4 reasons to love Cornwall

I have a feeling that this post may be a little superfluous. I there anyone who doesn’t love Cornwall?

We hadn’t visited Cornwall for a while though, so Belle and I were really looking forward to heading off to Retallack Resort and Spa for a couple of days last weekend. Belle loves a good lodge. We just stayed for two nights, but it was a well-timed break and a great reminder of just how lovely Cornwall is.

Retallack

Here then, in case you were in any doubt, are four reasons to love Cornwall.

The beaches

This is a given surely? We spent the whole day on Saturday at Harlyn Bay, a small beach just a 15 minute drive from Retallack, nestled between Padstow and Newquay. When we arrived Belle stood looking stunned for a few minutes.

“The sea is actually blue!” she said.

“Yes, yes it is.”

Harlyn Bay Retallack

Despite being on such a popular stretch of the coastline, Harlyn Bay was wonderfully quiet, but well equipped with toilets, surf hire, cups of tea and an ice cream van. Normally Belle and I get a bit twitchy after an hour or two somewhere but we spent the entire day just playing and lying in the sun and it was blissful.

The food

I am easily pleased, and one of my best bits of the weekend was arriving at our lodge and finding that we had been left a packet of Cornish gingerbread. My love and affection can literally be bought with biscuits.

Retallack resort and spaThere are of course more scones and pasties than you can shake a stick at in Cornwall but it also has a fantastic range of local seasonal produce, including fresh fish. Rick Stein’s fish and chip shop is just down the road in Padstow and well worth a visit, but if you don’t want to travel then Retallack has its own restaurant, The Green Room, run by MasterChef winner James Nathan. After a game of Logo Billionaire in the very tasteful games lounge, Belle and I treated ourselves to a meal here on Saturday night and following a long and tiring (haha!)  trip to the beach it was the perfect way to finish the day.

It’s not as hard to get to as you think

When you think of Cornwall you might be thinking Saturday summer traffic, hours spent on the A30, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Retallack Resort and Spa is just a ten minute drive from Newquay airport, making it far more accessible within the UK than you might think.

What do you mean you didn’t know Newquay had an airport?

The National Trust

This one is cheating a bit as the National Trust is wonderful wherever you are in the country, but I love that for not much money at all our membership means we always have somewhere beautiful to go for the afternoon, if only for a little walk and a cream tea. I find it a really great way to break up a journey too, so on the way home on Sunday we stopped off at Finch Foundry (which is actually in Devon but who’s counting).

Finch Foundry isn’t a huge place but in the hot sunshine it was absolutely idyllic, a wonderful place to stop for a cup of tea. We chose it because the guidebook mentioned a ‘Victorian dressing up box’ and Belle is a sucker for historical fancy dress.

Finch Foundry Retallack

Finch Foundry Retallack

Finch Foundry Retallack

Thank you very much to Retallack for having us to stay. We had a fabulous time and really appreciated all the little extras like finding a pint of milk in the fridge when we arrived. Belle might have been a bit too young for the highchair and kids’ cutlery but even she appreciated the stair gates as extra protection against alligators. Thank you!

Disclosure: Retallack provided us with a two night stay for the purposes of this post. We bought our own dinner.

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12 Comments

  1. 23 May, 2014 / 9:40 am

    This looks brilliant! I want to take my two away somewhere in September for a couple of nights and Retallack may be perfect for us :)

    • Jo Middleton
      Author
      28 May, 2014 / 5:35 pm

      You really should Alice! I would really recommend it. Very lovely and peaceful and friendly and a great little pool too for kids.

  2. 23 May, 2014 / 10:32 am

    The only thing I don’t live about Cornwall is how far away it is. Otherwise, agree with you completely.

    • Jo Middleton
      Author
      28 May, 2014 / 5:36 pm

      I think that might get annoying if you lived there permanently Jax, and were never able to get to other things. Great for a getaway though!

  3. Simon Howes
    23 May, 2014 / 11:57 am

    I love hearing about your adventures like this, I think this is my favourite kind of blog post from you!

    Simon! XxX

    PS. Is Belle gonna make the occasional contribution like Bee used too? I like hearing their points of views of things as well!

    • Jo Middleton
      Author
      28 May, 2014 / 5:37 pm

      Thanks Simon! I do try and encourage Belle but she isn’t quite as keen a writer as Bee. Did you know though that Bee has started her own blog? http://www.teachezbee.com – it’s really good!

  4. Spencer Broadley
    23 May, 2014 / 12:23 pm

    I’ve never been to Cornwall, but when I was a nipper used to go to Torquay a lot. My “bucket list” includes holiday in Cornwall, and Australia – I think Cornwall is more affordable this year!!! I’ve only heard good things about Cornwall and will say in summer how good I find it. :)

    • Jo Middleton
      Author
      28 May, 2014 / 5:38 pm

      Go to Cornwall Spencer! Belle has always wanted to go to Australia, except that she is scared of all the poisonous things, but when she saw the blue water at Harlyn Bay she decided it looked just as good :-)

  5. 25 May, 2014 / 4:03 pm

    We’ve had some lovely holidays in Cornwall in the past, but not taken the kids there yet – it’s still quite a trek for us!

    • Jo Middleton
      Author
      28 May, 2014 / 5:38 pm

      Are you near an airport Ruth? Retallack is so close to Newquay airport and getting a plane is always exciting!

  6. 26 May, 2014 / 3:03 pm

    Cornwall is lovely…..but local people have a hard time. Seems to me as if the tourist money just isn’t enough. Cornish people need homes and jobs that are not just geared to keeping tourists happy. Some radical moves from industry, business and govt might just work….but no one seems to be taking this up just yet.

    • Jo Middleton
      Author
      28 May, 2014 / 5:40 pm

      That’s very true – housing is a big problem down there. Seaside towns are always tricky too – we lived in Weymouth for a while and it was always completely overrun in the summer and then shut in the winter!

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