10 of the best B&Bs in Cornwall

The location might be profoundly rural (though if you have a car, it is very convenient for the Lost Gardens of Heligan and the Eden Project), but there’s nothing rustic about the styling at this boutique B&B. The four big guest rooms are decorated in bold, vibrant colours, and guests are lavished with soft white dressing gowns, high-end linens, Sanctuary toiletries, chocolates on the pillow and flatscreen TVs, with a selection of DVDs – there’s even a hot tub bubbling away in the garden. Inevitably, Lower Barnisn’tthe cheapestB&Bonthemarket, but you’d struggle to find a hotel offering these sorts of extras in this price range. Dinner (pre-book and BYO) is served in the Shack, a fairy light-lit hideout in the garden. The Hideaway and the Garden Suite are the most private of the rooms; the former is particularly popular with honeymooners, being tucked away down the garden with a super-king-size bed and a freestanding bath.

With the word ‘boutique’ now in such free currency, the impact has been lost in a sea of fancy fonts and scented candles. But at the Westcroft, an unpretentiously hip B&B housed in a waterfront Georgian coaching inn, the concept is passionately embraced. Warm hosts Sarah and Dylan McLees-Taylor seem to have an innate sense of what their guests might want and when: if you’re travelling with a small child, a cot, blankets, and a pile of toys appear as if by magic. Nor are there any time limits on breakfast; they will even leave a pot of tea and fresh croissants on the step as a first course before you surface. Of the three rooms, the top-floor Clocktower Suite is the most romantic, with a clawfoot bath for two, views of the stars from the antique bed and the sound of the waves hitting the shore. But the treats sprinkled throughout set Westcroft apart: fishing nets for children, pillowcases sprinkled with lavender water and homemade cake. What’s more, one of Britain’s most exquisite peninsulas lies just outside the door.

Interior designer Karen Cardew and ceramicist husband Paul spent two years rejuvenating this magnificent 18th-century listed farmhouse on the Rame Peninsula, just shy of Rame Head itself. The two self-catering apartments (within the house) are immaculately clean and comfortable, but the two B&B rooms really catch the eye. Spacious, stylish and with glamorous touches (mirrored bedside tables, elegant heavy curtains and even a silver toilet lid), they are the ultimate style-conscious country retreat. Breakfast is served in the deep-red dining room. Budding potters can try their hand in Paul’s studio next door or just take a tour of his collection of eccentric teapots – as well as the NatWest pigs, which he designed some 25 years ago.

Occupying a grand Edwardian house, Treverbyn is an elegant B&B with coveted views over the estuary. For a romantic weekend, hideout in the stylish decadence of the Turret Room, or choose a room with a cosy open fire for a winter retreat. Traditional furnishings complement period features, but the rooms are bright, airy and comfortable. 

Squeezed into a little mews in Penzance, this blue-painted boutique B&B is just a few paces from the promenade. The rooms are invitingly fresh and stylish (and 100% chintz-free). Breakfast can be consumed in the pretty patio garden, complete with Cornish palms, and guests can also take advantage of the Summer House’s 12-table ‘dinner club’, serving superb Mediterranean cuisine. Book ahead as there are only five rooms. 

Technically we must call this a B&B, although its three exquisite rooms – Pink, Blue and Apricot – feel more like a luxurious country hotel, with the bonus of being within walking distance of the lovely Victoria Inn(see left). The rooms are romantically furnished with sumptuous antiques and fabrics (toile de Jouy, vintage Liberty), roll-top baths, fluffy towels, DVD players and private terraces. Best of all, you are free to roam the impeccably landscaped gardens, which afford changing coastal panoramas and are dotted with hidden seats and benches. Note that check-in isn’t until 4 pm.

Penzance tends to come up short on chic accommodation, but this immaculate B&B is helping turn the tide. Located on a leafy street in a spacious granite-fronted period property, Venton Vean has been stylishly renovated by its friendly owners with design accents, a sprinkling of modern art, chic bathrooms and an extraordinary breakfast menu that includes Mexican and Spanish options, home-made muffins and jam, and the full range of fried and toasted British and Continental fare. A rare luxury option in this price range and an ideal base for exploring west Cornwall.

It’s not often that B&Bs bag the big views – but this handsome white house, on the edge of the cliff near Porthleven, is a notable exception. The setting is in a league of its own, with far-reaching views along the coast in both directions; the remains of mine stacks can be seen on the cliffs. There are three chintz-free rooms to choose from at mid-range prices.

This waterfront establishment in the centre of town has nine simple but attractively decorated rooms for B&B (or dinner, bed and breakfast), along with four rooms in the newly converted fisherman's cottage out back. The sea-view brasserie and bar downstairs are popular, so be warned that this may not be the most serene retreat in the summer months.

Orchard Lodge is a bright light in Boscastle, offering five scrupulously well-kept and contemporary B&B rooms – think fresh cream carpets, sparkling white bathrooms and thick towels. A member of CoaST (Cornwall Sustainable Tourism Project), the Orchard Lodge shows a remarkable commitment to local sourcing at breakfast: the milk is from nearby Delabole, the apple juice from Liskeard, the smoked fish from Widemouth Bay and, most impressively, the sausages are made from their own pigs, kept on an organic farm down the road. Discounts are offered to those arriving on foot, by bike or public transport.