Tell me about Cornwall and Devon for a 5 day break

[ellen10]

My rough itinerary is as follows:
Pick up car Gatwick
Drive to Dorset, stop along the way at Winchester cathedral, stay at farmhouse in Dorset
Visit Durdle door, travel along the Jurassic coast, lunch stop in Beer, o/n Totnes
Visit the national park o/n Fowey (2 nights)
Travel to St Ives ( stops along the way) 3 nights Air B&B. Visit as much as we can see in Cornwall, lizard peninsula, st Michael’s mount etc.
Drive north visit Port Issac and Tintagel o/n Bude
Drive north to Lynton o/n great coastal walks and steam railway.
Drive on towards Bath staying 2 nights just outside Bath.
Drive to Cotswolds, stop along the way in Laycock and Castle Combe. 3 nights Cotswolds visiting villages etc.
Drive to Heathrow o/n before flight home.

I spent many weeks reading researching, planning and changing!
I have booked all accommodations with free cancel as we run in to a bank holiday weekend and half term school break.
I hope this helps and I welcome any suggestions as well

 

[VPS]

My rough itinerary is as follows:
Pick up car Gatwick
Drive to Dorset, stop along the way at Winchester cathedral, stay at farmhouse in Dorset
Visit Durdle door, travel along the Jurassic coast, lunch stop in Beer, o/n Totnes
Visit the national park o/n Fowey (2 nights)
Travel to St Ives ( stops along the way) 3 nights Air B&B. Visit as much as we can see in Cornwall, lizard peninsula, st Michael’s mount etc.
Drive north visit Port Issac and Tintagel o/n Bude
Drive north to Lynton o/n great coastal walks and steam railway.
Drive on towards Bath staying 2 nights just outside Bath.
Drive to Cotswolds, stop along the way in Laycock and Castle Combe. 3 nights Cotswolds visiting villages etc.
Drive to Heathrow o/n before flight home.

I spent many weeks reading researching, planning and changing!
I have booked all accommodations with free cancel as we run in to a bank holiday weekend and half term school break.
I hope this helps and I welcome any suggestions as well

Sounds great - just be prepared for not much parking in Fowey. I caught a ferry over from the other side to Fowey (I presume you know it's pronounced Foy)

 

[VPS]

Gardens around the world.

@Pushka - this is what you need to keep pests out of your garden !!

www.australianfrequentflyer.com.au

Lanhydrock | Cornwall

Magnificent late-Victorian country house with gardens full of year-round colour, a wooded estate, walking trails and off-road routes for bikes and trampers.

www.nationaltrust.org.uk

Gardens around the world. Eden project. This was interesting but I wouldn't go again.

Most of the national trust properties have good cafes and shops with some local things in them. Nearly all of them have a good second hand book shop which is great when you're travelling.

You'll be able to join at any National Trust Site and if you think you're going to visit a few English Heritage sites you can join there too

Jointing the UK National trust is a little more expensive but some NT places charge for parking which is free for members but not International members. I have a lot of nice responses to my SA NT card.

 

[VPS]

My rough itinerary is as follows:
Pick up car Gatwick
Drive to Dorset, stop along the way at Winchester cathedral, stay at farmhouse in Dorset
Visit Durdle door, travel along the Jurassic coast, lunch stop in Beer, o/n Totnes
Visit the national park o/n Fowey (2 nights)
Travel to St Ives ( stops along the way) 3 nights Air B&B. Visit as much as we can see in Cornwall, lizard peninsula, st Michael’s mount etc.
Drive north visit Port Issac and Tintagel o/n Bude
Drive north to Lynton o/n great coastal walks and steam railway.
Drive on towards Bath staying 2 nights just outside Bath.
Drive to Cotswolds, stop along the way in Laycock and Castle Combe. 3 nights Cotswolds visiting villages etc.
Drive to Heathrow o/n before flight home.

I spent many weeks reading researching, planning and changing!
I have booked all accommodations with free cancel as we run in to a bank holiday weekend and half term school break.
I hope this helps and I welcome any suggestions as well

Laycock Abbey is really interesting.
The north coast along Lynton and Lynmouth is great.
St Ives is beautiful - lots of great cafes
Cotswold are all beautiful but Bourton on the Water is the one that is always packed. I like Moreton on the Marsh as well

 

[VPS]

Another comment - rural England can often have poor internet coverage. I much prefer google maps to the sat nav in the car so may be worth downloading the areas you are travelling to as offline maps

 

[ellen10]

Lots of great first hand information, thank you taking notes.
I will look into joining the National trust. Yes I read that parking costs can be big in the UK at most sites.

 

[prozac]

Jointing the UK National trust is a little more expensive but some NT places charge for parking which is free for members but not International members. I have a lot of nice responses to my SA NT card.

Could you join UKNT and opt to pay monthly (£12.60 a month) then stop when trip is finished?

