Cornwall (England)

...to look at the North Cornwall Tourist Board’s website which provides everything you should need. However, I must say that our self catering cottage called Halgabron Mill just outside Tintagel was superb with wood burning fires, woodland setting and can cater from 2-12 people. A simple Yahoo search will bring this up.

TINTAGEL CASTLE:

Everybody who visits Tintagel must visit the castle which has a spectacular location ...
...it was Richard, Earl of Cornwall the youngest son of King John who built it in the 12th Century. Even earlier finds from an excavation in 1998 found pottery dating back to 5th and 6th centuries and small settlement buildings have been uncovered clinging to the cliff edges. It is wonderfully atmospheric, particularly when we went in wild, windy autumn which has the added benefit of very few tourists.

Opening times: 1 Apr-30 Sep 10am-6pm ... more

Tintagel is quite literally a legendary place to visit being the supposed home of the Great King Arthur. This could either be fact or fiction, but it is thought that the Celtic kings during the 5th century used it as a trading settlement. Today it remains a small but close knit community which copes very well with the influx of tourists and the town still retains its original charm. Our holiday there on 9th October 2004 was fully packed and I’d like to pass on some of our experiences so you can make the most of your visit to this enchanting part of North Cornwall’s coast.

Since ciao does not recommend posting web links, I have included all useful information at the end of this piece for your reference. Instead of listed the huge variety of accommodation in this part of Cornwall, I shall leave you to look at the North Cornwall Tourist Board’s website which provides everything you should need. However, I must say that our self catering cottage called Halgabron Mill just outside Tintagel was superb with wood burning fires, woodland setting and can cater from 2-12 people. A simple Yahoo search will bring this up.

TINTAGEL CASTLE:

Everybody who visits Tintagel must visit the castle which has a spectacular location on a small island only joined to the mainland by a small neck of land. Although King Arthur has long been associated with the castle, it was Richard, Earl of Cornwall the youngest son of King John who built it in the 12th Century. Even earlier finds from an excavation in 1998 found pottery dating back to 5th and 6th centuries and small settlement buildings have been uncovered clinging to the cliff edges. It is wonderfully atmospheric, particularly when we went in wild, windy autumn which has the added benefit of very few tourists.

Opening times: 1 Apr-30 Sep 10am-6pm
1-31 Oct 10am-5pm
1 Nov – 31 Mar 10am-4pm
24-26 Dec Closed
Adults: £3.70
Children £1.90
Concession £2.80
English Heritage members free 01840 770328

ADVICE: There are many steep steps up the cliff face to the castle, so you must be reasonably able bodied. Wear good flat shoes as the gradient and grass can be slippery. There is no shelter around the island, so windproof/rainproof clothes are essential in winter. Buy a guide book as there are information panels on the way around, but the history and detail of the castle is a worthwhile cover to cover read. Length of visit is about 2 hours and includes a short 5 minute video presentation. The gift shop has a great range of historical King Arthur based memorabilia of good quality as well as the usual high standard toiletries, chocolates and children’s activity toys you’d expect at an English Heritage site. Parking is in the village 600 metres away and is a steep walk down the hill to the site. A Land Rover service (April-Sept) can take people back up to the top for a small charge. Exceptionally clean and modern toilet facilities are located next to the shop and a small café style restaurant serving Cornish pasties and tea/coffee is right opposite on the shoreline. I ate too much chocolate to worry about lunch.

KING ARTHUR’S GREAT HALLS

This large building was constructed in the 1930’s and houses the Round Table famously associated with King Arthur and his knights. For an admission charge of £3 adults, £2 OAPS and children, there is a light show which tells the legend of Arthur. You can also explore the enormous palatial centrepiece which is the great hall complete with throne you can pose on for photographs. It’s all treated with great solemnity by the Fellowship of the Knights of the Round Table who have their headquarters there. It’s a very romantic and idealist place, but to be honest I found the whole experience rather serious and creepy! Open 9:30- 5:30 everyday, but please note there are no toilets or catering facilities. Tel: 01840 770526

THE OLD POST OFFICE

I loved this ancient sprawling cottage which is owned by the National Trust. It was originally a 14th century manor house but later became a post office which closed in 1872. The rooms are furnished with children’s needlework dating back as early as the 1600’s which are as interesting as the building. Adults £2.20 Family ticket £5.50. This will only take you 20 minutes at the most to look around. Don’t forget to go out of the back door and see the cottage from that side which has details you won’t be able to see from the road when you leave. In terms of length of visit and price, this is one of the most expensive places to visit in the village.

ST NECTAN’S GLEN – Posted off the road between Bossiney and Boscastle (Tintagel 1 mile)
Parking is opposite the footpath and is posted ‘Waterfall Customers’ from the road.

