Holidays in Britain - Cornwall
It’s no surprise that Cornwall – the most Westerly County in England – tops the charts as the most popular and iconic holiday destination in the UK. On this long spit of ancient moorland, bathed by friendly warm breezes and jutting out into the Atlantic Ocean, you’re never more than sixteen miles from the sea.
There are over 300 beaches to choose from; on the dramatic North Coast the wild Atlantic rollers that pound Fistral Beach in Newquay attract surfers from all over the world. The south of Cornwall is a land of soft river estuaries and sheltered, picturesque harbour villages with romantic names like Polkerris, Mevagissy, Mousehole and St Ives. Here you’ll take a gentle meander down narrow winding streets to discover sandy or pebbly beaches and bays where the fishing trawlers bob about after pulling in the day’s catch of fresh fish.
But holidaying in Cornwall is about much more than the sea – it has an extraordinary variety of gardens, historical sites, wonderful countryside including the rather bleak Bodmin Moor - home to the famous Jamaica Inn of Daphne Du Maurier novels – great sport, adventure parks for the children and, these days, some of the most highly regarded restaurants, the best of them Michelin-starred – in England.
Cornwall’s temperate coastal climate, helped by the warmth of the Gulf Stream, is home to many magical woodland, waterside and tropical gardens planted with the most exciting, rare and beautiful plants and trees to be found anywhere in the British Isles.
Today, visitors can enjoy the genius of the early nineteenth-century Cornish garden owners who had a passion for exotic plants. They travelled widely on plant hunting expeditions bringing back the seeds and plants from all over the world which have matured into unique living plant theatres in Cornwall’s gardens. There are too many to mention here, but amongst the most famous are the Lost Gardens of Heligan. Unveiled in 1992, they were painstakingly restored and today the mysterious gardens extend over 200 acres. You’ll find the romantic Victorian Productive Gardens and Pleasure Grounds as you walk along winding paths laid out over two centuries ago. In other parts of the gardens, there’s an exotic jungle of giant rhubarb, banana plantations, towering bamboos, rhododendron boughs of Sikkim and Maori-carved tree ferns. It’s a truly inspirational setting. Other Cornish gardens not to be missed include Trewithen Gardens, described as perhaps the most beautiful woodland garden in England with 28 acres of camellias, rhododendrons and magnolias and Trebah Gardens on the Helford River. Here you’ll find Mediterranean and southern hemisphere planting, a Koi Pool fed by a cascade from a 10’ natural spring and a delightful private beach serving wonderful Cornish ice creams and excellent coffee.
No holiday in Cornwall – or in England for that matter – would be complete without a visit to the world famous Eden Project. Over 1 million people a year visit this extraordinary global garden that is a symbol of regeneration, of creating a positive future for the world. The brainchild of Tim Schmidt, it was created out of a disused clay pit and the heart of the project lies in its Rainforest, Mediterranean and Outdoor Biomes. The Rainforest Biome is the largest greenhouse in the world, covering 3.9 acres and measuring 55 metres in height and 200 metres in length. It is home to fruiting banana trees, coffee, rubber and giant bamboo and is kept at a tropical temperature. The Mediterranean Biome stretches over 1.6 acres and is home to warm and arid plants such as olives and grape vines. In the Outdoor Biome which is open to the elements, tea, lavender, hops, hemp and sunflowers grow in profusion. The Eden Project is an unforgettable and educative experience in a breathtaking location.
You might not know it, but Cornwall is also home to a number of important historical sites that have been awarded UNESCO world heritage status. As well as the medieval castle of St. Michael’s Mount, two of the very best examples of this rich history are Rumps Cliff Castle at Polzeath which is one of the best examples of Iron Age fortifications in Britain and The Tristan Stone at Fowey, created in 450AD at the time when Christianity took a firm hold on Cornish culture and religion. Pendennis Castle, standing proud on a promontory overlooking Falmouth Bay should also be on your list of places to visit as should the wonderful Minack Theatre where you can enjoy plays and opera throughout the year. It looks just like a Greek amphitheatre perched on the cliff edge at Porthcurno.
The very special light and beautiful land and seascapes in Cornwall have always made it a magnet for the artistic community. Artists started to visit Cornwall in significant numbers in the 1880s. They were part of a movement that originated in France when painters left large towns to work in the countryside where they formed artist's colonies. Foreign artists working in France returned to their own countries and formed their own artist colonies, and in Cornwall, the Newlyn and St Ives Schools quickly became recognised and became know as the British Impressionists. Famous names included sculptor, Barbara Hepworth, who has her own sculpture garden and museum in St. Ives, artists Ben and Winifred Nicholson and Alfred Wallis and potter, Bernard Leach. Their work, the work of modern day Cornish artists and those of international repute can be seen at Tate St Ives.
No article about Cornwall would be complete without mentioning the ubiquitous Cornish cream tea and Cornish pasty. Both are still alive and well and to be found in every town and village throughout the West Country. And delicious though they are, these days, Cornwall also boasts world-class cuisine, much of it using excellent locally sourced produce from the sea, from its own fields, vineyards and cider orchards. Artisan bakers and cheese makers abound as well as microbreweries and perhaps it is this enthusiasm for great British food that has lured top chefs Jamie Oliver to open his restaurant, Fifteen, at Watergate Bay and Rick Stein too whose sublime fish restaurant has put Padstow on the map.
If you have been inspired by this description of Cornwall, please put it on your own personal map and visit soon.