We spent the weekend before last in Cornwall, as you know. We hadn’t been there for 20 years, in fact the last time was in August 2003 when the youngest was only days old. Back then I’d booked a lovely cottage in St Ives with space for both sets of grandparents, thinking that it would be a good way of keeping the older two entertained while I was getting used to having three to juggle. You see I was convinced that a third baby would come early and that he or she would be at least two weeks old by then. As it happened he was late… very late… and didn’t arrive until three days before we were due to depart but there was no way I was going to miss that holiday! It seems crazy now that I was so blithe about everything and even though it was a rather uncomfortable five hour car journey, somehow we managed to arrange for midwives from the local hospital to do all of the postnatal care in our holiday cottage. Anyway I digress. Suffice to say that it felt like a lifetime since we’d been to Cornwall so when we were invited to review Penmarlem holiday park and spend a relaxing weekend in Cornwall’s Daphne du Maurier country, I was particularly keen to go. So let me take you there, you’ll even spot moments of sunshine… a rare thing for summer 2023!
A relaxing weekend in Cornwall’s du Maurier country
Friday
We were just moments away from our destination when I saw this sign and of course you know which words came flooding into my mind, “last night I dreamed I went to Manderley again.” It has to be the best opening line of all time (well that and “it was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” but there’s no space for Dickens today). Sadly the house that Daphne du Maurier based Manderley on is privately owned and hidden away so I knew we wouldn’t be able to see it but even so I was excited about walking in her footsteps and absorbing the part of Cornwall that she brings to life so evocatively in her writing
And so we arrived at our home for the weekend. Lovat Holiday Parks had invited us to review their newest launch at Penmarlam so let me tell you a bit about them because they’re different to the other holiday parks that you see popping up all over the place. They launched in 2018 with a deliberate focus on sustainable travel. As they say, “the challenge for all of us in the 21st century is to find ways of living, working and holidaying that take the pressure off our one planet.” And as they’ve slowly rolled out their first destinations they’ve stayed true to their word. They’re the UK’s first Corp B certified holiday park company and they’ve won a number of other awards including three David Bellamy Conservation Awards as well as being listed in the Sunday Times Top 100.
They have parks in Norfolk, Suffolk and The New Forest as well as Cornwall and you can stay in a luxury lodge like we did or, some of the bigger parks have safari tents and shepherd’s huts too. All of the sites have been developed in harmony with their natural surroundings – just look at the banks of wild flowers at Penmarlem which is nestled at the edge of woodland giving you beautiful walks on your doorstep.
The lodges are huge, twice the width of any we’ve stayed in before and luxuriously appointed with details such as wine fridges, dishwashers, butler sinks and Aga style cookers.
Ours even had a utility room with boot and coat storage as well as a washer dryer. It made a great bedroom for Ted at night too because he barks madly if he spots anyone outside.
And how many places like this have a walk-in wardrobe? Both of the bedrooms had plenty of storage and ours had a full sized dressing table too. There were was an en suite as well as a second bathroom which gave us two showers and a bath to wallow in which is always good for an English staycation. We unpacked quickly because we knew the forecast was changing and so we headed out to explore.
Ted needed a walk after being stuck in the car for such a long journey so we took him along the cliffs to Polruan. Just look at that view… and the clouds… well let’s not think about those.
Just a couple of miles from Penmarlam, Polruan is an archetypal Cornish village.
Beach dress (gifted SS23); trainers
There are two pubs and we particularly liked the Lugger Inn. It felt like a simple fisherman’s pub but it also provided food to eat in or takeaway, including freshly cooked meals ready to reheat back at your accommodation…
… which wouldn’t be a bad option if you found yourself sitting in this risky spot at 7pm!
Polruan still has a working shipyard and when we were there they were working on a big fishing ship which was fascinating to watch for a while. There’s also a foot passenger ferry across the river to Fowey; it’s a bit tricky understanding the timetable because it runs until ‘lighting up time’ which made us feel a bit anxious about getting back!
Beach dress (gifted SS23); trainers
However we travelled over and by this point it was time for me to send that week’s blog post live. I’d finished writing it earlier that day thinking it would be easy to publish it at the usual time using my phone as a wi-fi hotspot. Living where I do I should have anticipated the vagaries of a rural signal but I kept lots of people entertained as they watched me hopping about on the harbour trying to find a few bars – I was practically in the water when I finally did.
Beach dress (gifted SS23); trainers
Anyway I guess that the upside for Mal was that by the time we got into Fowey itself the shops were closed!
