Penzance England
United Kingdom
Frequently Asked Questions
Larger ships anchor in Mount's Bay and tender passengers ashore; smaller vessels sometimes tie up alongside the south pier. Either way, you step ashore right in the middle of local life.
Market Jew Street and Chapel Street on foot, the Jubilee Pool on the seafront, then the walk to Newlyn, half an hour along the water. St Michael's Mount, out in the bay, is the other main choice of the day.
Because of the Gulf Stream, which softens the tip of Cornwall. The gardens here are lush and the vegetation surprises visitors expecting a classic English climate. Mount's Bay enjoys the same microclimate.
An 1835 shopfront with multicoloured columns inspired by the temples of the Nile, on Chapel Street, built when Egypt fascinated Europe. It is an unexpected apparition among the Georgian facades and one of the town's most photographed curiosities.
A triangular seawater lido opened in 1935, set on the rocks of the seafront: a fine example of Art Deco design. On a clear day its white and blue lines stand out against the bay.
One of the busiest fishing ports in the country, half an hour's walk along the water. The painters of the Newlyn School immortalised its boats and fish markets, and Penlee House gallery, halfway there in a park, holds several of their canvases.
A Cornish pasty, which scents the bakeries of Market Jew Street from early morning. The bookshops and independent stores along the main street round out the walk.
The Scilly ferry leaves from here, a sign that open water begins close by. On a call of a few hours, though, it is out of reach: the crossing and return do not fit into a port day.
Yes. The centre is compact, the seafront promenade is flat and the Jubilee Pool is a hit. The walk to Newlyn is easy with school-age children, along the water and away from traffic.
Pound sterling and English. Cornish is a historic language of the region, visible on a few signs, but it is not spoken day to day. Cards are accepted everywhere.