 

[MARTINE]

My rough itinerary is as follows:
Pick up car Gatwick
Drive to Dorset, stop along the way at Winchester cathedral, stay at farmhouse in Dorset
Visit Durdle door, travel along the Jurassic coast, lunch stop in Beer, o/n Totnes
Visit the national park o/n Fowey (2 nights)
Travel to St Ives ( stops along the way) 3 nights Air B&B. Visit as much as we can see in Cornwall, lizard peninsula, st Michael’s mount etc.
Drive north visit Port Issac and Tintagel o/n Bude
Drive north to Lynton o/n great coastal walks and steam railway.
Drive on towards Bath staying 2 nights just outside Bath.
Drive to Cotswolds, stop along the way in Laycock and Castle Combe. 3 nights Cotswolds visiting villages etc.
Drive to Heathrow o/n before flight home.

I spent many weeks reading researching, planning and changing!
I have booked all accommodations with free cancel as we run in to a bank holiday weekend and half term school break.
I hope this helps and I welcome any suggestions as well

Excellent place to eat Port Isaac

Outlaw's Fish Kitchen

Small, original and delicious seafood plates, cooked and served when ready. Now cooking a fixed menu for the table to enjoy.

outlaws.co.uk

Right on beach where Doc Martin filmed (in fact they were filming up on the rise when we were there. )

Barbara Hepworth Museum and Sculpture Garden | Tate

The Barbara Hepworth Museum and Sculpture Garden offers a remarkable insight into the work and outlook of one of Britain’s most important twentieth century artists.

www.tate.org.uk

Not to be missed if you like scupture (I do and its her original house). I like it better than the actual Tate St Ives (although latter has beautiful beach view but rather dull vibe)IMHO

Pengenna Pasties have been making & baking pasties since '85

Our pasties are part of the heritage and culture of Cornwall. We love making pasties and want you to enjoy eating them as much as we love baking them.

www.pengennapasties.co.uk

If you like pasties

 

[luckypierre]

Yes I read that parking costs can be big in the UK at most sites.

Finding car parks in the UK can be challenging and PAYG car parks can be expensive. Larger towns/cities have Park n Rides which can be convenient. On occasions after internet searches we found cheaper parking at sites such as local sports clubs. In towns if you’re able to walk a little further than free car parking maybe available , further out from the town centres. Sometimes you just have to pay, keep a supply of coins as not all parking locations will have internet/credit card payment options.

 

[MARTINE]

Finding car parks in the UK can be challenging and PAYG car parks can be expensive. Larger towns/cities have Park n Rides which can be convenient. On occasions after internet searches we found cheaper parking at sites such as local sports clubs. In towns if you’re able to walk a little further than free car parking maybe available , further out from the town centres. Sometimes you just have to pay, keep a supply of coins as not all parking locations will have internet/credit card payment options.

Yes
St Ives has P and P and very reasonable
Pt Isaac is all free parking up in the roadside then walk down to the village
Laycock good parking

 

[kookaburra75]

My rough itinerary is as follows:
Pick up car Gatwick
Drive to Dorset, stop along the way at Winchester cathedral, stay at farmhouse in Dorset
Visit Durdle door, travel along the Jurassic coast, lunch stop in Beer, o/n Totnes
Visit the national park o/n Fowey (2 nights)
Travel to St Ives ( stops along the way) 3 nights Air B&B. Visit as much as we can see in Cornwall, lizard peninsula, st Michael’s mount etc.
Drive north visit Port Issac and Tintagel o/n Bude
Drive north to Lynton o/n great coastal walks and steam railway.
Drive on towards Bath staying 2 nights just outside Bath.
Drive to Cotswolds, stop along the way in Laycock and Castle Combe. 3 nights Cotswolds visiting villages etc.
Drive to Heathrow o/n before flight home.

I spent many weeks reading researching, planning and changing!
I have booked all accommodations with free cancel as we run in to a bank holiday weekend and half term school break.
I hope this helps and I welcome any suggestions as well

What time does your flight leave Heathrow? If it's later in the day/early evening, then you could stay at a nice country pub within a hour's drive of Heathrow, and then drop off the car etc. There's a few options (we're I've stayed), depending on how close you want to be to Heathrow:

• The Swan Hotel, Staines The Swan Hotel - Fuller's Pub and Hotel in Staines
• The Fat Fox, Watlington The Fat Fox Inn | rooms in Watlington | 13 Shirburn Rd, Watlington OX49 5BU, UK
• The Greyhound, Letcombe Regis https://www.thegreyhoundletcombe.co.uk/

 

[VPS]

Could you join UKNT and opt to pay monthly (£12.60 a month) then stop when trip is finished?
View attachment 380823

The only problem is that they usually want a UK bank account to do the direct debit - although Wise would probably work

 

[VPS]

Just to confirm - the Minack theatre would be on the list of places everyone should go - the story behind it is amazing and the view is superb

 

[prozac]

Just to confirm - the Minack theatre would be on the list of places everyone should go - the story behind it is amazing and the view is superb

Amazing to think built, essentially by one woman.

 

[MARTINE]

Amazing to think built, essentially by one woman.

… and Regina Cade is related to the Melbourne doctor Cade who discovered lithium treatment for bipolar disorder

 

[MARTINE]

… and Regina Cade is related to the Melbourne doctor Cade who discovered lithium treatment for bipolar disorder

My bad Rowena not Regina
Fascinating woman