Cornwall fills the toe at the southwest tip of England, covering around 1375 square miles, with just over 420 miles of coastline. Its only city is Truro, roughly in the middle of the county. There’s easy road access from Birmingham and Bristol via the M5 and then the A30 (and from Cardiff, too, additionally via the M4 to Bristol), and from London via the M3, A303 and then the A30; from the North of England and beyond, the M6 and the M42 connect with the M5 at Birmingham. Journey times vary, of course, but rough driving times to Truro are: 4 hours from Birmingham; 3 hours from Bristol; 9 hours from Edinburgh; 5 hours 45 minutes from Liverpool; 5 hours from London; 6 hours 45 minutes from Manchester; and 7 hours 15 minutes from Newcastle. 

From Dublin, you’ll need to fly to Newquay with Aer Lingus [1 daily | 1 hour 20 minutes] or catch a ferry with Irish Ferries to Holyhead, on Anglesey [3 or 4 sailings daily | 3 hours 25 minutes], from where it’s 6 hours 45 minutes’ drive to Cornwall. From Belfast, you’ll need to catch a ferry with Stena Line to Liverpool [2 sailings daily | 6 hours] and drive from there.

The A39, A30 and A390 roads run parallel to each other through most of Cornwall, connecting towns like St Austell and Truro in no time at all. Our itinerary is split between the north and south coasts, and moving between them – from Pendower to St Agnes, at one of the county’s narrowest points – is an equally easy journey; the cross-county route of just under 22 miles takes around 45 minutes. There’s little roadside parking in most Cornish villages, with a combination of double yellow lines and permit parking shepherding visitors towards the pay-and-display car parks [70p for 1 hour through to £6.50 for up to 24 hours].

Pack suitable clothing for being out on a kayak – aqua shoes and a waterproof jacket and waterproof trousers will come in handy (wet-weather gear will also be useful for cycling the Camel Trail) – and consider taking a wet suit with you, both for the beach, particularly if you’re visiting in spring or autumn, and for paddleboarding in the Gannel Estuary (although a wet suit is provided for this).

The section of the South West Coast Path you’ll be walking from St Agnes will be much easier if you wear good (ankle-supporting) walking boots. The path is quite exposed, so a fleece is also useful, as is a hat (a cap for the sun in summer, a woolly hat at other times for the wind). Take a day-sack, so you can carry enough food and water (allow half a litre per person for every hour of hiking you’ll be doing), and pack a waterproof jacket and waterproof trousers, for the good old British weather. The trail is well sign-posted, and you’ve little chance of getting lost on your return to the village if you follow our directions, but if you wanted a map that covered the route, you can buy the OS Explorer Map 104 (Redruth & St Agnes) [£8.99].

It probably goes without saying by now, but you’ll need a face mask for the Eden Project, as the biomes are technically indoors.