Self-Catering Holidays in Cornwall, Cottages and Apartments

Staying in a Cornish holiday cottage is simply the best way to explore Cornwall. You'll have freedom to explore the whole county from coast to coast with a comfortable home to base yourself in. From being the isolated home of Celtic Kings, Seafarers, tin miners and fishermen (many of the latter are still around), Cornwall has re-invented itself to appeal to beach lovers, surfers, artists and families in search of relaxing, sometimes active, self-catering holidays. 

Cornwall's beaches, such as Sennan Cove, Fistral Beach, and Crantock, are regularly listed among the world's best. The Cornish fishing villages of Padstow, Falmouth and Fowey make attractive harbours for yachtsmen. St Ives, now home to the Tate St. Ives, has a wonderful collection of the many artists who found their spiritual home here. 

Being surrounded by the Atlantic on both sides, taking to the water in Cornwall is very easy. Most beaches will be overlooked by desirable holiday cottages within easy reach of lovely stretches of sand, swimming and surfing opportunities. There are also plenty of opportunities to hire boats. Chunter around the coastline by small self-hire boat from many small fishing villages such as Mevagissey, Mousehole or Looe, or take the passenger ferry from the Cathedral city of Truro down to the sea past the yachting haven of Mylor to Falmouth. Take another ferry across the estuary from Falmouth to St Mawes. Still looking for a coastal holiday, but want to see what the whole of the UK offers? Head here to see our selection of UK holiday homes by the sea on My Favourite Holiday Cottages.

A patio table laid for tea in a Fowey holiday cottage with views to the waterside.
  • Sleeps 6
  • Bedrooms 3

Place View is a beautiful, luxuriously furnished seaside holiday cottage in Fowey. It boasts modern amenities, an open fire, and a stunning terrace offering panoramic views of the estuary. The charming cottage sits atop a hill in the heart of this quaint Cornish village with its narrow, winding streets and abundance of restaurants, cafes and fascinating independent shops.

  • Active Holidays
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Luxury Holiday Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Walking Holidays
Exterior of a single-storey, vine-dlad, one bedroom holiday bungalow near Bude overlooked by mature trees.
  • Sleeps 2
  • Bedrooms 1

Primrose End is a romantic cottage for couples in North Cornwall. It sits upon a smallholding with livestock in the North Cornwall hamlet of Broad Langdon near the village of Jacobstow. This romantic cottage features open-plan living space, a contemporary kitchen, a wood-burning stove, a rear lawned garden and a cosy double bedroom.

  • Active Holidays
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Cycling Holidays
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Farm Cottages
  • Romantic Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Small Cottages
  • Walking Holidays
Double-fronted stone exterior of a Cornish cottage with bay windows and a terrace for outdoor dining.
  • Sleeps 12
  • Bedrooms 6

Rosevean House is a magnificent coastal cottage in the UNESCO World Heritage village of St Agnes. This pet-friendly cottage is only a short distance away from the beautiful Cornish coast and boasts a luxurious and stylish interior. In addition to this, it features spacious grounds complete with multiple areas for entertaining, as well as a games room, cinema room, and a cosy log fire.

  • Active Holidays
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Cottages With Games Rooms
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Cycling Holidays
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Fishing Holidays
  • Large Holiday Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Walking Holidays
A lighthouse complex offers clifftop views along the North Cornwall coast.
  • Sleeps 8
  • Bedrooms 5

For a genuinely quirky holiday home with stunning ocean views, stay at Lizard Lighthouse on the Southernmost tip of mainland Britain. This large Cornwall holiday cottage near Helston stands in a remote cliff-top location with spectacular coastal walks.

  • Active Holidays
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Large Holiday Cottages
  • Quirky Cottages
  • Romantic Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Walking Holidays
  • Waterside Cottages
  • Sleeps 2
  • Bedrooms 1

Sail Boats is a lovely beachfront holiday bungalow within walking distance of Marazion's sandy beach in far West Cornwall. The Cornish holiday cottage can sleep two people in one bedroom within sight and sound of the sea.

  • Active Holidays
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Cycling Holidays
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Romantic Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Small Cottages
  • Walking Holidays
  • Waterside Cottages
A clifftop lighthouse and cottages with spectacular ocean views.
  • Sleeps 6
  • Bedrooms 3

Bishop Rock is a former Cornish lighthouse keeper’s cottage located within the Lizard Lighthouse grounds, boasting panoramic ocean views from its clifftop location. The unique, much modernised, comfortable self-catering cottage near Helston provides direct access to this beautiful stretch of the Cornish coast.

  • Active Holidays
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Quirky Cottages
  • Remote Cottages
  • Waterside Cottages
An extended holiday bungalow backed by mature trees with a spacious patio equipped for outdoor dining.
  • Sleeps 2
  • Bedrooms 1

Spring Water Barn is a luxurious romantic cottage set on 20 acres of beautiful grounds on the Bonython Estate. Set near Helston in Cornwall, the sophisticated cottage offers stunning gardens and private outdoor spaces, as well as contemporary style, a wood-burning stove, exposed beams and serenity.

  • Active Holidays
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Farm Cottages
  • Fishing Holidays
  • Luxury Holiday Cottages
  • Romantic Cottages
  • Small Cottages
  • Walking Holidays
L-Shaped bungalow with large potted palms and mature shrubs on its terrace.
  • Sleeps 4
  • Bedrooms 2

St. Corantyn Cottage lies on the gorgeous Bonython Estate and enjoys the seclusion of 20 acres of beautiful grounds near Helston in Cornwall. The light-filled, elegant country cottage near Helston offers an open fire and multiple outdoor relaxation spaces, as well as gorgeous rural views.

