The Ultimate Cornwall Road Trip Itinerary
Whether you're visiting Cornwall for a weekend break or a week-long escape, you’ll never have a dull moment as the county is flooded with beautiful coastlines, stunning countryside, and plenty of sandy beaches.
To make sure you don’t miss a thing, we’ve included a jam-packed one-week itinerary of Cornwall to help you schedule your trip. Feel free to skip a few stops to spend more time relaxing in the areas you love, or extend your holiday and travel through Cornwall at your own pace.
Whatever you choose to do on your road trip, you’ll be happy to know that we have campsites available all over Cornwall. If you’re looking to stay for one night only before moving to your next destination, the below Club Sites are available for one-night stays during our off-peak season.
- Veryan Club Site
- Tregurrian Club Site
- Sennen Cove Club Site
- Bude Club Site
- Tavistock Club Site
- California Cross Club Site
- Slapton Sands Club Site
If you want to stay even longer, you can book several nights at our local Club Sites or book our member-only campsites in Cornwall by becoming a member today.
Day 1 of your Cornwall road trip
If you’re driving to Cornwall, we highly recommend planning regular breaks on long journeys and stopping off at nearby service stations.
If you’re travelling to Cornwall the day before, you can take a well-needed rest and pitch up at our Bude Club Site. This campsite is perfectly located in the northern town of Cornwall, and once you’ve had a great sleep, you can start your trip by exploring Bude and then travelling to other nearby towns.
Visit Bude
The beautiful seaside town is known for its sandy beaches and long stretches of countryside. It’s the perfect place to get away from the hustle and bustle of city life and have a moment to yourself. Whether you enjoy watersport activities or relaxing walks with great views, you’ll definitely find something for you. Here are some top spots to visit and things to do in Bude:
- Summerleaze beach
- The Castle Bude
- Bude canal
- Widemouth bay beach
- Crooklets beach
- Penhallam Manor
- Bude Sea Pool
- The Monster Slip and Slide
- Big Blue Surf School
Visit Crackington Haven and Boscastle
Although you can easily spend a day or two exploring Bude, you can also drive a few minutes down to Crackington Haven. Here you’ll find the most stunning beach and several great pubs where you can grab a bite to eat.
You can also head down towards Boscastle where there are tons more to see and do such as:
Visit Tintagel
Just 10 miles south from Boscastle is the wonderful village of Tintagel. Here are some brilliant things to do and see in the village:
- Tintagel Bay
- Tintagel castle
- Merlin's cave
- Tintagel Old Post Office
- King Arthurs Great Halls
- Tintagel Toy Museum
Visit Port Isaac
Port Isaac is the perfect spot to stop and rest for the night. You can pitch up at our Tregurian Club Site before exploring the fishing village in the morning.
Day 2 of your Cornwall road trip
After you’ve had a lovely sleep at our Treguriran Club Site or other local campsites, you can start your day by exploring Port Isaac.
Things to do in Port Isaac
- Port Isaac Harbour
- The Rumps
- Port Gaverne Beach
- Port Quin
- Doyden Castle
- Backways Cove
- Port Isaac Pottery
- Cornish Coast Adventures
Visit Newquay
As you continue to travel down south, visit the Bedruthan Steps. The 149 steps lead to a secluded beach beneath the cliffs. You can find these steps along the Cornish Coast between Padstow and Newquay. Be mindful that some of the surrounding areas have been closed and deemed unsafe by the national trust due to rockfall. However, you can still view the coastline and appreciate the stunning surrounding views.
Once you reach Newquay, you’ll find many sites and fun activities to do, including:
- Watergate bay beach
- Newquay zoo
- Newquay Harbour
- Fistral beach
- Towan beach
- Porth Beach
- Cornwall aviation heritage centre
- Blue Reef Aquarium
- Pirates Quest adventure golf
- Lighthouse cinema
- Trerice
- Wavehunters at the Extreme Academy
Click hear for more campsites near Newquay and more things to do.
Day 3 of your Cornwall road trip
Visit Perranporth
From Newquay, travel further down south to Perranporth, another beautiful seaside town where you’ll find lots to do, including:
- Reen Manor Riding Stables
- Perranporth Surf School
- Perranporth Beach
- Little wolf adventures
- Perranporth Golf Club
- Healeys Cornish Cyder Farm
Visit St Agnes
From Perranporth, you can travel to St Agnes which is a short 10-minute drive. Here you can rest up at Chapel Porth beach or go exploring. Some great spots include:
- St Agnes museum
- Perranporth Airfield
- St Agnes Head
- St. Agnes Heritage Coast
- Koru Kayaking
- Trevaunance Cove
- Gwennap
- Trevellas Cove
- Great Wheal Charlotte
- Sallys Bottom
Before the night ends, head down south to our Sennen Cove Club Site, where you’ll rest up ready and refreshed for another day of road tripping Cornwall.
