6 Cornish hotels I love
From arty boutiques to unapologetic traditionalists...
I was raised along the Jurassic Coast, so Cornwall doesn’t woo me as easily as it does battery hen’d Londoners, drooling over Poldark cinematography or Rick Stein specials. Childhood memories of Cornish holidays feature cold, soggy stomps home from body boarding, the potent waft of wet dog mixed with greasy fish and chips, and heated arguments in pursuit of a car parking spot. It wasn’t till my thirties that I fell hard and fast for this salt-laced county - lamentably late for sans toddler Cornish jollies such as surfing, coastal hikes and edging down precarious cliffs to glassy swim spots with cold beers.
I’ve written guides to Cornish hotels for House & Garden and the London Standard, and recently plugged the holes in my hotel knowledge with a South West sweep.
I’ve linked the guides above and written a more to-the-point summary below (mainly so I can ping this onto the 200 people who’ve requested this list, having endured the Med’s brutal high-summer heat)!
Carbis Bay, St Ives
More coastal resort than ‘estate’, Carbis Bay brags one of Cornwall’s most sensational beaches - blonde sand that sweeps gently into a (typically) calm, sequin bay. It’s main, meaty building is perched high above the bay, with its spa infinity pool, treatment rooms and light-filled restaurant all gazing out to sea, while the rest of the hotel is scattered across various cabins, suites and houses, either right on the beach or further up the cliff. We stayed in one of the beach cabin where the 2021 G7 members hunkered down. And with their contemporary design, vast open plan kitchen dining areas and swishy tech, ‘cabin’ is rather misleading as a term. These spill onto terraces and pocket-sized gardens, which in turn, edge down to the sand but are entirely separated as private spaces from the beach with a fob.
Best for: that hotel service and rental privacy sweet spot, and sitting in plum position right on one of Cornwall’s most beautiful beaches.
Highlights:
The breakfast hampers stuffed with sausage baps, real Cornish butter, pastries, berries, thick yoghurt and freshly baked bread. Great coffee is a two minute walk away, across the sand to the ‘estate’s’ own coffee shop.
The spa treatments - the therapist standard is impressive and well worth booking in for a massage (go deep tissue).
Repeating myself but the beach is too beautiful to qualify for English soil, and the cliff walks to St Ives are peak Poldark.
Hotel Tresanton, St Mawes
A St Mawes boutique coastal perch, with a porous feel and the tactile, subtly reverential style of Olga Polizzi. The taste and attention to detail is staggering - the made-in-Birmingham silverware by the sink, the shell sconces, the excellent book choices, the local materials, blue shades and rhythmic textiles used to echo the sea views, the handmade Sicilian ceramic bowls filled with olive oil, the modern art subtly worked into the fresh, classic-coastal picture.
Best for: while they’re welcoming of children, Tresanton feels more grown-up - the ultimate couples’ coastal bolthole, nursing local wine at the beach club and soaking in lazy breakfasts (and salty air) from the sunny terrace.
Highlights
The stillness - as if you’ve stepped into a painting. It’s calm here – particularly at dusk where the tarry water sloshes against anchored boats, and seagulls’ wails drift off towards the woodland across the bay. Try and bag a room with a balcony or terrace for the views.
The sun-trap terrace at breakfast - that feels elegantly unfussy, despite the white table cloth performance. Back here for crisp Champagne at sunset.
The staff - the warmth of a pub with the polish of a high end hotel… the ultimate combination.
Whitewashed Georgian bones dotted in modern art from the Newlyn School and gazing across the harbour (once an Admiral’s house). Ex-banker Susan Stuart whips up Ottolenghi-style food in a large flagstone kitchen, guests sink into the sofas with books and local fudge, and couples head out on invigorating sea dips, before making a hasty retreat to the sauna and hot tub (with English sparkling wine) in the courtyard.
Best for: an arty, beachy, foodie boutique break in Penzance with St Michael’s Mount nearby and plenty of hole-in-the-wall coffee shops and galleries to pootle off to.
Highlights:
The way in which Susan has preserved the building’s Georgian character while adding a little contemporary glass here and a little out-house renovation there. The mahogany (dressers, grand piano, grandfather clock) nod to its past life as an admiral’s home, and the architectural additions (particularly upstairs with the retractable roof over the bath) only compliment this.
The house’s privileged perch – leaning grandly over the harbour, with all its soothing clanks and clatters spilling into the rooms, along with the salty air.
The sauna and hot tub awaiting brave swimmers in the courtyard.
Atlanta Trevone, Trevone Bay
