Last month Sam and I went on an adventure. As you may have read in my previous post, we decided to skip our “abroad” holiday this year. And venture out in one of our campervan’s instead. As “Campervans” is what we do for a living we usually have one of our rental vans sitting in the workshop just waiting to be taken on an adventure. Whenever we have time for a holiday, we’re so quick to jump on a plane abroad. We often forget about the beautiful country we have right at our feet. So that’s when we decided to go on the Ultimate Camping Trip Around Devon and Cornwall.
I was determined this really was going to be the Ultimate Camping Trip. So I turned to the various Camping/Campervan Forums I’m on on Facebook for inspiration and suggestions. And my gosh you did not disappoint! We had over 200 different recommendations of places to see, stay and eat. I’ve listed every single recommendation at the bottom of this post for you in case you’d like to have a read through. As although we wanted to visit every single place, we would have needed at least a year. This was what I asked on Facebook.
“I need your recommendations! We’re travelling around Devon and Cornwall for a week at the end of the month. Starting in Exeter, travelling along the south coast then back up the north.
Could I have your recommendations of picturesque, beautiful places to stay/visit along the way and things to see/do whilst we’re there? It’ll be the two of us and our dog Milo so dog friendly is a must! We have 6 nights in total and will stay at a different campsite each night so please get recommending the best places you’ve ever stayed! We’re not overly bothered about the campsite amenities, just a warm shower, it’s more about seeing and appreciating the beautiful country we live in! Thank you!!!”
The recommendations flew in. And I got planning almost immediately. The six places we decided to stay were Dartmouth, Mevagissy, Penzance, St Ives, Bude and Lynmouth.
We started our journey bright and early on Monday 25th September. Leaving our house in Bristol at around 9am and heading straight to Teignmouth to visit a friend. Neither of us had ever been to Teignmouth before. It was absolutely beautiful, made 100% better by the weather. We had a stroll along the seafront and played some of the arcade games on the pier and then headed to Finn Mccools Fish and Chip Shop for lunch. We walked along to the Teignmouth “Back Beach” to eat them, whilst taking in the views across the River Teign.
From Teignmouth we headed to Torquay. Only a 30 minute drive away. Over the whole 7 days I tried to keep the drives in between places no longer than 45 minutes. We didn’t spend long in Torquay but knew we wanted to stop. Again we strolled down the seafront towards the Bayside Beach Shop for an ice cream. But we weren’t the only ones that got an ice cream, the owner made Milo one (for free may I add) and fed it to him. How lovely of her?
Our first night was spent at Broadleigh Farm in Totnes (£13 per night). This was a basic but clean campsite. Plenty of pitches, nice walks around the area and really warm toilet/shower blocks. I made the most of this. There’s nothing worse than getting out of the shower and being freezing cold. We didn’t really stay at any of the campsites long – instead used them as somewhere to sleep and wash, ready to continue our journey the next day.
We headed into Salcombe for Breakfast the following morning. I had a Spicy Vegetable Pasty and Sam went for a traditional Steak [and yes, we did live off of pasties and fish and chips for the entire week]. We stayed in Salcombe for quite a while before making our way to Burgh Island. Somewhere I would definitely suggest stopping at if you’re passing. It’s cut off from land at high tide and you have to take the “sea tractor” back to Bigbury. There’s a gorgeous beach that Milo enjoyed tearing around and some wonderful walks on Burgh Island itself. We then went into Plymouth to see Milo’s Mum [crazy dog Mum over here] as he hadn’t seen her since we got him over 3 years ago. I’m not sure whether they recognised each other but it was so lovely to see her. I can’t believe how big Milo is in comparison.
We spent our second night at Seaview International, St. Austel (£12 per night), stopping in the fishing town of Mevagissy on the way. We had dinner in the café on site and got an early night. I didn’t realise how much walking we’d be doing. We were walking around 20km a day and were absolutely knackered by the end of the week.
We planned to spend day 3 travelling around the Lizard Peninsula but were quite unfortunate with the weather on the Wednesday. It is England after all… Instead we headed straight to Lizard Point, had a little walk when the rain stopped and went into Falmouth instead. We weren’t planning on stopping in Falmouth but it’s somewhere we know well and there’s lots of shops to look in to avoid the rain. We spent the third night at Treverven Touring Park in Penzance (£13.50 per night). This was a very basic campsite but had everything you need for a one night stopover. I wouldn’t recommended any longer than a couple of nights here.
