by Ros Belford, Gill Charlton, Lesley Gillilan and Fiona Duncan, The Daily Telegraph, February 9, 2017
An insider's guide to the top luxury hotels in Cornwall, including the best for sea views, relaxing spas, contemporary design, nautical themes and renowned restaurants, in locations near Padstow, Saint Mawes, Newquay and Portscatho.
Seafood Restaurant Padstow, Cornwall, England
7 Telegraph expert rating
It all started in the 1970s when Rick and Jill Stein opened their Seafood Restaurant. They may be divorced, but they continue to look after their octopus-like empire together. Seafood Restaurant is a luxury hotel attached to Rick Stein's famous restaurant in Padstow with rooms that, more often than not, are booked pilgrims who have come specifically for the food. The rooms above the restaurant are lovely, with oak floors, American shutters and views across the Camel Estuary. Haute cuisine is not the point. “We never thought of our restaurants as temples of gastronomy”, say the Steins. “They’re just places where the fish is fresh and exhilarating and the atmosphere is alive and full of fun”. Read expert review. From £154per night.
• The best family-friendly hotels in Cornwall
The Scarlet Newquay, Cornwall, England
9 Telegraph expert rating
Glorious sea and sunset views make this the ideal hotel for honeymooners, while a child-free policy will be attractive to any other couples looking for a bit of peace and quiet. The building is an imaginative, modern design incorporating tall glass walls that blur the boundary between indoors and out. The womb-like spa specialises in Ayurvedic ‘journeys’, with tented treatment rooms and pods suspended in the dark for ‘deep relaxation’ and an all-glass sea facing roof for ‘light relaxation’. The reed-fringed, rock-strewn outdoor pool extends from the indoor one, punctuated by two bright scarlet wood-fired hot tubs perched between boulders overlooking the sea. Read expert review. From £210 per night. Check availability. Rates provided by Booking.com.
The Rosevine Portscatho, Cornwall, England
9 Telegraph expert rating
The Rosevine is a family-friendly Cornish country house by the sea fusing the comforts of a luxury hotel with the independence of having your own studio or apartment. It lies at the end of a narrow Cornish lane leading to National Trust-owned Porthcurnick beach with funky beach café The Hidden Hut, on the gorgeous Roseland Peninsula. Expect understated boutique country house décor featuring soft heritage greys, huge comfy sofas, a wood-burning fire (in the lounge) and a felicitous mix of Lloyd Loom, antique and pastel chalk-painted upcycled furniture. For adults, there are well-stocked book shelves and plenty of quiet places to sit and read. Read expert review. From £175per night. Check availability. Rates provided by Booking.com.
• Cornwall's best seaside hotels
The Old Quay House Fowey, Cornwall, England
8 Telegraph expert rating
This converted Victorian seamen’s mission, located in one of Cornwall’s liveliest harbour towns. There is a subtle nautical theme (occasional shipping lamps, maritime pictures in driftwood frames) but overall the décor is light and contemporary, using soft greys, sea blues, pale-wood or painted furniture and monochrome rugs, throws and fabrics. Two dual-aspect Deluxe rooms hog the best of the estuary views (enjoyed from super king-sized beds); four Superiors can see some of the river from tiny, angled balconies on either the side of the building. Head for the Q restaurant and terrace for drinks, a casual lunch or an elaborate afternoon tea. Read expert review. From £119 per night. Check availability. Rates provided by Booking.com.
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The Idle Rocks Saint Mawes, Cornwall, England
9 Telegraph expert rating
Staying at this stylish, laid-back waterfront inn in chic St Mawes is guaranteed to make you feel like a very cool model in a World of Interiors shoot. Interior design is by owner Karen Richards and exudes the joy of the committed collector: there are citrus fruits piled high in antique wooden fish boxes; offbeat, almost child-liked, paintings by artist David Pearce; French laundry baskets, driftwood sculptures, tropical corals, African jewellery and collections of vintage bathing suits, soda siphons and coffee pots. Rooms exude joie di vivre — tangerine velvet cushions and vintage burnt-orange shoe trees pick up the gaudy beach towels in a David Pearce painting. Read expert review. From £150 per night. Check availability. Rates provided by Booking.com.
