We have lived in Cornwall for over 3 years now, and there are still so many places we are yet to visit. I think we are all guilty of becoming complacent with where you live, getting used to the beauty that first drew you to live there in the first place. I know that I haven’t explored as much of Cornwall as I should have over the past few months. So we have decided every month from now to do a little staycation within Cornwall and visit a town or village that we have never been to before. Cornwall is not short of destinations to wow you!
So for our first trip, I picked Penzance, we have been to St Ives many times but for some reason, we have never popped over to Penzance. I had been scoping out the lovely Artist Residence and had wanted to stay here for so long. It is such a lovely boutique hotel chain. They have properties in London, Brighton, Oxford and Penzance. The decor and aesthetic are right up my street and I managed to get a cracking deal & get a night stay for only £80.
This small boutique hotel has only 22 room and a cosy 3-bed cottage, all set in a stunning Georgian house. I wanted to move in and never EVER leave. Downstairs is a bar and smoke house restaurant, every day they have a happy hour in the bar – half-price cocktails which we took full advantage of.
The hotel is on a beautiful street which leads down to the sea and the famous Penzance Lido (if you’re brave enough to take a dip). It is very central and a great base to explore Penzance and the nearby towns too.
On our first day, we ate at possibly the friendliest and most delicious pizzeria in the town centre, called Totti. They had a few Vegan options, and we couldn’t resist a sourdough garlic bread & a pizza (give me all the carbs). They’re a plastic-free restaurant and all of their soft drinks are sweetener free. I’m so pleased we fuelled up on pizza before we attempted the coastal walk from Penzance to Mousehole!
We landed beyond lucky with the weather, cloudless skies and pavement splitting sunshine. So we took that as a good omen to walk part of the Cornish coastal path, this is such a popular thing to do and if you can time it out of season as we did you don’t come across too many people. It is so peaceful and the views, out over the sea are just stunning. We walked down the front of Penzance and through Newlyn to Mousehole. Where we explored all the tiny, winding streets and imagined a life living in such a pretty harbour village. We petted many cute dogs and found a great café right on the harbour to have a well-earned cuppa and slice of cake.
Mousehole is full of pretty galleries, gift shops and restaurants. It might be small, but it is utterly charming, and it is a place that forces you to slow down and take your time. Just take in the views and sit on the harbour watching the world go by.
We walked back to Penzance after a couple of hours just as the sun was setting over the Jubilee Pool and the light was beautiful. If it hadn’t of been February, I would have bought an Ice-Cream!
Penzance is home to St Michale’s Mount, and it’s a great place to use as a base to explore West Cornwall It is only 10 miles from Land’s End, the famous Minnac Theatre and of course it is close to St Ives which is one of my favourite places in Cornwall.
Our room at the Artist Residence was so cosy and beautifully decorated. Lots of reclaimed wood, a cast iron roll top bath in the bedroom and the comfiest queen size bed. It is one of those hotels where you would buy all the fixtures and fittings in a heartbeat. The toiletries were Bramley and very luxurious. They provided everything you needed, shampoo, conditioner, body wash & lotion, bath soak, hand wash and lotion. I felt utterly pampered.
It was so nice to get away, even if only 30 miles from home & for one night. We relaxed, explored and ate so much good food. Looking forward to next month’s staycation, it is a good one!
There was no shortage of places to eat in Penzance with Vegan options, we ate at Archie Browns, Totti Pizza and a cheeky Cornish Pasty (you have to have at least 1 pasty!).
