Am I unusual that Cornwall didn't really do it for me?

[Stillwaitingforsummer]

Just that. OK the weather wasn't really great which didn't help, but the scenery wasn't as stunning as I had expected. I think Wales is more stunning,and the lake district.
Did I miss something?

[JemandScout]

I like Cornwall but I wouldn't go there now simply because it takes hours and we would be driving though equally lovely places and we have been. We had our first family holiday in St Ives 12 years ago when DD was 9 months old. We didn't move the car for a week and the weather is as glorious. I remember bathing DD in a washing up bowl. We went another time a few years later and it was as freezing in July. From then on we swore we would always go abroad if funds permitted.

[Dashper]

Wizardoftoss I get your point about the tourists as I grew up in Pembrokeshire. But it's still a meh from me

[KERALA1]

We did similar Jem. Incredible June holiday in Tenby with tiny pre schoolers in a fluke heatwave it was like the med. Reason for such a great holiday was the weather so we have followed the sun ever since. At risk of sounding like a princess if I don't get some proper sun, warm evenings etc I don't feel I have had a holiday so UK doesn't do it for me however lovely.

[Thewolfsjustapuppy]

I would have agreed a few years ago when I used to go to Cornwall on family holidays.

I moved her 2 years ago - by chance, I hadn't planned on living in Cornwall but work took me this way - and I LOVE it! I have never felt more at home than I do here. August is a bit of a grind I'll grant you, but the rest of the year it is stunning.

To those who are complaining of high streets full of fat face and jules, unfortunately just like every other town in England, small local boutique businesses cannot afford high street rents, it you just venture out from the centre a little you will find all of our hidden gems, including fabulous, reasonably priced coffee, ice cream, and eateries like you cannot find anywhere else in the country.

Towns like Padstow and Port Isaac are amazing at every other time than high season, unfortunately those quaint little cobble streets that look like they must be pedestrianised are in fact just the road that we have to drive on in order to get from home to work.

Even in august it is possible to get away from the crowds - I have just got home from an hour and half walk with the dogs in the woods and I didn't see a single person, all I could hear were the occasional airplane, heaven.

There is so much more to do here than beaches but Cornwall is not a resort - you will have to drive to do things. Try taking a Fal river cruise, visiting a few of our amazing NT places (Glendurgan has a great maze and Godolfin is beautiful), check out the heritage at the museum in Falmouth (and go for Harbour Lights fish and chips )...

[YellowPrimula]

I don't really get it either , my mother lives there, her husband was Cornish so they retired there, so I do visit off season.Funnily enough one of the things I hate is that visiting in the school holidays which would actually be the best time for us to go is such a pain.If she lived somewhere that wasn't such a holiday destination we might be more inclined to go but the thought of battling with the traffic and then not being able to get anywhere without another battle is just off putting.

It takes so long to get there and it seems to take forever to get anywhere when you are there and absolutely nothing is free.I cannot believe that it costs as much to pay for parking at 8pm in the evening as at 10.00am in the morning,we also live in a holiday area but there is so much you can do for free whereas in Cornwall I do feel that I am being fleeced all the time ,probably unfair , but the attitude seems to be that we are lucky to be allowed to visit and we should understand that it cost the Cornish a lot to have us visit so they need compensating for the inconvenience .

We live on the opposite side of the country and it probably doesn't help that I prefer the big skies and slightly bleak atmosphere of our coastline rather than the high cliffs in Cornwall but that's just a personal thing. There are some very beautiful parts I just find that I am so cheesed off by the time I get to wherever I am going that I don't necessarily appreciate it. Also it seems to rain continually, I don't think i have ever been there and had two consecutive days without rain .

[MrsGotobed]

I like Cornwall but we only tend to visit out of season when it's quieter.

We're lucky enough to have relatives there so have been there during various half terms and even Christmas/New Year and have had great times, fantastic weather a lot of the time and it doesn't take an age to get anywhere or find a parking space.

I'd love to live there for 10 months of the year but bugger off somewhere during high season!

[FuzzyCustard]

I think it is fabulous, but then I live there! It depends which bit you go to as well - our part of it is never terribly crowded and I know lots of the best places!

But then again, if you don't like it, don't come and leave it for those that do rate it!

[ThursdayLastWeek]

What on earth do you do abroad if Waitrose & marks are what you look for in a holiday??

I've just spent a lovely morning on Holywell - lovely because I got there early enough to park easily and because I have NT membership and didnt have to pay £6

I can assure the PP that prices for parking on a lot of places and ice creams etc etc di t go down a lot outside of summer. We're being fleeced all fucking year.

