Spending 3 to 7 days in St Ives is ideal to fully experience its beaches, art galleries, and narrow streets. A 2-3 day trip allows time for the harbor, Tate St Ives, and local shops, while a full week provides a relaxed pace to enjoy multiple sandy beaches, coastal walks, and dining without rushing.
St Ives has a more picturesque harbour but it is very touristy (which means more crowds, as mentioned in other posts) and we have heard visitors to Penzance say they prefer it to St Ives because it is quieter and easier to walk around.
Is two days enough in Cornwall? Cornwall is a brilliant choice for a long weekend and we thoroughly enjoyed our weekend in Cornwall. But two days is not enough to explore everything Cornwall has to offer. We used our weekend in Cornwall as a way to explore the main sights with a plan to come back again in the future.
For sunshine and beach days – summer: June to August
Summer is the best time to visit St Ives if you have children. Cornwall comes alive during peak season with an array of things to do. You can expect the beaches to be bustling with stunning turquoise waters.
St Ives. St Ives is an absolute delight! This vibrant coastal town is renowned for its artistic heritage, but there's much more to explore. Wander through the cobbled streets filled with quirky shops, cosy cafes, and galleries like the Tate St Ives.
PERFECT Day Trip to St Ives, Cornwall - Top Things To Do & See!
What is the rainiest month in Cornwall?
Despite Cornwall enjoying warmer temperatures than other parts of the UK, it can still experience rainy and cold weather, and frequently does all year round, especially during winter and autumn. The rainiest months of the year are January and December with both months experiencing 22 days of rainfall on average.
What is the best town to use as a base in Cornwall?
If you only have a few days to spare, Newquay is the perfect base. Located on Cornwall's Atlantic coast, Newquay has easy access to top attractions like cycling the Camel Trail, learning to surf on Fistral Beach, or wandering the shops and restaurants of Fore Street.
“It really depends what you're after”, Frank Tremayne, local to St Ives, once told me. “I love St Ives and would always choose it. But I leave in the summer, as it just gets too busy. I'd recommend instead going to the larger towns like Newquay that have more infrastructure”.
What are the most beautiful places to visit in Cornwall? Some of the top scenic spots include St Nectan's Glen, Tintagel Castle, Kynance Cove, and Bodmin Moor — each offering unique landscapes and experiences.
If you're staying in town, think really hard about whether you need you car, apart from trips further afield. Why not park it up for the week ? A good option is the St Erth Park and Ride.
St Ives is one of our favourite spots in Cornwall to visit for a day trip. Plenty of sandy beaches, restaurants, ice-cream shops, bars, museums, shops and walks means you could fill an entire week of things to do in St Ives.
Newquay. Newquay needs no introduction. Suffice to say that it's been voted as one of the UK's best seaside towns pretty consistently. And with glorious sandy beaches and unpretentious charm, it's easy to see why.
The next most dangerous is Liskeard, and Newquay comes in as third most dangerous. There are safer parts of Cornwall, identified using the same Crime Risk measurement, starting with Torpoint which ranks as the safest area in Cornwall, followed up by St. Agnes in second place, and St. Stephen-in-Brannel in third place.
At a whopping average selling price of £1.1million and £1.09m, St Mawes and Rock are currently the most expensive places to live in Cornwall … but are they worth it?
St Ives: it's Cornwall's top tourist town for a reason! Land's End: the landmark attraction is over-touristy, but the coastline around Land's End is well worth hiking around.
It's not unlikely to rain during your stay in St Ives. This is the South West after all, and a bit of wet weather is the price we happily pay for a temperate climate and a lush landscape.
Bude is the sunniest and warmest town in Cornwall ☀️ Bodmin moor shelters Bude from Southerly winds and breaks up cloud, leading to more sunshine hours. 🌤 Couple this with the local coastal environment and a unique microclimate is created.
Cornwall in October benefits from still having milder evenings, with average low temperatures of 11°C, however, rainfall increases over autumn in Cornwall with an average of 14 days. Be prepared for cooler weather and potential rainfall, packing plenty of layers and waterproof clothing for outdoor activities.
