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What is the best way of getting to Penzance (from just North of London) for the last weekend of August? Any recommendations on places to stay?
We have baby sitting duties all of Saturday, so want to make a long weekend of it, to be able to see some of the sights. Is the Eden project worth a visit?
Train from Paddington takes you directly there.
You need to be more specific. ‘Best’ with no context is hugely subjective. Helicopter, probably.
Is the Eden project worth a visit?
No, but if you want to go anyway then it has to be driving
Book accommodation early (may already be too late)
Not sure if you are intending to bring the child with you?? Or going on Sat night/Sun morning??
Train from Paddington takes you directly there.
But check for engineering works.
There are lots of scheduled works on the line into Paddington in preparation for HS2 (as well as to sort problems out that are affecting Lizzie line and GWR trains)
Schedule for end of August should be fixed in early June.
Some long distance trains may start / end at Euston rather than Paddington
Penzance is nice but, for the love of god, don’t book the Union Hotel whatever you do! However, if you want a laugh then here’s the link to their TripAdvisor reviews ranked as ‘terrible’ 😂
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g186240-d245303-Reviews-Union_Hotel-Penzance_Cornwall_England.html#REVIEWSIs the Eden project worth a visit?
No, but if you want to go anyway then it has to be driving
Book accommodation early (may already be too late)
Not sure if you are intending to bring the child with you?? Or going on Sat night/Sun morning??
We won’t have the joy of travelling with the baby – thank goodness. My son and his wife have a wedding weekend, where all the activities are baby friendly except for the actual wedding day.
I thought of flying to Penzance and hiring a car.
I thought of flying to Penzance and hiring a car.
Penzance only serves the Isles of Scilly.
You’ll have beter luck with Newquay.
Penzance is pretty boring and a bit run down
Eden Project is 50 miles from there and on the way so could be a plan to do it that wayAnother alternative is to train to Exeter and hire a car. Then you could do Eden on the way down, spend a night locally if you can find any one night accommodation. Then continue to Penzance. I have a locals pass for Eden and can’t recall the last time I enjoyed going there, but each to their own. There are better gardens not too far away.
You will encounter traffic, there is only one main road going through Cornwall to Penzance so may be best to train it back to London. We live down here and our son is in Richmond so tend to drive at silly o clock to avoid the traffic but you will get it everywhere in August.
Penzance is pretty boring and a bit run down
Eden Project is 50 miles from there and on the way so could be a plan to do it that wayThis may be true of the town (although I remember from a trip in 2018 that their saltwater bathing pools were great) however the surrounds have a great deal of interest.
You are in striking distance of Lands’ End, St. Michael’s Mount, Mousehole village and the Minack Theatre, to name but a few, and some stunning hiking and beaches etc. to boot! Good chance of decent weather to enjoy in August too 😎
We’ve booked flights on Eastern Airways, Stansted to Newquay. We are hiring a car. Babysitting duties are in Penzance, we were recommended to stay in St Ives. has anyone specific recommendations? Also, I’ve been told that the heligan gardens are more interesting and less busy that the Eden project.
We’ve booked flights on Eastern Airways, Stansted to Newquay. We are hiring a car. Babysitting duties are in Penzance, we were recommended to stay in St Ives. has anyone specific recommendations? Also, I’ve been told that the heligan gardens are more interesting and less busy that the Eden project.
Quite correct about the gardens/Eden Project.
Also +1 about spending time in Mousehole – perhaps on your babysitting day?
Small sheltered soft-sand cove, lovely backstreets (as does the larger Newlyn down the
road). Eat at 2, Fore Street.I was in Cornwall in March this year. Penzance was a dump that I didn’t spend more than 10 minutes in the two times I ventured there.
Plenty of other places to go that are lovely. We stayed in a 10 person cottage with friends so can’t comment on accommodation for 2.
Have a great time.
I have spent lots of time in Penzance over the years and have a soft spot for it. Yes, there are plenty of signs of faded grandeur from it’s Victorian heyday as the gateway to the “Cornish Riviera” and it is nowhere near as smart or as popular as the tourist traps of Padstow, St Mawes or St Ives to name but a few. However, it is a working town with plenty of independent shops and lots of charm, once you step away from the main drag of the lower quality chain stores on Market Jew Street. Penzance never gets crowded in the same way as the aforementioned places, making it better value for money in terms of accommodation and without the same competition for restaurants and car parking. The accommodation scene is mainly townhouse hotels, B&Bs and guesthouses and in recent years has gained some decent options – The Telegraph Travel has a helpful section: https://tinyurl.com/4bmpmmy7
Penzance also has some beautiful architecture to admire (including the Egyptian House, which you can hire as self catering accommodation from The Landmark Trust) and the Georgian Houses on Regent Terrace and Regent Square. The Penlee House Gallery & Museum is a must for anyone interested in the Newlyn School en plein air art movement, being the only Cornish public gallery specialising in the Newlyn School artists (c. 1880 – c.1940). It also has a pleasant cafe with indoor and outdoor seating, the latter set in beautiful grounds and with a decent children’s playground area. The Honey Pot on Parade Street is a lovely cafe for coffee and cake or lunch and is always bustling, they do excellent soups.
One of the main attractions of Penzance for people who aren’t bothered about the town itself not having a proper sandy beach (although it does have a well-kept prom and the excellent and absolutely huge lido in the form of the Jubilee Pool – which also has a great kids pool!) is the fact that it is well located for exploring many other great places in the area. A short drive out of Penzance en route to Marazion you can make a tiny detour and visit the Tremenheere Sculpture Gardens, which also has a lovely cafe serving breakfast and lunch (booking recommended in high season, free parking on site, kid friendly). Marazion itself is a must for St Michael’s Mount, although check opening times carefully and remember the causeway is tidal, so check the tide times otherwise you’ll need to take a boat over! The Godolphin Hotel has the prime view of the mount and welcomes non-residents for drinks, although it can get busy in school holidays. Going west out of Penzance, Newlyn Art Gallery is a small but mighty gallery and you’ll have excellent fish at The Tolcarne Inn. Argoe is also well regarded, though I haven’t tried it yet. Further round the coast, Mousehole (pronounced Mow-zul) is a picture perfect village for wandering round for an hour or two with stunning views across Mount’s Bay, best enjoyed with an ice cream from Jessie’s Dairy. The harbour has a small sandy beach perfect for little ones. Tucked away in the village is this house which was the only one to survive an attack from the Spanish Armada in 1595 and part of the original building still stands: https://historicengland.org.uk/education/schools-resources/educational-images/keigwin-keigwin-place-mousehole-9329
A short drive to the north coast there is the option to spend a day in St Ives (park at the leisure centre at the top of town unless you want to spend hours waiting for a space on the island or at the station). However, the town is heaving for the whole of August, you can barely move going down Fore Street and on the Wharf. St Ives is best enjoyed out of school holiday periods. Also, if you haven’t booked accommodation yet, St Ives will have limited options and be very, very expensive. For a lunch/dinner out on the north coast near Zennor there’s The Gurnard’s Head, which I cannot recommend highly enough, but do book in advance. Given you only have a short time, I wouldn’t bother with the Eden Project en route to West Penwith.
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