Cornwall is a county of contradictions. There’s myth and mystery, misty clifftops and sharp, rugged rocks rising out of restless waves, as well as peaceful coves, sleepy towns and vitamin D-soaked beaches packed out with surfers. Go in search of King Arthur at Tintagel’s romantic, clifftop ruin (which is reopening in August with a brand new bridge), before travelling along the coast to Boscastle and the Museum of Witchcraft and Magic – it’s the world’s oldest and largest collection of items relating to magic, home to creepy mirrors, mummified cats, lucky charms and spell-casting stones.
Watch a play with the Atlantic as the backdrop at the Minack Theatre, see great works of art at Tate St Ives and have a freshly cooked feast under the stars at The Hidden Hut. Then wander the causeway out to St Michael’s Mount at low tide, lose yourself in The Lost Gardens of Heligan and explore Cornwall’s answer to Kew Gardens: the Eden Project, with its enormous indoor forests. This otherworldly part of the country makes a compelling case to stay in the UK this year.