This is an isolated beauty spot with a 60ft waterfall as it’s focus. It’s a very small place and was home to a hermit, hence the name. The cave where he lived is now a place of devotion for the special place in which he lived and there are votive candles there to light and place in the tiny room. Near the waterfall, dozens of pieces of coloured cloth and charms have been tied to foliage as homage and the waterfall is very atmospheric if you’re lucky enough to be the only visitors as we were.

It is a good 20 minute walk from the car park up through the valley to the top. If there has been any rainfall at all it’s best to wear waterproof shoes as it’s a slippery and muddy trek. If you have time, stop at the 10th century church at the beginning of the walk. It’s the oldest we saw and the history of the place is obvious.

There is a small area for having tea and coffee (paying customers for the waterfall only) and entrance fees are £2.20 adults, but I didn’t notice the children’s price which I presume is half. Plan on spending 30 minutes at the waterfall and 1 hour round trip walking if you have children.

TINTAGEL VISITOR CENTRE

Clearly signposted from approaching roads, this new centre is a small attraction in itself. It has a very large display on geology, history and legends with an interactive video. It will detail all there is to do not only in Tintagel, but in nearby Boscastle, made more widely known by the recent flood devastation. Be aware that there is a car park charge for the centre. There are many car parks, most costing £1 for an all day stay. If you go after September though, make use of the free parking in marked bays where the restrictions have been let up after the main tourist season. Tel 01840 779084 10:30 – 4:00 every day. (Public toilets adjacent)

TINTAGEL EATING OUT

Since our self catering cottage was so well equipped, we only ventured out for chips! There are three fish and chip shops on the high shop and numerous cream tea restaurants. The Tintagel Arms is a pub I heard recommended, but we did not go in. The main food everyone eats is Cornish pasties. The only decent, fresh baked pasties we found (also has vegetarian/vegan options) was Pengenna Pasties right opposite the lane down to the castle. It’s testimony is two we bought at 10am and when we ate them at 2pm out of the paper bag they were still hot inside with the insulating pastry. There is also a great vegetarian café opposite the visitor centre offering all sorts of homemade nutrious food or fresh cream teas in lovely heavy ceramic pottery, but the name is not listed in any directory so you will have to stumble upon it yourselves.

WALKS OF INTEREST

Bossiney Common next door to Tintagel is a beautiful place where you can fully appreciate the coastline with an uninterrupted view. If you follow the path towards Boscastle you enter Rocky Valley which has dramatic granite cliff faces narrowing towards the sea. You can easily climb down onto the wide stone shelves and sit where the sea meets the river.You may be lucky enough to find a basking seal as we did and it’s comparative remoteness after the town is a bit of escapism and it’s free!

CHURCH TRAILS

In Tintagel Tourist office we bought a Boscastle church trail pack which cost £3.99. These laminated, coloured cards have a fascinating history of all of the ancient churches in the area; many of which are so hard to find you will be guaranteed to have the whole place to yourselves. If some are locked up, it’s an adventure to find the church warden in the nearby village. Many of the gravestones are a great deal older than those surviving in the south east of England where we are and date back to 1500’s and can be read. My advice is to buy an OS map which is essential on these unclassified roads. When you are driving through villages called ‘splat’ for half an hour and no main road appears, it will be worth the £6. This part of the holiday brings the real sense of Cornwall to life. I’d also recommend the Tintagel church trail pack, but if you can buy these in the churches themselves which are £1 cheaper.

TAMAR OTTER SANCTUARY

Located in the countryside north of Launceston. Adults £6.50, full café and gift shop on site with toilets.

This sanctuary for otters is responsible to the repopulation of otters after the hunting of them brought their numbers dangerously low. They have numerous pens of otters from all regions of the world and they are lively characters. Make sure you arrive for the 12pm feed. The place opens at 10am (until 4pm) and the otters are expecting food around 11am and will give more entertainment in their efforts to smell food on you as you walk past. The lecture on the way around as they are fed is very informative and you meet the otters by name. Also worth a walk around is their deer wood which normally means a deer hidden 3 miles away, but here the stags are only a few metres away showing no fear.
The entry price is a little expensive, but for the upkeep of the otters it is money well spent. Plan on a two hour visit and in dry weather if you can.

To sum up, there is much more to do in this area, but these are the main areas. Trinkets and pottery and King Arthur collectibles are on every corner as well as Cornish ice-cream shops and bookstalls. It’s a place that has moved into the 21st century making full commercial use of us tourists, yet it still feels like you expect to find a horse and cart around the corner. Make sure you visit outside the tourist season to benefit most from the quiet roads, easy parking and lazy days without being rushed. If you have a week or two to spare, I can think of no better place than Tintagel.

 

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