  • Active Holidays
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Cycling Holidays
  • Farm Cottages
  • Small Cottages
  • Walking Holidays
  • Sleeps 6
  • Bedrooms 3

Sunset View is an award-winning Cornish coastal cottage in Newquay boasting ocean views. The sophisticated pet-friendly cottage near Porth beach enjoys authentic coastal chic and an elevated position. It offers a hot tub, an open fire, outdoor entertaining spaces, an upside-down design and close to the beach.

  • Active Holidays
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Cottages with Hot Tubs
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Walking Holidays
A single storey Tintagel Garden Apartment overlooks a large rockery.
  • Sleeps 2
  • Bedrooms 1

The Garden Apartment is a small, romantic cottage for couples with sea views on the spectacular North Cornwall coast between Tintagel and Bossiney Cove. Features a wood burner, TV, double bedroom, and fitted kitchen—close to great beaches and stunning seaside scenery. Pets welcome.

  • Coastal Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Farm Cottages
  • Romantic Cottages
  • Small Cottages
Ground-floor frontage of a stone-built holiday cottage in Mousehole.
  • Sleeps 2
  • Bedrooms 1

Romance is assured at The Langley Tarne, a pet-friendly, one-bedroom holiday cottage Mousehole that boasts many traditional features as well as an open fire, modern comforts, and contemporary style a 2-minute stroll from the gorgeous harbour and the beautiful coastline of Cornwall.

  • Active Holidays
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Luxury Holiday Cottages
  • Romantic Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Small Cottages
  • Walking Holidays
A Cornish wooden barn conversion overlooks a shrub-lined courtyard
  • Sleeps 8
  • Bedrooms 5

Where better to enjoy uninterrupted views of the picturesque 14th Century Cornish fishing village of Mevagissey than from the balconies at The Pink House, a large holiday cottage perched above the village offering breath-taking harbour and sea views.

  • Active Holidays
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Fishing Holidays
  • Short Breaks
  • Walking Holidays
  • Sleeps 2
  • Bedrooms 1

The Retreat is featured in the Daphne Du Maurier novel The King’s General. Couples can write their own holiday narrative at this romantic cottage with a cute patio in St Keyne near Liskeard, Cornwall. The pet-friendly, 1-bedroom rural cottage features inviting, modern décor blended with rustic charm.

  • Accessible By Train
  • Active Holidays
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Romantic Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Small Cottages
  • Walking Holidays
A long, 2-storey stone house overlooks a sloping lawn with a picnic table.
  • Sleeps 7
  • Bedrooms 3

Based in the small North Cornwall coastal village of Bossiney, The Round House is a semi-detached dog-friendly holiday cottage overlooking the beautiful land of North Cornwall. Close to Tintagel, The Round House is in a prime location for enjoying the sandy Cornish beaches for a fun family getaway.

  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Countryside Cottages
  • Dog-Friendly Holiday Cottages
  • Farm Cottages
  • Short Breaks
  • Walking Holidays
A terrace of contemporary Cornish seaside cottages bathed in sunshine.
  • Sleeps 4
  • Bedrooms 2

The Sand Dunes in the seaside village of Crantock, Cornwall, offers the perfect holiday escape along the South West coast, a child-friendly coastal cottage featuring downstairs under-floor heating, an enclosed garden with a patio, and two bedrooms that comfortably sleep four guests.

  • Active Holidays
  • Child-Friendly Cottages
  • Coastal Cottages
  • Cycling Holidays
  • Small Cottages
  • Walking Holidays

Why Stay in a Holiday Cottage in Cornwall?

  • Cornwall is blessed with some of the most beautiful coastal scenery. It has it all from family friendly sandy beaches, rocky and dramatic coastlines. There are beaches suitable for swimming, kayaking, surfing and paddleboarding or just kick back and relax on golden beaches! Photographers, water-lovers, artists and hikers will be in their element here.
  • Inland, the countryside ranges from steep wooded valleys and deep green lanes to the rugged Bodmin Moor's wide spaces.
  • Quaint fishing villages each with their own charm are worth finding. There are plenty of small villages and towns with eateries serving locally caught fish. Savouring fish and chips is a must! Make sure to find small cafes and bakeries to try locally made pasties and scones.
  • Visitors to Cornwall in search of a holiday cottage are spoiled for choice. Every resort, town and village will have a selection of cottages, barn conversions and seaside apartments in old dockside buildings.
  • Tin and copper mining was prevalent in Cornwall's history making Cornwall's landscape interesting to explore. Discover mine buildings and machinery at Geevor Tin Mine.
  • Cornwall is a hot spot for surfing due to the relentless Atlantic swells. Head to popular spots such as Sennen, Perranporth, Bude or Newquay.

 

Where Can You Explore From Your Holiday Cottage in Cornwall?

  • For history lovers, Cornwall is happily over-endowed with stately homes open to the public. Trerice near Newquay, a fine National Trust-managed Elizabethan Manor, Lanhydrock House near Bodmin, and Mount Edgcumbe (home of the National Camelia Collection) at Torpoint are just three examples of Cornwall's historic houses open to the public.
  • For families there are superb theme parks such as Flambards near Helston, Crealy Adventure Park, and the magnificent Eden Project. built in an old china clay pit near St. Austell.
  • Boscastle, The Witchcraft Museum houses the world's most extensive collection of witch-related artefacts.
  • Hikers, climbers and boulders can head Bodmin Moor.
  • For food lovers, Padstow - made famous by Rick Stein - will have many cafes, bistros and restaurants to keep hungry folk satisfied.
  • Art lovers will appreciate the many galleries and art related workshops on offer in St Ives.
  • The South coast of Cornwall has fishing villages and picturesque spots such as Kynance Cove and St. Michael's Mount.
  • Those who love theatre will enjoy Cornwall's Minack Theatre overlooking the ocean.