Visit castles, country houses and beautiful gardens

Bude Castle

The Castle, The Wharf, Bude, EX23 8LG
http://www.bude-stratton.gov.uk/site/1/The_Castle_Heritage_Centre.html
Cornwalls smallest Castle! Formally the home of the Victorian inventor Sir Goldsworthy Gurney, the Castle is now a heritage centre with exhibition galleries, an archive with research facilities, an education room, shop and restaurant with breathtaking views over Chapel Rock and Summerlease Beach. Following the exhibitions, you can find out about Sir Goldsworthy Gurney - Cornwall's Forgotten Genius - and his many inventions. As well as this pioneering building, which he constructed on sand, he invented the world's first mechanised vehicle to travel over distance at sustained speed. He also discovered limelight, used in theatres and music halls and developed Bude Light which lit Trafalger Square and the Houses of Parliament. You can also discover about the history, flora, fauna and port development of Bude and its surroundings and measure yourself against the Cornish Giant, Anthony Payne.

Tintagel Castle

Tintagel Castle, Tintagel, PL34 0HE
http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/tintagel-castle/
Tintagel Castle, said to be the birthplace of King Arthur, is steeped in legend and mystery. With a history stretching as far back as the Romans, Tintagel Castle is one of the most iconic visitor attractions in the South-West. For visitors and locals alike, the walk from St Materiana's Church at Tintagel along the Coastal Footpath to the Castle is a beautiful and breathtaking experience. Originally the Castle was attached to the main land, but the Castle was split in two by the force of the sea and you now have to traverse some steep steps to arrive at the Castle gateway. It is a hard climb to the top but well worth it. There is a special path suitable for walkers and wheelchairs alike that takes you to near the Inner Walls of the Castle.

Launceston Castle

Launceston, PL15 7DR
http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/launceston-castle/
Once a great stronghold commanding the entry to Cornwall, Launceston Castle offers visitors 1000 years of history. Set on a large natural mound, Launceston Castle dominates the surrounding landscape. Begun soon after the Norman Conquest, its focus is an unusual keep consisting of a 13th century round tower built by Richard, Earl of Cornwall, inside an earlier circular shell-keep. The tower top is now reached via a dark internal staircase. The castle long remained a prison and George Fox, founder of the Quakers, suffered harsh confinement here in 1656. A display traces 1,000 years of history, with finds from site excavations.

Long Cross Victorian Gardens

The Longcross Gardens, Trelights, Port Isaac, Cornwall, PL29 3TF
The Long Cross Victorian Gardens are the only public gardens on the North Cornish coast and the subject of a television feature because of their unusual aspects. The gardens still remain in the original Victorian garden layout and they retain their original splendour. Visitors often say that they have never seen a garden resembling the Long Cross and this is mainly because the gardens were constructed primarily to overcome the difficulties of the local climate. North Cornwall is England's windiest area with strong winds laden with salt even in the summer, this results in the garden receiving one hundredweight of salt per acre per year. Plants are available to buy at the gardens.

Prideaux Place House and Gardens

Prideaux Place, Padstow, Cornwall, PL28 8RP
www.prideauxplace.co.uk
This stunningly beautiful Elizabethan manor house overlooks the picturesque fishing harbour of Padstow in North Cornwall. When Peter and Elisabeth Prideauz-Brune arrived in 1988, a huge challenge lay before them, but today you can see the fruits of this labour of love and be enchanted by Prideaux Place and the stories surrounding it. It is one of Cornwall’s most impressive family homes with its origin and history firmly rooted in Elizabethan grandeur, Georgian style and Victorian enterprise. Chart the progress of Prideaux Place through the years, examine the artefacts and heirlooms on display and marvel at the beauty of this impressive Cornish manor house. Still owned by the family that built it in 1588, the house and gardens give an absorbing insight into the last 400 years.

Northwood Water Gardens

Northwood Farm, St Neot, Liskeard, Cornwall, PL14 6QN
http://www.northwoodgardens.co.uk/
Northwood Farm was originally built in the1700’s as a china clay drier in an area now designated for its outstanding natural beauty. The gardens are informally laid out with a series of pathways and lawns which meander around 8 spring fed ponds, some stocked with Carp (Otters permitting) and waterlilies. There are gentle waterfalls, fountains, ducks and scuttling moorhens. Granite boulders are placed randomly as sculptural features, (inspired by nearby Bronze Age settlements). You will discover giant Gunnera, Tree Ferns, a Bog garden, huge Rhododendrons, Camellias, Phormiums, Cordylynes, Acers, Pieris and swathes of blousy Hydrangeas in shades of cobalt blue to purple. Old English roses entwine themselves around native Willows to dizzy heights of over 10 metres.