I’m trying so hard to keep this short but I’m queen of rambling. We had lots to see on Day 4. First was the Minack Theatre. This was £5 to get in and as much as I begrudge paying entry fees to “landmarks” this really was worth it. The views were breathtaking as well as the history of the Minack Theatre. We also discovered Porthcurno Beach whilst at the Minack Theatre. This part of Cornwall definitely has the best beaches. From here is was on to Land’s End. Well, sort of. We parked a bit further on from Land’s End at Sennen Cove and walked the beautiful coastal path to Land’s End instead. It’s only £1 to park for an hour here, compared to the £6 Land’s End expect. I dislike Land’s End more and more each time though. They now charge £10 for a photo with the sign!
From Land’s End we went to visit the Botallack/St Just Mines, which also happen to be a Poldark fliming location, and trekked miles around the coast. Gosh we really did do a lot this day. We stayed at the Ayr Holiday Park in St. Ives (£26 per night). Definitely the most expensive campsite we’ve stayed at but by far the most luxury. The facilities were second to none, with showers that actually stayed on for more than 30 seconds. You also have access to the Indoor Pool/Spa at the Hotel onsite and it’s only a 10 minute walk to the beautiful St. Ives itself.
From St. Ives we headed into Newquay. Another place that we’d planned to skip this time around as we’ve visited so many times. But something drew us back in and we’re glad it did. We had a lovely morning running around the beaches and paddling in the sea with Milo. Then we travelled to one of my favourite stops from the trip – Port Isaac. It’s the village where Doc Martin is filmed which is something Mum and I loved watching. It was exciting to see the places in “real life”. Such a quaint little village with beautiful cobbled streets. We stopped at the bakery, grabbed a “make your own” cream tea then climbed up a hill to take in these gorgeous views.
We stayed at Wooda Farm, Bude (£14 per night) for the 5th night, which is another site I’d most definitely recommend. It was a 5* site with 5* facilities and a really affordable price. We didn’t do much in Bude itself, just more walking. The first place we went on Saturday morning was Westward Ho! – somewhere we always make a point of stopping. We spent a little bit of time here, had some fun in the arcades and took Milo for a walk along the seafront. We headed to Channel View, Lynmouth (£14 per night) for our final night. Stopping for a walk to Tintagel Castle on the way.
The last day of our trip was spent in Lynton and Lynmouth. The weather wasn’t great, but it did stop raining for a walk around the town and a trip on the Lynton and Lynmouth Cliff Railway. A must see if you’re in the area. It was one of our favourite places we visited during our trip and we’re definitely planning to go again when the weather is nicer and spend a little more time there. I fell in love with some of the little gift shops and Milo enjoyed paddling in the river. Then it was time for the 2 hour journey back into Bristol. Stopping to visit my Grandma on the way. The week really made me appreciate the beautiful country we live in.
And breathe. I really did try to make that as short as possible but we did so much, I didn’t want to miss things. I’ve left the list of other suggestions below. I’d love to hear if you’d visited any of the places.
What do you think of this Camping Trip Around Devon and Cornwall? Have you visited any of the places mentioned?
Until next time,
Valley of the Rocks – Perrenporth – Tintagel Waterfalls – Little Meadow Campsite – Peppers Pantry (pub) – Lyme Regis – South Milton Sands – Hope Cove – Crantock Beach – Polperro/Looe – Boscastle – Padstow – Kynance Cove – Hunters Lodge (pub) – Wembury – Mowgan Porth – Harlyn Bay – Eden Project – Lusty Glaze – Fowey – Ilfracombe Bay – Hayle Towans – Church Cove – Clovelly – Mother Ivy Bay – Mullion – Fistral Beach – Saunton Beach – Gwithian – Hollywell Bay – Pollyjoke – Prussia Cove – Lydford Gorge – St. Michael’s Mount – Woolacombe – Combe Martin – The Rame Peninsula – Cape Cornwall – Polzeth – Praa Sands – Bedruthan Steps – Appledore – Port William – Brixham – Paignton
Laura Dove says
Oh I love this! We are huge fans of Devon and Cornwall, all of my childhood memories are down that way and we have had so many holidays down there with the children! Your trip looks amazing!
Ami says
I have so many memories in Devon and Cornwall too, I love going have there now. Thank you, we’re already planning this year’s trip.
Ami xxx
Michaela Salacinski says
I’m actually moving to Newquay next week so definitely excited to be closer to all these places that I’ll be able to visit within a short reach! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Ami says
Ooh that’s such a lovely place to move to. As mentioned in the post, Newquay is one of our favourite places and we’ve stayed there lots over the years.
