St Ives, Cornwall

Cornwall's most charming seaside art town, with golden beaches, a Tate gallery outpost and a fishing harbour, plus Land's End and the clifftop Minack Theatre to the west.

St Ives lies on the West Penwith peninsula in the far west of Cornwall, at England's south-western tip, overlooking St Ives Bay on the Atlantic, and is one of Britain's most popular seaside towns. Since the 20th century it has drawn artists such as Barbara Hepworth and Ben Nicholson, giving rise to the "St Ives School", and Tate has opened a gallery here. Warmed by the North Atlantic Drift, the climate brings mild winters and cool summers, with summer temperatures of about 18–22°C and chilly sea water. The best time to visit is May–Sep; in Jul–Aug, during the English school holidays, the town gets extremely crowded and accommodation is expensive, so May–Jun and Sep offer a better experience; winter is quiet, but some attractions and gardens close. Key areas: St Ives town (beaches, galleries, harbour); the western moors and tin and copper mining coast (Zennor, Geevor, Botallack and Cape Cornwall, part of a World Heritage Site); Land's End, the Minack Theatre and Porthcurno at the very western tip; Penzance, Mousehole and St Michael's Mount on Mount's Bay along the south coast; and Kynance Cove on the Lizard Peninsula to the south-east. Getting there: trains from London Paddington take about 5.5 hours to St Erth, where you change to the scenic branch line for the roughly 15-minute ride to St Ives; there is also the Night Riviera sleeper train, and Newquay Airport has domestic flights. The town's lanes are narrow and parking is difficult, so stay in the centre or use the Park & Ride; driving is the most flexible way to explore West Cornwall, and open-top coastal buses run in summer. Allow 4–5 days. Tips: the weather is changeable, so always carry a windproof, waterproof jacket; swim between the lifeguard flags; St Michael's Mount and some coves are tide-dependent, so check the tide tables.

Top sights

• Tate St Ives – The seaside branch of Tate Gallery, displaying British modern art including the St Ives School. Its circular glass hall faces the Atlantic.
• St Ives Harbour & Smeaton's Pier – Fishing boats fill the crescent-shaped harbour, and at low tide the boats rest on golden sand. The lanes around the harbour are full of gal…
• Land's End – The westernmost point of mainland England, with granite sea cliffs and the famous signpost, a must-visit. On clear days you can see the Isl…
• Minack Theatre – An open-air theatre built into the cliffs by hand by Rowena Cade, with the bright blue Porthcurno Bay as its backdrop.
• Porthcurno Beach – A white-sand bay ringed by granite sea cliffs, with water the colour of Caribbean turquoise. The Minack Theatre sits on its clifftop.
• St Michael's Mount – A tidal island with a medieval castle and monastery. Walk across the causeway at low tide or take a small boat at high tide. It is one of C…
• Kynance Cove – A turquoise cove on the Lizard Peninsula, where serpentine rock and white sand alternate. It is considered one of England's most beautiful…
• Porthmeor Beach – A golden sand beach on the north side of St Ives facing the Atlantic. Its steady surf makes it the town's surfing hub and home to surf less…
• Barbara Hepworth Museum and Sculpture Garden – The former studio of sculptor Barbara Hepworth, with more than twenty of her original bronze and stone works in its small garden. It is man…
• The Island & St Nicholas Chapel – A grassy headland at the northern end of town. A small stone chapel on its summit overlooks the bays on either side, and it is a great spot…
• Porthminster Beach – A calm crescent beach on the southeastern side of town, with gentle waves and clear water. It suits family paddling, and its beachfront res…
• Carbis Bay – A Blue Flag beach within St Ives Bay, with emerald-green water. The 2021 G7 summit was held here.
• St Ia's Church – A 15th-century granite church by the harbor, with a tower about 25 meters tall. It holds a Madonna and Child stone carving by Hepworth and…
• Leach Pottery – The birthplace of studio pottery in Britain. Founded in 1920 by Bernard Leach and Shoji Hamada, it preserves a Japanese-style kiln, and vis…
• Godrevy Lighthouse – A white lighthouse on a small island at the eastern end of St Ives Bay. It is thought to have inspired Virginia Woolf's 'To the Lighthouse…
• Zennor – An ancient village between moorland and sea cliffs. Its church contains the carved 'Mermaid Chair,' tied to a legend, and D. H. Lawrence on…
• Chysauster Ancient Village – A village of stone-walled courtyard houses built by Britons in the Roman period. It is one of the best-preserved Iron Age to Roman-era farm…
• Mên-an-Tol – A Bronze Age stone monument on the moor, with a holed stone flanked by two standing stones. Legend holds that passing through the hole can…
• Geevor Tin Mine – Britain's largest preserved mining site turned museum, where visitors can wear hard hats and descend into an 18th-century mine shaft. It is…
• Levant Mine and Beam Engine – A tin and copper mine site on a sea cliff, with a working 1840s beam engine preserved and managed by the National Trust.
• Botallack Mine – The Crowns engine houses, perched on a rock shelf at the base of a cliff and lashed by waves. They appeared in the TV series Poldark and ar…
• Cape Cornwall – One of only two 'capes' in England. A 19th-century mine chimney on its summit serves as a landmark, and it is quieter than Land's End. From…
• PK Porthcurno – A museum at the birthplace of the submarine telegraph, once the world's largest undersea cable hub. During World War II, its operations wer…
• Logan Rock (Treryn Dinas) – An 80-tonne rocking stone on an Iron Age cliff-fort headland. In 1824, a naval officer pushed it off its balance, sparked public outrage, a…
• Mousehole – A tiny granite fishing harbor with narrow lanes and stone houses surrounding the bay. It is most famous for its Christmas harbor lights and…
• Newlyn – One of England's largest fishing harbors, where fishing boats, a fish market, and the Newlyn Art Gallery sit side by side. It is the best p…
• Jubilee Pool, Penzance – A triangular seawater pool in Art Deco style, built in 1935, with a geothermally heated pool alongside. You can soak in the pool while look…
• Marazion – An ancient town across from St Michael's Mount, with a long sandy beach ideal for walking and kitesurfing. It is the starting point for the…
• Lizard Point – The southernmost point of mainland Great Britain. Below the cliffs, the old lifeboat station is preserved, the lighthouse can be visited, a…
• Truro Cathedral – The Gothic Revival cathedral in Truro, the county town of Cornwall. Its three spires are the most striking feature of Cornwall's skyline.

Where to eat

• Porthminster Beach Café – A Michelin Guide seafood restaurant in a 1930s beach hut, overlooking Porthminster Beach and the bay.
• Porthmeor Beach Café – A surf-beach café right below Tate St Ives, known for tapas and the best sunsets in town.
• Ardor – A Michelin Guide–recommended Spanish-inspired sharing restaurant, serving Mediterranean dishes with Cornish seafood and…
• The Mermaid Seafood Restaurant – A long-established seafood restaurant tucked away in the Downalong fishing quarter, where the seafood platters, seafood…
• Blas Burgerworks – A small, eco-minded burger shop run by three friends, sourcing ingredients locally and ethically, with excellent vegeta…
• The Sloop Inn – An old harbourside pub said to date back to the 14th century, serving seafood chowder and fish pie with views of the ha…

Itineraries

• Devon & Cornwall Coastal Loop – Departing from Exeter, loop through Dartmoor, the South and North Cornwall coasts, and Land's End.
• West Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Island Hopping – Sail from Penzance to the Isles of Scilly, using Hugh Town as a base to hop between islands by boat.