Pencarrow House and Gardens

Pencarrow, Bodmin, Cornwall, PL30 3AG
www.pencarrow.co.uk
Pencarrow is still used as a family home. For nearly 500 years, Pencarrow has been the much-loved home of the Molesworth-St Aubyns, ever since John Molesworth arrived from Northamptonshire to become the Auditor for the Duchy of Cornwall and Queen Elizabeth I. It is still owned by his descendants and Pencarrow is anything but a museum. Family photos, children’s toys, hats on classical busts and pet dogs Oscar and Sambo bring this Cornish mansion alive and allow you a glimpse of what it’s like to live surrounded by so much history. And please don’t be too surprised at the odd cobweb here or there – after all, this really is a family home.
Pencarrow House, Peacock Cafe and Gift & Plant Shop are open Sundays to Thursday inclusive, 11am-5pm from Sunday 28 March 2010. House by guided tour only - last tour of the house is at 3pm. (House closes 30th September 2010) Adults £8.50 / Children (5-16) £4.00. Group rates available on request. The Gardens are open daily from Sunday 1st March 2010 from 9.30am-5.30pm until 31st October 2010. Adults £4.00 / Children (5-16) £1.00. The popular Peacock Cafe is open from Sunday 28 March 2010 from 11am-5pm. Lunches and teas are freshly prepared using Cornish produce where possible.

Lanhydrock Country House

Lanhydrock, Bodmin, PL30 5AD
http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-lanhydrock
Lanhydrock is an amazing insight into the lives of a wealthy Victorian household. Lanhydrock is the perfect country house and estate, with the feel of a wealthy but unpretentious family home. Follow in the footsteps of generations of the Robartes family, walking in the 17th-century Long Gallery among the rare book collection under the remarkable plasterwork ceiling. After a devastating fire in 1881 the house was refurbished in the high-Victorian style with the latest mod cons. Boasting the best in country-house design and planning, the kitchens, nurseries and servants' quarters offer a thrilling glimpse into life 'below stairs', while the spacious dining room and bedrooms are truly and deeply elegant. It also has an adventure playground and a huge estate to run wild in, don’t miss the opportunity to bring a picnic on a nice day and even fly your kites.

Pinsla Garden and Nursery

Cardinham, Bodmin, PL30 4AY
http://www.pinslagarden.net/
A romanic 1.5 acre artists garden set in tranquill woodland. Naturalist cottage garden planting surrounds the 18th century fairytale cottage. Imaginative design, intense colour and scent, stone circle, statues on display and for sale. At Pinsla Gardens there is something for everyone, it is an idyllic haven, a hideaway place full of secret paths, a cornucopia of rare plants. Step through the hazel arch into the fantasy garden and be immersed in scents, textures and colour. They really do see ourselves as garden artists creating a beautiful and ephemeral piece of Land Art with the natural materials around us.

St Kitts Herbery

Camelford, Cornwall, PL32 9XH
http://www.stkittsherbery.co.uk/
At St Kitts Herbery they use traditional principles of herbal practice to produce a range of modern yet classic herbal products. The fabulous Cornish scenery that surrounds them inspires their business and the fertile environment allows them to cultivate the herbs that provide them with much of the stimulus for the creation of St Kitt's varied range of hand made herbal products. St Kitts Herbery currently produce in excess of 300 herb products, including herbal toiletries, medicinal creams and ointments, herb incense, herb chocolate and an array of unique herb related gifts, all of which are sold in their shop.

The Lost Gardens of Heligan

Pentewan, St.Austell, Cornwall, PL26 6EN
http://www.heligan.com/
Heligan offers over 200 acres for exploration - discover their Victorian productive gardens, romantic pleasure grounds, a lush sub-tropical jungle and a pioneering wildlife project. Their licensed, award-winning tearoom provides a welcoming and relaxed atmosphere for morning coffee, Cornish cream teas and delicious home-cooked lunches.

01840 230 360 or enquire online