Where to base for a week in Cornwall
 

We are 4 Australians planning to drive from Oxford (where we will have been for 5nights) to Cornwall to stay for a week before driving into Wales to catch a ferry to Ireland? We like the look of Porthleven or St Ives but will this be too far south? We can spend an overnight getting from Cornwall to Wales if need be. We want to explore Cornwall within an hour or so drive from our base and do some walking, visiting villages, beaches etc. We don't want to be in a big centre or really urban developments, or very developed holiday centres. We quite like the idea of being out in the countryside but within walking distance of a pub. I have seen a converted barn accommodation on the edge of a village called Zennor and near the Tinners Arms pub. Any advice? we will have a car.

We spent a fabulous week a few years ago in Fowey, based upon recommendations of this forum. We really liked the size of Fowey and loved the two ferries that ran across the river from town. There were excellent walks from this area, several good pubs and it was a great location for day trips.

During that same trip we also spent a week in St Ives and enjoyed it too although it is bigger and more crowded.

We (11 Australians - 3 generations) stayed in Marazion at St Michals B&B ( http://www.stmichaels-bedandbreakfast.co.uk/ )back in 2011. Accommodation, food (awesome brekkie!) and location were all great. There were a few great pubs/restaurants nearby and morning walks across to St Michaels Mount at low tide were magic. http://www.stmichaelsmount.co.uk/

There were also some lovely shops in Marazion. We spent a few hours one afternoon wandering around and many purchases were made.

We had a great night at The Kings Arms, a 5 minute walk - dinner was great, and we won the pub quiz! http://www.kingsarmsmarazion.co.uk/

My husband and I snuck away one night for an AMAZING dinner at Ben's Cornish Kitchen - http://benscornishkitchen.com/

My husband and brother-in-law missed most of our lunch in St Ives because they couldn't find parking!!!! It was a nice enough place - but I would never stay there - too crowded.

One surprise activity that was recommended by our b&b hosts and really enjoyed by a lot of our crew was the Geevor Mine - http://www.geevor.com/

Awww - now I'm all nostalgic. Have a great time.

oh - there's a beautiful walk if you go south along the coast from the Geevor mine. We also had a great walk north from Mousehole and then back through farmland (like right between two barns where a farmer was feeding sheep, and through fields where we had to wait for the cows to mooove out of our way) :) Magic.

We actually split our 10 days between Marazion and Tintagel to see a few different things and thought that was perfect.

A few years ago, I spent a week in Tintagel, home of the mythical King Arthur castle.

It was quite nice and easy to get to the rest of Cornwall and Devon.

We split our stay between Penzance and Falmouth:

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...sh-holiday.cfm

If you pick Porthleven, have a look at this apartment http://www.porthlevenholidays.co.uk/...courtyard.html

We haven't stayed in that one, but we stayed twice in an apartment next door (no longer available to rent, unfortunately), and the location is excellent. Not out in the countryside, but right on the harbour so you can watch the fishing boats coming in and out. It is a small village but has a grocery store, pubs and restaurants, so you can leave the car parked up in the evening.

It was a great base for exploring the far south west and the Lizard peninsula, and even the Eden project or Heligan are an easy day trip.

Great information. We have just been looking at Porthleven so good to check out the apartment in the link. It looks great. I have seen another one from this rental group which also looks good. I like the idea of watching the fishing boats and I know our friends would too. Definitely don't want a big centre so Porthleven is definitely on the list. Anyone stayed in Mousehole and how would it compare? Falmouth was on our list but it did look quite a big centre. What was your experience of Falmouth indy_dad? Hadn't heard of Tintagel so will check it out. Love the King Arthur legend. I'm also a Rosamund Pilcher fan - The Shell Seekers - so I want to visit some of the places she writes about in that book.

Hez, loved all the local stuff you got up to. We'd be in for a pub quiz for sure.

Falmouth is definitely bigger but not really big. It's best quality is its location. The size allows for more restaurant and activity choices as well. However, if you want a quaint little fishing village, it's not.

We walked to Mousehole from Penzance; it didn't do much for us. To each his/her own.

Falmouth is a small town, bigger than Porthleven but not too big. The advantage is the range of transport options (ferries, buses, train) if you want a day off from driving, plus obviously more shops and restaurants.

We have stayed in 2 different places, http://www.theslipwayfalmouth.co.uk  and http://www.falmouth-waterfront-holidays.co.uk . We preferred the first apartment in the newish Discovery Quay development, which was furnished to a much higher spec. The second was comfortable but not luxurious, although the location is arguably better, being tucked away just off the main street but very tranquil. Both are on the waterside. We didn't have a car either time but both have parking, although Tripadvisor comments say the second one's space is a couple of hundred yards away up a hill, and a bit narrow. Either way, both apartments were really quiet but only a short step from amenities, and I'd recommend either, depending on whether the property or the location is more important to you.

Whoops - link to the first one: http://www.theslipwayfalmouth.co.uk/

We were actually in Cornwall because my husbands father's family is originally from Mousehole, but we chose to stay in Marazion. Mousehole is lovely, and worth a look but I wouldn't stay there.

Just as a note on indy_dad's comment - we walked the other direction from Mousehole which, along the coast was beautiful dramatic cliffs. There was quite a lot of up and down so if you're not accustomed to that it might not be for you. Here's the link (we did it starting from Mousehole) - http://www.southwestcoastpath.com/walksdb/544/ - that website has an awesome walk finder in any case.

MNake sure you visit Newquay - surfing!