Cornwall is a hugely popular touring destination, and if you can venture off-piste, this beautiful region has even more charm, says Claudia Dowell
We were at Tehidy Holiday Park, the base for our stay in Cornwall, when co-owner Richard Barnes explained the secret of the region’s enduring appeal: “It’s all about the light. It’s a very blue light reflected off the sea and the beach. The countryside and the light draw in the artists and what appeals to them, appeals to the people.”
It had certainly appealed to me. Temperatures there seemed to be averaging 5-10 degrees cooler than the hot summer the capital was experiencing at the time of our visit, and any thoughts of getting away from it all by air had been thwarted by reports of cancelled flights to an even hotter mainland Europe.
The sensible thing to do, I reasoned to myself, was to head south-west in a motorhome and bask in the cooling effects of a place surrounded by sea. A call to our regular Top 100 Sites finalist secured a pitch and we were soon driving unhindered along the A303 – where was the traffic? – past Stonehenge, and pausing at a café and farm shop in Devon.
It was roughly halfway, and an ideal opportunity for my long-time friend and neighbour Diana and me to refuel and stretch our legs. A welcome cup of coffee later and we were motoring on, reaching Tehidy feeling relaxed. It had been an easy trip, perhaps because we were travelling midweek.
Tehidy is terraced and reminded me of a site I once stayed at in Champagne. I was towing a caravan then, and it was my first attempt at pitching up. I failed dismally, but I did learn the German for right (rechts) and left (links), as a kind German neighbour did his best to help me get onto the pitch. This time, it was far easier!
Close, but not too close Tehidy Holiday Park is set back from Cornwall’s north coast in a wooded valley, just three miles from Portreath beach and four from Porthtowan.
Both offer surfboard hire, so you can dip into coastal activities if you want to, but you don’t have to be among the hurly-burly, and there was a lot of the hurly-burly if you’d rather not. Both beaches have parking and are great for days out.
When we arrived at Tehidy, we were given a map of the area, which highlighted Porthtowan beach as a hangout for surfers (maybe not for us) and having a great bar/restaurant (definitely for us). Richard was full of information about the local area and the campsite.