Day 4 of your Cornwall road trip
With the Sennen Cove Club Site as your base, you can spend the morning exploring Sennen itself before heading down to St Ives.
Visit St Ives
St Ives is a town known for its surf beaches and art. You could easily spend a day or two relaxing on the soft sand beaches, learning how to surf or admiring the picturesque views. Here are some great locations to visit whilst in St Ives:
- Porthmeor Beach
- Porthgwidden Beach
- Carbis Bay Beach
- Tate St Ives
- Porthminster Beach
- The Leach Pottery
- St Nicholas Chapel
- Penwith gallery
- New Craftsman Gallery
- Flambards Theme Park
- Godrevy
- Godrevy Point
- Bakers Pit Nature Reserve
Day 5 of your Cornwall road trip
Visit Penzance
Just 15 minutes away from the Sennen Cove Club Site is Penzance. Penzance is a quirky harbourside town with great pubs, cafes, shops and attractions. As everything’s in close proximity, you can walk around the town or enjoy a boat ride. Here are some of the places to visit whilst road-tripping through Penzance.
- Penzance Harbour
- Penlee House Gallery & Museum
- Morrab Gardens
- Trengwainton Garden
- Polgoon Vineyard
- Penlee Park Open Air Theatre
Continuing on your road trip in Cornwall, make a few stops at the following locations.
- St Micheals Mount: A tidal island which can be reached by foot if the tide is low or by boat if the tide is high. If you want to hop onto a boat, you can find regular boat rides in Marazion. Once you’ve reached the island, you’ll love exploring the cobbled streets, marvelling at the breathtaking views, visiting the huge castle that towers above the island and walking through the stunning gardens.
- Kynance Cove: If you’re looking for something that doesn’t quite look like the UK but has all your home comforts, Kynance Cove is the place to be. It’s famous for its white sand, turquoise sea and rock stacks which make for the most spectacular view.
- Lizard Point: Just as stunning as Kynance Cove, is Lizard point. The dramatic cliffs are shaped by the Atlantic and make for a calm and collective day out. You can sit on the rocks, and take in the views whilst listening to the Ocean.
Visit Truro
After you’ve spent the rest of the day relaxing by the ocean, get ready for a drive up to Truro. Don’t worry too much about exploring the city as there’s plenty of time to do that the following day. For now, stop by our Veryan Club Site, where you can rest for the night.
Day 6 of your Cornwall road trip
Once you’re well rested, you’ll be ready to explore Truro. Here are some great things you can do whilst there.
- Truro Cathedral
- Royal Cornwall Museum
- Boscawen Park
- Hall for Cornwall
- Truro Farmers Market
- Via Ferrata Cornwall
- Plaza Cinema
Visit St Austell
Less than 30 minutes from Truro and our Veryan Club Site is St Austell. The town is known for its white clay and the mining of it. Yes, that does mean you’ll get the chance to make some of your own clay masterpieces at Flookan Ceramics Hub or see the history of white clay at the Wheal Martyn Clay Works.
There are tons of other things to do when visiting the town, including:
- Eden Project
- The Lost Gardens Heligan
- Shipwreck Treasure Museum
- Pinetum Gardens
- St Austell Brewery
- Carlyon Bay
Day 7 of your Cornwall road trip
For the final day of your Cornwall road trip, rest up at our Veryan Club Site and then make a 30-minute journey to Fowey.
Visit Fowey
The quaint town of Fowey is popular for sailing, and the Fowey Estuary is ideal for exploring by kayak. If you don’t carry your own kayak, canoe or boat, you can find many rental places nearby. Whilst in the small town, you can visit other attractions including:
- St Catherine's Castle
- Fowey Aquarium
- Fowey Museum
- Readymoney Cove Beach
- Pettifox Sea Charters
Visit Saltash
A final stop on your Cornwall road trip is Saltash. Ironically, the city is known as ‘Cornwall’s first place’ as it’s home to the bridge built by Isambard Kingdom Brunel in 1859. The Royal Albert Bridge sits above the river Tamar and links Cornwall to the rest of England.
Alongside visiting the famous bridge, you can also see many other things in Saltash, including:
- Saltash Waterside
- Cotehele
- The China Fleet Club
- Cotehele Mill
- Churchtown Farm Nature Reserve
- Watersport activities on the river Tamar
Before heading back home, be sure to take some well-earned rest and drive safely. You can stop off and pitch up at our California Cross Club Site or Slapton Sands Club Site, which sits just outside of Cornwall.
Remember, there’s no need to rush through all the sites. Take your time and enjoy your Cornwall road trip. If you don’t get to do it all, come back again and continue from where you left off.