cost you £120.

The ferry from Falmouth to St Mawes costs around £10 per person.

First class is disproportionately expensive and, in my opinion, not worth the extra cost.

It's a long train journey but the trip by car will be very long and in summer traffic on the M5 and in Cornwall can be very slow. If I were you I'd go by train so you can relax with a coffee/glass of wine and enjoy the beautiful countryside you'll pass through.

St Mawes is stunning and Falmouth beaches and town have lots to offer too.

Thank you. DH is used to driving all over the world, and I just thought maybe we could do a few nice stops along the way if you could drive a more scenic way? But now I’m not so sure.😅 @itsalltoplayfor outside only to avoid London traffick, price is not that important as DH ususally get a free upgrade and a good price on hire cars.
It doesn’t have to be first class, but it looks like the seats are more comfortable. I searched on the trainline.com. Not worth the price for first class though, it’s just too much for a train..

Is there a more scenic drive, even if it takes longer? I will look into flying to Newquay, thanks.

M3/A30 is a more scenic drive. Look at a UK map to get your bearings.
It’ll take you past Stonehenge.

Check out some rail ticket apps. Look for Seat Frog and TrainPal.

Check out National Express (look for the web site) buses from
London Victoria coach station OR from Heathrow to Cornwall. Much cheaper but a longer ride. Maybe break the coach trip at Exeter, a Cathedral city of Roman origin and continue next day or two?

I think having a car while you’re on the Roseland will be worth while. Lots of pretty beaches and pubs in the area that aren’t served by public transport and would be a bit of a hike.

We’re in London and there’s no way I’d plan a trip to Cornwall just for a few days.. travelling that far / long I would want to stay at least a week, if not two! Also, the five hours journey time quoted by pp can be massively increased if you are travelling in peak holiday season (from memory I am thinking 7+ hours? But you’d need to check). Train journey may be different (a bit more relaxing, and a shorter time), so maybe train to Cornwall and hire a car for the last bit and to sight-see while you are there.

There's also a sleeper train from London Paddington to Cornwall....

Driving down to Cornwall in the summer can be a pretty grim experience as you’ll end up in queues of traffic doing exactly the same. Better to travel on a weekday, but personally I’d choose the train just because I really dislike sitting in traffic jams

Having a car will be useful when you get there to explore the area. If you drive consider going in the evening or very early morning to avoid traffic. I holiday in Cornwall most years and reckon travelling in the evening/night time takes about 3 hours off our usual journey time.

If we drive we’d leave around 6 in the morning. But I’m thinking maybe a train will be better after all, or flying to Newquay and then rent a car. We will spend a couple of days in London before.

Does anyone know how it is to drive from Newquay?

If you are unlucky and leave London mid morning the journey can take a long time.
One time I did it, it was 9 hours cos of roadworks even though we left at 8am!

Take the train, hire a car from Truro or go to Falmouth and ferry across. On your one full day going to lost gardens, tintagel, Minack, Michael's mount, st Ives, lizard or eden project (anywhere that's not local) will waste hours of your time in traffic.

I would stay local, hang around St mawes, get ferry to Trelissick, get boat to Anthony's head for walking, ferry to Falmouth and gyllyngvase beach if the sun's out, maybe Trebah and helford passage. That's it, you'll have no time for anything else.

Actually unless you are used to UK country roads, blind corners on single lane 60 mph roads, reversing down said roads and Google maps suggesting you drive down roads with grass growing down the middle and 8ft hedgerow, it might be a better idea to get a taxi.
I got stuck in a 40 minute traffic jam at port navas cos someone couldn't reverse their SUV.

@happysunr1se thank you, great information.

Ok, sorry to be annoying. 🤣

But what would you do, either take the train from London to Falmouth (then a short ferry from what I understand), or fly from London to Newquay and rent a car and drive (1 hr?)? Maybe it’s easier with no car if the roads are really narrow?

It’s a surprise trip, and I’ve booked for DH to go sailing for half a day.

I would fly to Newquay and hire a car. So much of Cornwall is best explored off the beaten track

Can anyone recommend any other nice places to stay at, if we were to stay longer? Perhaps not quite as expensive as Tresanton but still nice.

Thank you. Flights are quite cheap actually.

What’s your budget?

Will definitely be more than the £600 in the summer and probably already fully booked (although depends when as they release tickets 12 weeks ahead), it’s a great service but mad price.

Great post - agree.

No real budget, but Tresanton + sailing was quite expensive even if it is for just 3 nights so a bit cheaper than that. 😅

But most of us aren’t going to know what three nights at the Tresanton in summer plus sailing are going to cost, so you’re going to need to be more specific if you’re to get concrete advice.