[seafoodeatit]

I love Cornwall, lived there briefly but it wasn't to be due to poor work prospects but if DH could do what he does there we'd be back in a flash! Like all places there are busy, hectic touristy places, but there are plenty of beautiful serene places not rammed full of people and cars. I love Devon too and the villages around Tiverton.

[FreeButtonBee]

I go to Donegal which is what I imagine Cornwall was like about 60 years ago!

I have actually had a lovely time in Cornwall both times I've been but that was a (beautiful sunny) weekend in Padstow in November and then a (beautiful sunny warm) week in Carbis Bay in April. It was lovely but even then the number of tourists were starting to get to my twitch level. I am used to Wild Irish Atlantic beaches which are 4 miles long and have 30 people on them!

Now I am tied to school hols, I don't expect I will go back until the kids are old enough to leave behind...

[FreeButtonBee]

I do love Devon too. The South Hams are fabulous. I am braving the August bank holiday traffic to go to near Dartmouth next weekend but I have a secret weapon of leaving on Thursday night and staying with the inlaws on the way down the road and coming back Sunday so I am hoping the traffic won't be too horrific

[Onlyme100]

Cornwall does have some lovely beaches - but the weather has to be right. I ve had too many UK holidays - just been to the Isle Of Wigh! Even that felt a little boring tbh.

[Lovemusic33]

I love Cornwall, we went to Wales instead this year and didn't like it as much as Cornwall but probably because I am a beach person.

North Cornwall has some amazing beaches that not many people know about, they are tricky to drive too but well worth it. there are some good places to eat that we go to every year.

[Serin]

We go every year, usually May and Oct half terms but we are getting increasingly fed up with it too. The rental prices are mad and seem to be going up about 25% every year! This year we paid £58 in a chippy for 5 portions of fish and chips and a sachet of ketchup!

We love the Highlands, Hebrides, North Norfolk and Snowdonia and TBH there seems to be much more to do there. They all love surfing but we are not that far from Anglesey for weekend surf trips anyway.

[Ragwort]

Thewolf - totally agree with you and love Harbor Lights fish & chips .

[Lovemusic33]

Padstow does the best pasties and they are not too expensive. I don't really find food expensive but then prices are quite high where I live. We go to a nice pub near a beach which is a bit pricey but the food is good so it's worth it. We have been lucky that when we have been the weather has been good so it's easy to find things to do, it's probably harder if it's raining.

[SabineUndine]

I love Cornwall but am happy for you all to promulgate the myth that it's overrated and leave it for people who appreciate it.

[LiDLrichardsPistachioSack]

Sabine too right.
I live in Cornwall and I love it. There are a million great things to do and eat that are off the tourist track but I'm not telling now!

[Dashper]

Lovemusic Wales has beaches Do you mean the particular part of Wales you went to but have not bothered to identify (like lots of others here. Ditto with Scotland) didn't have beaches?

[Lovemusic33]

We stayed in mid wales but did visit one beach, there are other part of wales I would like to visit. We did enjoy our holiday (and it was cheaper than Cornwall) but kind of missed not going to Cornwall.

[mamaduckbone]

I agree, not a huge fan of Cornwall. We love Purbeck in Dorset and went to Pembrokeshire this year which was beautiful. So much depends on the weather in the U.K. though...we had 10 straight days of sun in Dorset a couple of years ago so that's fixed in my mind, whereas in Cornwall last year the weather wasn't great and we stayed too far inland so felt like we spent the whole holiday in the car driving along scary lanes with high hedges - I'm sure had we chosen a better location I'd have a different view.

[pickledparsnip]

No Waitrose or M&S? Uhm wrong. Not that I'd set foot in Waitrose down here, seems wrong somehow. A beacon of middle class wankery amongst all the poverty down here.

[revolution909]

well i shop regularly both at Waitrose and ASDA (and sometimes Sainsburys). If you know what to buy Waitrose can actually be cheaper than those two! PLus the local waitrose has that "Cornish Shop"

[pickledparsnip]

I love the Eden project, but appreciate it's a shitload of money if you only go the once. There is absolutely no fucking way I'd go in August though. It's heaving.

I love living here. Yeah it does my head in sometimes, and I have to escape to the real world every so often, but our quality of life is in my opinion brilliant.
I absolutely love the fact that I can take my son to the beach after school (15mins walk away).

Yeah it rains a lot, but I quite like the rain. You can't beat a Wintery clifftop walk, being battered by the wind and rain. Makes thee feel alive I tell ee!