Hotel Tresanton Saint Mawes, Cornwall, England
9 Telegraph expert rating
Imagine a Cornish country house owned by an Italian Contessa, immersed in sub-tropical gardens that suggest she spends her holidays in Bali. When it opened in 1998, England had seen nothing like this sophisticated, insouciant seaside hotel. Its unique style is signalled from the moment you walk in. First of all there’s the terracotta Madonna and Child embedded in the wall above the door; then there’s the luxuriant sub-tropical vegetation, and the dizzying scent of exotic flowers; then the sea views from the tiled tables set out on the terrace… and the overwhelming desire to simply sit down and drink it all in, with or without one of the bar’s legendary cocktails. Read expert review. From £243 per night. Check availability. Rates provided by Mr & Mrs Smith.
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Driftwood Portscatho, Cornwall, England
8 Telegraph expert rating
Sitting on a hill above the rugged coastline of the Roseland peninsula, Driftwood boasts wonderful coastal path walks for miles in each direction. The style is relaxed and informal. Think clapboard beach house interior: soft creams and blues, wainscoting, driftwood lamps. Rooms are bright and light with very comfortable beds. Several larger rooms have French doors to sunny private terraces. The hotel is run by husband-and-wife team Paul and Fiona Robinson and their efficient, friendly staff. Michelin-starred chef Chris Eden, a local, offers Cornish cooking at its finest: unfussy and focused on bringing out the flavour of fresh fish and seafood and locally reared beef and lamb. Read expert review. From £250 per night. Check availability. Rates provided by Booking.com.
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The Nare Cornwall, England
8 Telegraph expert rating
The Nare boasts a sunny, south-facing position beside the lovely Carne Beach on the Roseland peninsula. The exterior is a jumble of building styles; the interior a succession of handsome dining rooms and lounges furnished with wing chairs, plump sofas and low tables for drinks or a game of cards. As a counterpoint to all this tradition, the walls are lined with some exceptionally fine modern paintings. Spacious doubles, and suites as large as London apartments are designed to appeal to a mature clientele: super king-sized beds which can be twins, armchairs big enough to curl up in, mahogany dressing tables, Persian rugs. Read expert review. From £284 per night.
• Britain's best seaside hotels
St Edmunds House Padstow, Cornwall, England
9 Telegraph expert rating
Finding peace in Padstow during the summer is not easy – but the peace and quiet at St Edmunds remains unruffled even in the middle of August. Given that there are no public spaces, the tranquillity is tangible from the moment you step through the door, and walk along the little corridor (with stripey flatweave rug by Linum) or upstairs to your room. Designed by Jill Stein, these are the most luxurious of the rooms, with oak floors, French windows, plantation-house shutters and bespoke oak furniture – including exquisitely minimalist four-poster beds. They're a couple of minutes’ walk from all the Rick Stein restaurants, Read expert review. From £217 per night.
St Enodoc Hotel Rock, Cornwall, England
8 Telegraph expert rating
St Enodoc makes a good choice for extended family seaside holidays, where grandparents feel as comfortable as children. The hotel, built in 1924 as a private house, is plain, but it enjoys an elevated position overlooking the Camel Estuary, a short walk from both the beach and the St Enodoc golf course. In the rooms, fabrics are fresh and attractive and front bedrooms have splendid views. St Enodoc is one of those seaside hotels that gets the balance right, and children here are as happy as their parents are comfortable. It’s not a child-centric hotel as such, but offers the services of George Stoy, a private surf instructor, and is allied to Camel Ski School, which offers canoeing, paddle- and wake-boarding as well as water-skiing. Read expert review. From £170 per night. Check availability. Rates provided by Booking.com.
This article was written by Ros Belford, Gill Charlton, Lesley Gillilan and Fiona Duncan from The Daily Telegraph and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network.