Beach dress (gifted SS23); trainers
So we headed back to our lodge and changed for the absolutely gorgeous fifteen minute walk along the wooded lanes…
Boden t-shirt and skirt, Me+Em cardigan (SS22), Boden espadrilles (SS20)
…to the Old Ferry Inn in Bodinnick. But before I tell you about that, right opposite is the most beautiful white and blue house called Ferryside which just happens to be where Daphne du Maurier wrote her first novel, The Loving Spirit. It’s still owned by her son, Kits Browning and I couldn’t resist hovering by the gateway for a minute. You get an idea of the stunning view across the river to Fowey which she apparently looked out onto as she wrote.
Boden t-shirt and skirt, Me+Em cardigan (SS22), Boden espadrilles (SS20)
We were looking forward to going to The Old Ferry Inn because it’s one of the Sunday Times Top 100 for 2023. When we went inside to ask if they were still serving food though it seemed very ordinary with a simple menu – burgers, nachos, fish and chips or ham and eggs… nothing wrong with that but not quite what we’d expected. There was an incredible view from our table though…
And the ham and eggs were good.
When we’d finished eating we thought there must be more so we went to explore and found this fantastic little shop to the side selling Cornish produce which included their homemade gins and chilli tequila. They were keen for us to taste it and I wasn’t going to argue, we couldn’t resist taking a bottle home with us.
Boden t-shirt and skirt, Me+Em cardigan (SS22), Boden espadrilles (SS20)
Upstairs there was a cosy lounge with an assortment of board games including Mastermind, a game that was a huge part of my childhood but I’d completely forgotten about it. I don’t think I’ve ever had a more enthusiastic response to my Instagram Stories than when I asked if anyone remembered it! Doesn’t it just take you back to Christmas as a teen? Mal hadn’t played it before(!) so that was us for the rest of the evening, followed by a walk back through the woods which was lovely on a warm summer night.
A relaxing weekend in Cornwall’s du Maurier country
Saturday
The next morning we awoke to the sound of heavy rain. Ted scuttled straight back in after his morning ablutions and so our plans for another country walk were put on hold. Was I sorry? Not really. I’ve been trying to find time to get on with this book for ages and so even though Mal was keen to go in the hot tub, I sat back and relaxed for an hour…
Laura Ashley robe (SS 1989!)
… while he kept Ted happy.
And then we thought we’d get right into the local mood by watching du Maurier’s My Cousin Rachel. That’s the great thing about having your own place isn’t it? It doesn’t matter if it rains, you can just log into your streaming accounts and relax.
By the end of the film I’d run out of excuses and it was time to brave the rain. I was somewhat encouraged by Mal’s suggestion of starting with a glass of fizz in the hot tub…
… and actually it was glorious sitting in the warmth as the rain pounded down around us. I didn’t even get my hair wet!
Boden swimsuit (2014)
After a while we knew we had to do something to make the most of our location so we decided to head off to the Eden Project. Not having been to Cornwall since 2003 it’s a place we haven’t visited and before too long we’ll have Eden North on our own doorstep so we were keen to explore. I’m sure lots of you will know it but for those who don’t, the domes behind us contain a recreation of the natural flora and vegetation of different countries so you can do a round the world trip in a few hours.
Boden raincoat (SS16)
But we hadn’t eaten so our first stop was for a hot Cornish pasty in the cafe.
Boden raincoat (SS16)
Then we immersed ourselves in the natural world and I was surprised to find that my favourite place was Southern Australia with its sculptural plants and flowers, they were unlike anything I’d ever seen before.
Boden raincoat (SS16); Hush jeans (SS17); Trainers
We spent so long there that we had to rush back to get ready for our restaurant booking. It was still hammering down so I’m looking a bit bedraggled here but we’d made a reservation at The Dwelling House. There are lots of great places to eat in Fowey and recommendations were coming in thick and fast on Instagram but this tiny restaurant took my fancy because it has almost exactly the same footprint as the old part of our home. There were only four tables with a few more in the room next door so it was cosy and intimate and the food was delicious…
Boden dress (SS20); Boden espadrilles (SS20)
Mal had a beef rendang and this was my Vietnamese salmon in ginger broth.
We needed to get back to the ferry before ‘lighting up time’ so there was just time for a quick drink at the very traditional pub across the road. Mal’s looking a bit stung here because when he asked the lady behind the bar where the wine was from, she looked at him rather tartly and said “the fridge round the corner.” So I drank what she gave me!
A relaxing weekend in Cornwall’s du Maurier country
Sunday
On Sunday morning it was still raining – we’re never going to forget “summer” 2023 are we? So we had another slow start with breakfast in the lodge…
… and as we drove out to pretty Polperro the sky turned blue and the sun shone. We had a walk around the harbour…
… Ted was in his element.
Breton; Jeans; Trainers – Adidas Yung-1s collector’s edition (specialist resale sites only now)
Mal had developed a taste for pasties by this point…
… but I was determined to save that day’s indulgence for a cream tea. I noticed that a lot of them were a bit messed about with – I have no desire for Nutella or strawberry scones, I just wanted a plain one so a few people told us that The House On The Props was the place to go. Here we were in the old cafe said to have been built from the remains of a shipwreck which felt very Cornish.
