Cornwall -- Fowey or Carbis Bay / St. Ives

We totally fell in love with Fowey two years ago. It was our base for visiting both the Eden Project & The lost Gardens of Heligan.
Fowey hangs on the side of a very steep hillside so all the roads are nice to walk down but hell to go back up. Lots of steps everywhere so you will have to organise gran'ma very carefully.
The roads are extremely narrow and we could only give the bus drivers 10 out of 10 for their exceptional skills!

There are lovely outings on the estuary and the river by boat, with a commentary by the Captain.
Up river are some enormous ships loading a special kind of clay that is mined in the area.
Of course Daphne du Maurier is everywhere including her house on the banks of the river Fowey.
The water was crystal clear - I used to watch the fishermen pulling up their lobster pots from right below my hotel window!
Polruan ( thinks thats spelt right) is across the harbour and the ferries go all day. Lovely for a visit and view of Fowey.

I would second Fowey, it's has a much more 'cornish villagey' atmosphere than St Ives, but still enough amenities to keep everyone happy. Some marvellous clifftop walks too. You could do a daytrip to St Ives with a car but it is a bit of a schlep - maybe 90 minutes drive each way?

Sprin2 - I'm the biggest fan of St Ives BUT Carbis Bay is slightly different - it is effectively a suburb a mile outside the centre of St Ives and most accommodation is up a steep hill from the beach. Also if you have a grandma with you she may find the range of activities within walking distance limited.

You can do a day trip from Fowey to St Ives and I would heartily recommend this as your best option. Strongly recommend that you use the "park and ride" in Lelant village if travelling by car and come into St Ives by rail - it is one of the most beautiful rail journeys in Britain. It will also save you the stress of driving in St Ives which is tough with all the cobbled narrow streets.

Fowey is a really lovely and civilised town with lots of shopping opportunities and as you rightly identified great for boating. I'm sure your family will be very happy there.

I also think Fowey is easier to get to other tourist places e.g Eden Centre, Lost Gardens of Heligan, the fishing villages of Polperro and Mevagissey which are beautiful. St Michaels Mount at Marazion and even Lands End are achievable too.

Also don't rule out a day trip to Falmouth stopping at the fantastic Pandora Inn pub by the River Fal on the way there. The kids may then also enjoy a trip to the seal sanctuary at Gweek which you could combine with this trip.

Oh I forgot to mention that Carbis Bay does have one wonderful thing and that is Becks Fish and Chip restaurant (they have a sit down restaurant as well as the normal takeout service) - in my humble opinion the best fish and chips I have ever tasted in England

londonengland has given you good advice - I love ST Ives but I'd take Fowey over Carbis Bay and the advice to park in Lelant and take the train to St Ives is the best advice you'll receive.

Parking in St Ives is horrible in the summer and the train ride is beautiful, it skirts the coast - the kids will love it!

Kids? you should visit Gweek Seal Sanctuary and Flambards, which I think Grandma like also.

http://www.flambards.co.uk/html/victorian_village.html

I'm sure you'll have a wonderful time

This is wonderful, thank you all! I think we'll look closer at the house in Fowey and the one in Poluran.

How do Falmouth and Marazion compare to Fowey? From our looking at pictures and reading it seems Falmouth is bigger and somewhat less scenic (some photos make it look industrialised)....any comments?

What other daytrips would you recommend? We especially love ruins and history. Hoping to stop at Tintagel and Launceston Castle.

Falmouth is nice for shopping, it's one long street - Grandma will love it, I've never visited in summer so I can't give parking advice.

Marizion has a few shops and doesn't IMHO compare to Fowey although the beach is nice to walk along.

Tintagel is a must! and Padstow is a favorite with us.

Have to start by saying I know absolutely nothing about the south Cornish coast! My (older) children love the surfing on the top end of the north coast, so that's where we go.

But if you do visit Tintagel on the north coast, do try to venture just a few miles further up the coast to Boscastle - a wonderful picturesque little fishing village with a natural harbour, and well worth a visit. Midway between the two two villages, well hidden off the road, is the magical St Nectan's Glen with its amazing waterfall with its' allegedly healing properties. Whatever, it is a special place.

When are you going to Cornwall? I will be in Boscastle 15-22 July.

http://www.boscastlecornwall.org.uk

http://www.cornishlight.co.uk/boscastle.htm

http://www.ellisctaylor.com/stnectansgl
en.html

http://www.stnectan.currantbun.com/