Cornwall - Interesting places/attractions to visit (open to anything)

[Bananachews]

Hi everyone. My 5 year old has pointed to Cornwall on our family scratch map for our 2027 family holiday which I am over the moon about. We have always wanted to go to Cornwall and never have so we want to make the most of our time there.

At the moment we are probably looking to stay at one of the Haven sites, however after driving 7/8 hours to get to Cornwall in the first place we are more than happy to drive around to visit the most exciting places, we don’t want the haven sites to restrict us as we aren’t sure when we will be able to go back due to the length of travel. Not sure how long we will be there for either (we are at very early stages of planning, but most likely 7 days due to the travel time).

The only place I want to go to for definite is the Eden Project, and our son wants a nice beach (which I’m presuming is everywhere). Maybe somewhere he could have a surfing lesson? We also have a baby who will be approaching 2 by the time we visit. My husband loves Cider and a quick google said there was a brewery tour somewhere?

I would love if you could tell me your favourite places to go. Happy to hear both family friendly suggestions and adults only as we potentially may be going with grandparents who may want to split off by themselves and/or take the kids on their own at times as well. I have done a quick google but it’s so overwhelming I thought it would be a good idea to get some opinions from people who have been or live there as a starting point.

We genuinely are open to anything - caves, beaches, walking, zoos and aquariums, wandering around towns and shops, brewery tours etc.

Thanks

That sounds incredible!! We love our local theatre so that would go down a treat!!

Up near the Eden project end is Charlestown which is a nice little village.
We usually stay at St Ives so these are all down the far end but we love st Michaels mount, check the tide times before planning your day. The minack, especially if you can get a kids show, we watched like a sea themed punch and Judy show there. Porthcurno beach is right next to the minack and is gorgeous. In st ives itself our favourite beach is porthgwidden, it’s a bit more sheltered. Perrenporth beach is fab for body boarding. There’s a lovely walk to Wheal Coates and there’s a car park near st Agnes for this. Carbis bay has a gorgeous beach and well worth a day trip. The walk from lands end to Sennen is also a good trip.

Thank you so much for this! I am so overwhelmed choosing as everywhere looks so nice. I’m now starting to understand that Google maps is not realistic for how long it actually takes to get around Cornwall in the summer!

Thank you 🤩. So many lovely suggestions to research

I’m also on the fatter side since having my second baby, so I will be crossing this destination off the list 😅

My daughter thinks North Cornwall is better for waves, we go body boarding. North and South Cornwall are quite different. Both beautiful. We've been a few times and it's worth the drive. St Michael's Mount is impressive and worth the visit of you're all fit etc.

You must be getting mixed up....Sennen is a long sweep of golden sand! It is a surfing beach, but known as a kind of "nursery" one though, with small, safe waves (conditions depending). Kids love bodyboarding there, and there's a surf school I think- and it's lifeguarded. I quite like Sennen as a village too- it's not as overdeveloped as you'd imagine- and there's a good walk to Land's End with some really stunning scenery.

But this is all moot if you're staying at Bude! You'll have to tell us whereabouts you're thinking of staying.

I know all of Cornwall and agree not to try and cover it all in one week.
one family friendly option is Bude. Sea pool for safe swimming, great for body boarding, crabbing from the lock gates wall, rowing boat or pedalo on the canal. Hartland point for big waves, Milky Way 'theme park' for animal shows and child friendly rides. Boscastle for a nice harbour.

St Ives is beautiful. Catch the train there though as parking and traffic is a nightmare. Beautiful train journey.

We live in Cornwall and as per your post a while back if you can go in May I would. Not because of the weather but because the roads in August are awful (we go nowhere in high season).

You can get surf lessons in Newquay. Polzeath and Watergate Bay.

Sea life safari from Padstow or Rock is something my kids always enjoyed. Also Bodmin jail.

If it was a choice of those two I'd plump for Hayle. Mainly because I vastly prefer Hayle over Perranporth- it's got a lot of interesting stuff, a character of its own and isn't overdeveloped. Perranporth, IMO, is a bit of a dump.

Plus, it's got a mainline train station so you could let the train take the strain some days. For example- NEVER drive into St Ives in summer! Take the picturesque branch line along the coast from St Erth instead! It's also two stops on the mainline to PZ.

And the 3 miles of beach ends at Godrevy, with rock pools, lighthouse, and seals bobbing in the water watching you if you're lucky.

Just to add to my post, there’s a cider farm
in St Mabyn that does interesting tours, not sure if that’s the one you’ve been looking at.

The beach at Mawgan Porth is lovely with little children as it is wide and flat and when the tide is out it has little rivers and pools that they can splash and play in.

For a rainy day - the national maritime museum at Falmouth was really interesting. Or the Eden project.

The North coast is generally better for surfing/body boarding, though there are some South beaches that are suitable, such as Praa Sands and Kennack. Not all the coast line is sandy - some is quite rocky and pebbly so check out local beaches online before visiting.

If you are anywhere near the Lizard, a visit to Roskilly's could be a fun trip. This is a farm and cafe/restaurant: they make delicious ice cream. If you arrive early (10 am?) you can watch the cows being milked from their viewing area.

The hidden valley and the gnome sanctuary (which is just in devon) are my favourites.

Ooh great thread op - I’m headed to kilminorth near looe at the beginning of July so following with interest - haven’t been to Cornwall since I was 18!

Even if you base yourself somewhere like Bude on the north coast you are still only an hour from the other coast and the Eden Project. Another suggestion if you like walking, The Cheesewring on Bodmin Moor. Great for scrambling over rocks and stunning views.

Parkdean holiday resort round the lizard is also excellent near kynance cove.

They do say to go in the water with a partner at Sennen. I was a young child when I was there and in no uncertain terms were we allowed on the beach but my mum swam there when she was 11.

No idea! I’ve been in June and July though.

gweek

yes the Minack Theatre is amazing!

Another lovely place to visit is Fowey. Daphne Du Maurice’s house is right next to the Boddinick Ferry and you can watch the ferries come and go from a rather lovely seated area. Maybe a waffle or an ice cream from House Of Cones. Walk into the town, there are loads of independent shops and cafes and right by the quay you can hire a boat and ride up and down the river. Or maybe the the passenger ferry over to Polruan.

Or you could walk right along to Readymoney Cove which has a lovely little shop and a beautiful beach.

Yes, and at Porthcurno there is also the PK Porthcurno Museum of Global Communications, from where all the undersea telegraph cables ran under the beach from there and out to sea. Then all around the world on the sea bed. So of global importance. It used to be a training college for cable and wireless communications too. The museum is fascinating and has a lot of info about morse code, radio, WW2, all the way up to the present day and internet as well. Probably of more interest to adults rather than young children though.

Definitely a beach to avoid with young kids. The undertow can be fierce and rips. Usually lots of rescues here and 2 deaths last year.