And a cream tea for lunch felt like a real holiday treat.
As we were walking back to the car, I spotted some great t-shirts in the window of a pretty little boutique. I popped in with the hope that they’d have them in adult sizes as a little extra for the boys’ birthdays. It was the only shop I went into in Polperro and to my surprise it was owned by long term reader Carole who I’ve chatted to through the comments for a long time. I can’t express the pleasure I feel when something like this happens, particularly when it’s someone who’s shared their story with me for so long. Anyway she has all kinds of lovely things in there so do go in if you’re in Polperro, it’s called Sweet Pea and it’s near the model village, you can’t miss it. And say hello to Carole, here she is, looking far more chic than I did – I’d dressed for a walk in the rain!
Breton; Jeans; Trainers – Adidas Yung-1s collector’s edition (specialist resale sites only now)
So we had a good catch-up and when we went back out into the sunshine it was so hot that we had to get changed for our afternoon walk to Readymoney Cove in Fowey. On the way we passed the place that’s said to have been Kenneth Grahame’s inspiration for Toad Hall. He visited Fowey often and the letters that he sent back to his son contained little stories that became the foundation for Wind In The Willows with the River Fowey being the river bank that inspired him.
Readymoney Cove is a lovely place to spend a Sunday afternoon. We watched children combing the rockpools just as our boys used to and relaxed in the sunshine. It’s about a 25 minute walk from the centre of Fowey but there are loos and a little shop selling ice creams and cups of tea when you get there.
Dress (now in the sale); trainers
And on the way back we couldn’t resist popping into “Toad Hall” (Fowey Hall) for a gin and tonic, it made a very luxurious pitstop.
We passed banks and banks of beautiful flowers. It just shows how much warmer the climate is in Cornwall and there were hydrangeas of every colour in bloom. We weren’t very hungry but we stopped off at Pintxo for a few tapas. There were so many different nationalities eating there that we felt as though we were abroad so we enjoyed the atmosphere for a while before catching the boat home. Then we relaxed in the hot tub under the stars and after another peaceful night’s sleep…
A relaxing weekend in Cornwall’s du Maurier country
Monday
… it was time to pack up and check out. I felt I’d missed out on Fowey’s pretty little independent shops so, reluctant to go home we popped back…
… and had a good look around. The only sad thing about Fowey is the number of key-safes you notice as you wander through the town. House after house is clearly owned as a holiday let and house prices are so high that it must be hard for local families to keep on living there. As so many of you said after my Amsterdam post, a balance needs to be found if communities are going to survive, pretty towns and cities everywhere are in danger of becoming holiday dormitories.
As we were facing a six hour drive we had one last seaside indulgence in the 450 year old Ship Inn. As you can see, by this point I’d submitted to an elasticated waist which was probably a good thing!
Half sleeve t-shirt (now in the sale); Trousers
And so it was time for one last trip across the river and then we had to wave goodbye.
It was good to get away to a completely different part of the UK. We wouldn’t usually think of looking at a holiday park, particularly during the school holidays but this one was a quiet retreat. Lovat are working as hard as they can to provide responsible, sustainable tourism by creating jobs for local people, using local suppliers and stocking local brands in their shop. Penmarlem Holiday Park was a great base for exploring this part of Cornwall, the lodge was incredibly comfortable and if you’d like to stay there or at any other of their parks you can rent one.
And then if you really fall in love there’s the opportunity to buy one too. They’re a higher quality than most holiday homes so they cost a bit more but you can offset that with Lovat’s letting service where they advertise your place, manage all of the bookings and check-in for you and then clean it afterwards. You can find out all about it here. Would I recommend them? From this experience yes, wholeheartedly. If you’re looking for somewhere in a holiday hotspot, it’s far better to invest in a home like this. It’s a way of avoiding contributing to property inflation and taking homes away from local people.
So it’s a huge thank you to Lovat Holiday Parks from us, we’re so glad we’ve returned to Cornwall and we’ll go back for longer next time. This weekend, for the first time in ages we’re at home though. We were supposed to be going camping with the boys and some friends but the weather is so bad that we’ve had to cancel. They’ll all still be coming home though and we’re meeting up with our friends for dinner so we’ll have the best of both worlds – a bit of fun with the joy of returning to our own dry beds. I think my tent camping days might be over now – we’ll see! I hope you have a lovely weekend whatever you’re doing and the sun’s coming back next week… oh yes it is!
Disclosure: ‘A relaxing weekend in Cornwall’s du Maurier country’ was commissioned by Lovat Homes and we stayed there free of charge for the weekend for the purposes of this review. As always though, I wouldn’t recommend them if I didn’t think they were a great company.
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