Our Cornish Mini Break
I always like to have a little trip away in Spring. Simon and I take a week off and head to my mum's cottage in the Yorkshire Dales every year but this time we also squeezed in a few days to explore beautiful North Cornwall too. We were blessed by the weather the entire weekend and it was an all-round beautiful trip.
Where We Stayed
Simon and I were very kindly offered a three-night stay at the beautiful
. It has a great location in between Newquay and Padstow and is around a five minute walk from the beautiful Morgan Porth beach.
After looking at the website and chatting with Kate the owner I couldn't wait for our visit, we were so incredibly lucky with the weather and it turned out to be one of the only sunny places in the UK that weekend. Kate very kindly picked us up from the station and took us to
which was our home for the next couple of days.
Seavista has a selection of rooms in the main building as well as a space called
which has been beautifully designed by Kate. However, we chose to stay in the lodge which sits away from the main house. It also has a hot tub which was a definite selling point for Simon and I!
We had a little outdoor seating area which looked out onto
bay beneath us, I spent ages admiring the sea and enjoying the calls of the birds when we arrived. The lodge was beautifully decorated with really tasteful simple furniture and the place had a bit of a mid-century theme. Our bedroom was really beautiful and featured a watercolour inspired feature wall behind the bed which was so calming. There was also a beautiful wood burning stove in the living room, it was so warm we didn't need to light it but I definitely admired it a lot. The whole lodge was really comfortable and spacious and had a perfect blend of personal style and neutral decorating to feel welcoming and very easy to live in.
The shared living room in the main building had a late 1950s feel with a subtle beach theme, it was incredibly well decorated by Kate and I could tell that she has a real passion for interior design.
Each morning Simon and I enjoyed an amazing breakfast spread that Kate cooked for us. We tend to not be early risers when we were on holiday so it was lovely that Kate was so accommodating and made our breakfasts when we wanted them. The menu had all the traditional breakfast options you would expect as well as some wonderful health food options too. The bread, eggs and meat are all locally sourced and we could tell that Kate had a real passion for cooking by the way all our food was presented. By far the best breakfasts I've ever enjoyed at a B&B.
What We Did
When we arrived at Seavista Kate suggested that we take the short stroll down to
beach then hike the coastal path route to the next beach along which is Watergate Bay. It was a gloriously sunny late afternoon and it felt wonderful to be able to enjoy a British beach in April. The walk to Watergate bay wasn't too strenuous but if you're not a keen walker I would definitely recommend bringing some comfortable shoes with you and taking it slow.
The path we walked along the coast was absolutely stunning and you could see out to sea for miles and miles, we were so lucky with the weather - the ocean looked turquoise and sparkling. By the time we got over to Watergate Bay we definitely felt like we deserved a drink so we stopped off at the
to enjoy a few drinks on their lovely terrace.
The hotel bar specialises in sourcing a huge selection of gins from around the UK so I went for a peppery number from Devon. I definitely felt as though we were back on our Greek honeymoon whilst we watched the sunset into the ocean.
As Simon I have a keen interest in medieval history we decided that a visit to
was definitely on the cards so after we had breakfast the next day we headed straight there to explore. The ruined castle had a definite magic quality and I could completely see King Arthur living there, even if it is only a folktale. The coastline around Tintagel was really dramatic and the weather was incredibly windy which made our trip feel even more dramatic and moody.
Again, it was wonderful to look out from the point over a huge expanse of sea and enjoy the views. I felt incredibly lucky to be able to explore such magical place with Simon especially when the folklore of King Arthur is quite special to us. We suddenly realised that the time had completely gotten away from us so we headed to Newquay for a coffee.
We stumbled across
which was housed in a beautiful white building (maybe an old boathouse) with vaulted ceilings. There's actually a Pavillion cafe near us in London so it was great chatting to the staff who had moved from East London for a life in Newquay. The coffee was excellent and they even gave us an extra cookie for free!
After our coffee and cookies Simon and I headed back to the lodge as I had a special massage booked. Janey, a therapist working with Neals Yard runs
. Janey is available to pop in to see Vista to offer their guests there a range of treatments including reflexology, aromatherapy and massage. I opted for a poultice massage, not something I had never heard of before but it was truly magical.
I immediately had a rapport with Janey who was extremely calming and kindhearted. She even brought along a large bottle of sparkling water and relaxing tea for me to try after my massage. Janey gently heated up a bundle of herbs in her steamer which was then used like stones would be in a hot stone massage. The gentle heat allows the oils from the herbs to relax your body and the poultice bundle also acts as a gentle exfoliant. I felt incredibly relaxed and my skin was so smooth after the treatment. If you're planning a trip to see investor it's definitely worthwhile looking at the treatments that Janey provides.
The next day we decided to explore Padstow. It happened to be the day before the May Day celebrations so the streets were decorated with bunting and branches of hops. Simon and I are so interested in traditional British holidays and we are definitely fans of any weird pagan parties! I would say if you're planning a trip to Padstow you can see most of it in a few hours, although it's very pretty there's not much to do in the town, so after a few pasties and a walk around it felt like the time to explore another area of North Cornwall.
We headed to the nearby village of Port Isaac which was incredibly beautiful. Again, it's a small place but incredibly picturesque. We were feeling a little bit peckish even after our pasties so we decided to pick up a few crab sandwiches which were delicious. Unfortunately, Simon's got nabbed by seagull!
After a few hours of exploring Port Isaac it was time to head back to Padstow for dinner at Rick Stein's seafood restaurant.
Where we ate
The first night we were in Cornwall we made the last minute decision to eat at
in Watergate bay. We had only planned to stop for a drink but seeing as the restaurant was right there it seemed a shame not to try it out. The interior was beautifully decorated and features a modern Scandinavian themed dining area. I wasn't sure what to expect with the food but it was incredibly delicious, the people working there but also really helpful and friendly. I would definitely eat at 15 again.
Another restaurant we tried was
main restaurant in Padstow. As soon as I knew we were visiting Cornwall I booked a table and I was pretty excited to try it out. Unfortunately, the food didn't really live up to the hype and I'm afraid that the restaurant relies on Rick's name to draw people in. The food was okay but for the price, I was expecting something pretty amazing. It's situated right next to Padstow harbour and I expected the fish there to be incredibly fresh and delicious, unfortunately, it was a bit disappointing.
To balance out the Rick Stein disappointment I have to say that the pasties we had at
were really delicious. Rick Stein is one of our favourite celebrity chef it's just a bit of a shame that the main restaurant in Padstow wasn't quite up to scratch.
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We had such a fabulous time in North Cornwall, I really feel as though we found an area of Cornwall that we love and we will definitely return to again and again. As we live in London the journey wasn't too terrible, it was around a 5 1/2 hour journey from Paddington and as long as you have a few good films to watch on the train the journey goes pretty quickly.
If you'd like to book a room at
prices start at £75 per night for a standard room and go up to £171 per night for
.
Thanks again to the Seavista team for having us to stay, Kate was extremely generous and warm and we definitely felt very sad to be leaving. I highly recommend you have a look at the Seavista website and please do send me any questions you might have about our stay.
This was a gifted stay at Seavista but all my thoughts and opinions are entirely my own.