Three bedrooms: 1 x ground-floor king-size (zip/link, can be twin on request), 1 x double with en-suite walk-in shower, basin and WC, 1 x ground-floor family room with four singles. Ground-floor bathroom with bath, shower over, basin and WC. Open-plan living space with kitchen, dining area and sitting area with woodburning stove
St. Breward is a picturesque Cornish town located around 7 miles from Bodmin. With a grocery store, pharmacy, post office, bank, two playgrounds, and a bar, the community has everything you may need during your visit. The village has a wonderful walking trail that loops around, taking in the church, the holy well, and the River Camel. As it makes its way from inland to the coast at Padstow, the nearby Camel Way is a favourite among hikers and bikers alike. The old Bodmin Prison, which was constructed in 1840 using granite quarried here, is now a museum and a ghostly presence on the outskirts of Bodmin. Bodmin Moor, with its wide open spaces and windswept grandeur, is not far away, and neither are other great day trip destinations like the incomparable Eden Project (11 miles), Falmouth’s National Maritime Museum (30 miles), or the picturesque harbour town of Padstow (16 miles), home to many excellent restaurants and pubs. Nearby, you can pick from a variety of nice eateries and quaint country inns.
With its sweeping beaches, rugged moorlands, hidden woodlands, and rolling countryside estates, Cornwall is a superb destination if you want to spend some time bird watching on holiday.
One of the best spots is Hayle Estuary Nature Reserve, managed by the RSPB. This rich wetland habitat attracts a variety of birdlife, including teals, wigeons, and goosanders. While winter offers the highest numbers, spring and early summer also bring migrant waders such as oystercatchers, dunlins, and whimbrels to the tidal pools and marshes.
Marazion Marsh, also managed by the RSPB and overlooking the iconic St Michael’s Mount near Penzance, boasts Cornwall’s largest reedbed. It’s a haven for species like chiffchaffs, Cetti’s warblers, little egrets, and grey herons. Bitterns are regularly recorded here, and birds of prey, including sparrowhawks and buzzards, are often spotted too.
For a variety of songbirds and raptors, head to the Rame Peninsula near Cawsand. This beautiful area of tidal creeks, sandy beaches, and peaceful farmland attracts goldcrests, firecrests, warblers, and buntings. You may also glimpse birds of prey such as hobbies, merlins, peregrine falcons, and, if you’re lucky, the rare hen harrier.
At Stithians Lake, a large reservoir, breeding birds like little grebes, coots, and moorhens are common. Waders such as greenshanks, ruffs, and curlew sandpipers can also be seen foraging along the muddy banks.
Not far from St Ives, St Ives Island, actually a headland between Porthmeor and Porthgwidden beaches, is a top spot for seabird watching, especially in autumn. Huge flocks of skuas, terns, gannets, fulmars, and auks pass by, alongside waders like purple sandpipers, whimbrels, and turnstones.
Finally, no trip to Cornwall would be complete without exploring Bodmin Moor. This dramatic granite moorland, scattered with ancient ruins and rich in wildlife, is especially rewarding in spring and summer, when skylarks, stonechats, wheatears, and sedge warblers arrive to breed. In autumn and winter, the moor plays host to thousands of golden plovers, along with snipes and the more elusive jack snipe.
