Camel Valley Vineyard
Bodmin, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
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One of England’s best vineyards, set in beautiful Cornwall countryside, producing award-winning sparkling wines.
Best for ages 18+
Travel bucket list idea:
Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
|Cornish Pasty – Cornwall’s famous pie
Cornwall is renowned for fresh and locally sourced food – attracting foodies from the world over.
Ingredients and flavours are strongly influenced by its coastal location and farming heritage. The region is especially known for outstanding seafood, with dishes such as fish and chips, crab sandwiches, and Cornish pasties being popular staples. It’s home to several artisanal cheese makers, producing award-winning cheeses such as Cornish Blue and Yarg, and produces the world’s best clotted cream.
In terms of drinks, Cornwall is known for its brewing and distilling industries, with a number of exceptional local distilleries producing award-winning spirits, beers and ales. The region also boasts a burgeoning wine industry, notably for award-winning still and sparkling wines, and excellent cideries.
Cooking styles vary from simple to exotic and environments from casual to smart, although the emphasis is on excellent produce, simply cooked, and served in a laid-back beach café or gastropub.
Cornish pasties – meat- and veg-filled pastry shells that started life as fuel for miners, and a Cornish cream tea consisting of scones smothered in jam and world-renowned Cornish clotted cream.
For drinks, don’t leave without trying the locally-made sparkling wines, ciders and artisan gins.
You can visit most of the farms, distilleries and breweries to see the produce being made. See our recommendations below.
Whatever the season your sojourn, you can stock up on fresh goodies to eat or take home at a Farmers Market close by, with many hosting weekly events for much of the year.
Top picks include Sennen, St Ives, Bude, Pendeen, Helston and Truro. Fill your boots (and reusable carrier bags) with anything from the odd piece of art and craft to meats, hand-made farmstead cheeses, free-range poultry, eggs, fruit, vegetables and locally made fare such as chocolate, bread and cakes.
For top-notch eating and drinking, head to Padstow (which is home to four Rick Stein restaurants plus Paul Ainsworth at Number 6) or Falmouth’s Discovery Quay area. Watergate Bay near Newquay is usually a lively spot, with both Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen Cornwall and The Beach Hut, and there are other great beach cafés in Bude, St Ives, Sennen Cove, Falmouth, and on the Rame Peninsula.
Cornwall is liberally scattered with traditional pubs, many serving local ales, ciders and micro-brews. Newquay is Cornwall’s party town, but with a lairy, binge-drinking scene, it’s best avoided.
Bodmin, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
|One of England’s best vineyards, set in beautiful Cornwall countryside, producing award-winning sparkling wines.
Best for ages 18+
St Ives, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
Families and chocoholics will love these chocolate workshops, that see you designing, moulding and decorating a variety of chocolate treats (that you take home after). A brilliant group experience for all ages, with special activities even for the toddlers.
Adult price: £25
Best for ages 4+
Duration: 1 hour
When: Selected dates
Frequency: Selected dates
Lostwithiel, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
This plough-to-bottle distillery, owned and run by the Dustow family, has mastered the art of transforming their potatoes into award-winning spirits, notably gin. You can book in for tours of the distillery and gin tastings, and courses to make your own custom bottle of gin.
Best for ages 18+
Falmouth, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
|Four-day foodie extravaganza, with oyster dredging, celebrity-chef masterclasses, live music and overflowing (sea)food stalls.
Best for ages 13+
Penzance, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
|Excellently run and fascinating foraging and cooking courses with professional forager, ecologist and cook Caroline Davey. A must for foodies.
Adult price: £45
Best for ages 13+
Duration: 2 hours - 1 day
When: Selected dates
Frequency: Selected dates
Lostwithiel, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
A small family-run cidery that produces a range of high-quality, award-winning ciders. The cider is made using a blend of locally sourced apples, including rare varieties, and traditional methods. Book in for tours of the orchards and pressing facilities, followed by cider tasting. They also offer cider-making courses.
Best for ages 18+
Truro, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
Cornwall is famous for cider, and Healey’s Cornish Cyder Farm produces award-winning cider the old-fashioned way. The farm offers tours and tastings where you can learn about the cider-making process, and sample different ciders. They also have a farm shop and restaurant selling locally-produced treats.
Best for ages 18+
St Austell, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
A boutique winery that produces a range of award-winning wines and spirits, including still and sparkling wines, vermouth, and gin. Book in for guided tours of the winery and vineyards, before a tasting of their products in the on-site tasting room.
Best for ages 18+
Porthleven, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
Established in Cornwall in 2004 by a group of enthusiasts, Origin specialises in sourcing and roasting exceptional coffee. Book ahead for tours of their roastery in Helston, or head to their café at Harbour Head in Porthleven to sample the goods (with a slice of artisan cake).
Best for ages 13+
Falmouth, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
Vegetarians and garden-to-table advocates should stop by this organic garden that prides itself on producing its own organic food. Explore the gardens then sample its produce in the café. The garden hosts a variety of events throughout the year, such as music festivals, workshops, and markets.
Best for ages 13+
Helston, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
Family-run organic farm producinf a range of sumptuously delicious organic dairy products, including ice cream, yoghurt, and milk – using milk from their own herd of Jersey cows.
Best for ages 4+
St Austell, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
This family-owned brewery, founded in 1851, produces a range of award-winning beers and ales using local ingredients, such as Cornish barley and spring water. They offer guided tours of the brewery, teaching you about the brewing process, ending with tastings. The brewery also runs a variety of events throughout the year, including beer festivals and live music.
Best for ages 18+
St Ives, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
This popular annual festival showcases the best of local Cornish food & drink, in one of Cornwall’s most charming seaside towns.
Best for ages 4+
Duration: 3 days
When: 2nd weekend May
Frequency: annually
Padstow, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
A highly-regarded distillery producing award-winning gin using only locally-sourced and organic botanicals, and a traditional copper pot still. Book in for tours of the production process, onsite tastings – and the chance to make your own bespoke bottle of gin.
Adult price: £85
Min age 18
Best for ages 18+
Duration: 2 hours 30 mins
When: Thurs, Fri & Sat
Frequency: Selected dates
Truro, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
Tea lovers should head to this, the only tea plantation in the UK. It produces a range of fine teas, grown using sustainable and organic methods, from classic black tea to innovative blends like Manuka and Cornish Earl Grey. You can book in for tours of the plantation and learn about the history of tea in the UK, before a tasting in the on-site tea bar.
Best for ages 13+
Padstow, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
|Iconic seafood restaurant in Padstow – flagship of the group owned by celebrity seafood chef Rick Stein – is a Cornwall institution.
Adult price: £50
Best for ages 13+
Padstow, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
This family-owned winery and orchard produces a range of award-winning still and sparkling wines, as well as apple juice and cider. The offer guided tours of the vineyards and orchards, that end with wine tastings in the on-site tasting room.
Best for ages 18+
Truro, Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
A buzzing weekly farmers’ market held every Wednesday and Sunday on Lemon Quay. Here you’ll find everything from fermented foods to raw chocolate, chilli jam to craft beer. A great opportunity to sample local Cornish produce, and snack on Cornish ‘street food’.
Best for ages 13+
Duration: 4 hours
When: Wed & Sat am
Frequency: weekly
Destination guides including or relevant to this experience
Cornwall, United Kingdom (UK)
A region of craggy cliffs, sheltered creeks, glorious sandy beaches and quintessential villages – rich in local life, pagan legend and delicious, locally-made food and drink.