Cornwall

Days out in Cornwall

When you visit Cornwall, you’ll find it’s a place you can really discover. But with just one city, the inland capital of Truro, it’s the numerous towns dotted along north and south coasts that Cornwall is perhaps best known for. It’s here that the county’s outdoor activities, attractions, and days out feature most prominently, offering history, heritage, and plenty of family fun.

High on the list of recommended places to visit and things to do is beautiful St Ives. Some say the jewel in Cornwall’s crown, and alongside two stunning beaches and coastal walks, it’s home to the Tate St. Ives art gallery, the Barbara Hepworth Museum and Sculpture Garden, and the stunning open-air Minack Theatre, with all three being renowned cultural highlights.

There’s also the Land’s End experience complete with iconic signpost, Newquay Zoo and wildlife park, full of rare and endangered animals, together with Helston’s Flambards theme park and Camel Creek Adventure Park near Wadebridge, with each attraction offering a fantastic family day out.

But perhaps Cornwall is most famous for the iconic north coast beaches of Perranporth, Newquay, and Fistral, all surfing hotspots for beginners and pros alike. But the south coast is also famed for its areas of outstanding natural beauty and picturesque towns of Mevagissey, Fowey, and Looe, alongside plenty of things to do, with opportunities for walking, diving, kayaking, paddle boarding – and more surfing.

Topography, geology, and climate

At its peninsula, Cornwall is fully exposed to weather coming in from the Atlantic and is well known for its rugged and rocky coastline. Inland, the spine of Cornwall is formed by granite outcrops, exposed upland, and rural, hilly countryside. With several long, sandy beaches on the north coast and generally more sheltered positions along the south coast, it creates a rich and diverse landscape.

Both coastlines predominantly feature free-draining, low acid, loamy soils with patches of lime-rich sandy soils in the north and acid, loamy soils over rock in the south. Away from the coast, there’s a wide mix of soil types. In the east, there’s similar free-draining, low acid, loam soils with both permeable wet, acidic, peaty upland soils and blanket bog peat soils around Bodmin Moor.

The same can be found on the northern peninsula of west Cornwall. But the southern Lizard peninsula is largely made up of two soil types: free-draining, mildly acidic, base-rich soils and slow absorbing, seasonally wet, acid soils of loam and clay.

Thanks to its position, Cornwall’s weather patterns are changeable and greatly influenced by its ocean surroundings. With mild temperatures throughout the year, Cornwall benefits most from the Gulf stream, and averages 18ºC (65ºF), often with more hours of sunshine than anywhere else in the country. Mild winters are also common, averaging 5ºC (41ºF), with frost, snow, and extreme temperatures being rare.

Annual rainfall in Cornwall is similar to Devon and averages around 1,035mm (40”) on higher grounds such as Bodmin Moor. Coastal rainfall is not dissimilar, averaging 1,000mm (39”), while inland surrounding areas average 740mm (29”).

Cornwall’s parks and gardens

With some notable exceptions, much of Cornwall’s rugged inland areas are largely free of open parks and gardens, but the characterful coastal areas provide plenty to savour. Taking advantage of Cornwall’s climate, there’s a wealth of natural, wild, and wonderful gardens for keen horticulturalists to explore, with more formal gardens in some of Cornwall’s historic houses for a relaxed, family day out.