Where to stay in Penzance.

The promenade runs from the harbour past the Jubilee Pool (the country's largest geothermally-heated saltwater lido) to the open sea. Town-centre stays here put you walking distance from restaurants, the Penlee House gallery, and the harbour for the Scilly ferry. The streets behind the seafront — Chapel Street, Market Jew Street — hold townhouses and Georgian merchant homes converted into holiday lets. Excellent for car-free holidays.

Cornwall's largest working fishing port, immediately south of Penzance — a different feel entirely from a tourist harbour. Self-catering here is genuinely embedded in a working town; you'll wake to the fish market at 04:30 if you're near the quay. The Tolcarne Inn and Mackerel Sky are two of the best restaurants in the county. Walk into Penzance in 20 minutes along the promenade.

Twenty minutes west of Penzance — the last village before Land's End, a single sweeping surf beach, and a granite landscape that feels almost Hebridean. Self-catering here is wilder and more remote; properties are often standalone with sea views to the Longships Lighthouse. Best for travellers wanting solitude and dramatic coast; weak for anyone needing restaurants within walking distance.