Ami xxx
Ellie Chan says
Oh my this brings back childhood memories! I often visited Devon & Cornwall and though I didn’t camp there it was beautiful! We did go camping all the time I Wales though and it was so much fun!
Ami says
I haven’t ever camped in Wales and would love to do that next year. Do you have any specific recommendations of places to go?
Ami xxx
Jennifer L says
Oh wow that looks like an amazing camping trip. I’d go camping more if I have views like that. Aww Milo eating ice cream reminds me of my annabelle. She loves ice cream.
Ami says
Hehe it’s so funny isn’t it? The owner was so lovely to treat Milo like that!
Ami xxx
The Blonde Diary says
Looks like such a fun trip! All of your photos are very beautiful. Glad you enjoyed it!
Ami says
Thank you! We really enjoyed ourselves.
Ami xxx
suchi says
Beautiful pics!! Looks like you guys had a lovely camping trip! I have to add these places to my bucket list!!
Ami says
Thank you. We had a wonderful time. Let me know what you think if you do visit any of these places.
Ami xxx
Kallia says
Such pretty places, espec ially the railways colors are so bright and modern! Your doggie is stealing the show and you looked like you had a lovely camping trip around devon and cornwall!
Ami says
The railway is beautiful isn’t it! We had a lovely time thank you.
Ami xxx
Eloise says
Ha! I watch Poldark with my mom sometimes, I knew a few of those photos looked familiar! I think it would be fun to check out Devon in the near future (and hope I bump into some of the male casts too!)
Ami says
I’ve never watched it myself but I really want to now I’ve visited the mines. That would be nice wouldn’t it hehe!
Ami xxx
five little doves says
Oh this is so interesting to us as we are considering going to cornwall next year camping! We went to devon this year and loved it!
Ami says
We’re considering doing Scotland next year as we’ve never been to that part of the country.
Ami xxx
sabrina barbante says
I love so much van trips mainly if made to discover amazing and wild landscapes and small villages. I wish I could make such a trip to Ireland but also to some region of Italy.
Ami says
It would be so nice to travel around Ireland in the campervan. And Italy would be gorgeous too!
Ami xxx
Tanya @ Intimate Explorations says
Sounds like a lovely trip. When I visited Ireland many years ago, I did something similar. I reached out to my closest friends and asked what they would do if they were visiting Ireland, and I let their responses shape parts of my trip. It was a really cool way to travel.
Ami says
We had such a wonderful time. I’d love to travel around Ireland. A friend of ours has just done it in their campervan.
Ami xxx
Charlotte says
wow this looks like a good adventure haha! Looks like milo gets out more than I do!
Ami says
SUCH a good adventure! Hehe!
Ami xxx
London Mumma says
I am on the hunt for a new car, just to go travelling. We’ve never been to cornwall or devon and both look great.
Ami says
You’ll love it when you finally make the trip. I hope you find your new car soon!
Ami xxx
Akamatra says
Looks like a nice place to visit with the seafront and the mines! I love how cute your dog is!
Ami says
The St Just mines were lovely to visit. I really enjoyed walking around the coast. Milo says thank you hehe!
Ami xxx
Sreekar says
Loved the pictures, especially of the Post Isac. Surely Milo seems to have had a lot of fun!
Ami says
Thank you! Milo had a great time on the beaches and in the sea.
Ami xxx
jhilmil says
View from Burgh Island was awesome rather many landscapes you showed here were awesome. Seems it was a great camping trip for unwinding and relaxation.
Ami says
Gorgeous isn’t it! It doesn’t even look like this country.
Ami xxx
Hung Tran says
That’s an awesome coastline and looks like a wonderful time. It’s a dream of mine to own a camper van. The goal is to get a mercedes sprinter 4×4
Ami says
It really is gorgeous. That sounds like a wonderful dream! I hope it comes true one day.
Ami xxx
Dannii says
I love this post, so informative! I love Cornwall & we can’t wait to go camping there in our tent. We hope to go next Summer, I loved visiting Tintagel Castle as a kid!
Ami says
Thank you! Let me know how you get on, I’m looking forward to next year’s trip already.
Ami xxx
Samantha Donnelly says
Looks like you had an amazing time, including Milo. I would love to do something like this in the future x
Louise says
Just lovely! The photos are beautiful. We live in Bideford and venture over to westward ho weekly. You’re so right about taking for granted the beauty that is right on our doorstep. I might well have to plan my own Devon and Cornwall venture 🙂