Is it worth a visit to Port Issac in Cornwall?

I will just comment on Port Isaac. I've been there several times on various multi-day tours (Rick Steves and Road Scholar). I would not stay in town as it was crowded and touristy but since we were on the move, can't give you options. I will say it was very cool to walk in to town from the bus parking lot and see the iconic scenes. You won't need much more than 1-1.5 hours to park, walk in to town, see the house used for the surgery, get a sweet at the shop used for Mrs Tishell's pharmacy, peek at the school and see the harbor.

According to a recent vlog from a Cornish couple, now that the programme has finished the tourists have moved on to other things and the village has caught quite a chill from the sudden lack of tourists.
As for somewhere to stay I would suggest Wadebridge or Bude.

To me it feels like quite a way to come just for that, but it's not for me to dissuade you.

You don't say how long you have but if you stayed in Bude use that as a base for North Devon maybe.

You could do the boat trip from Bideford to Lundy Island for the puffins, on the classic ship MS Oldenburg.

Thank you both - this is very helpful in trying to plan our itinerary!

Yes! We stayed two or three nights in The Slipway bed and breakfast, which was used for the fish restaurant, in Doc Martin. It’s right across the road from “Mrs. Tishell’s”. We loved it there. We took the Doc Martin walking tour, with a guide who knew lots of stories and took us to all the places in the show. It’s a lovely small, quaint place.

We stayed in PI for two nights last spring and also enjoyed the walking tour with the lovely local storyteller. The town and surroundings are even more charming than they look on television. We were in an Airbnb just around a corner from the pasty shop and had a great time walking all over. Took a side trip to Tintagel from there as well. If your husband’s a big fan of Doc Martin, I think it’d be worth a stopover as long as the timing works.

I have only heard of this show in the context of Rick Steves (mentioned in this forum and on the podcast). When I think of shows set in Cornwall, my first thought is Poldark- which was filmed in some very scenic locations you can easily visit.

Skomer Island has been on my list for a while but I haven't made it yet... last time we were in the area we were with our dog and for obvious reasons the island is unfortunately not dog friendly. However I think a boat ride even around the Pembrokeshire coast would be lovely, even if you don't get very close to the puffins.

PI is a small village with one, not very long, road that snakes through the centre and goes out the other side. It's an attractive place to go, but I doubt a visit will take that long.

The north and south coasts of Cornwall are quite different. the north is windswept (head west and the next land is Canada) and rugged with few if any trees near the coast. The south is much more sheltered with, in places, sub-tropical gardens thanks to the gulf stream. As a generalisation, roads in and across Cornwall are narrow, bendy and slow to drive on so what might look like a relatively short journey will probably take longer than you think. Beware that behind the foliage on the sides of the roads there is usually a stone wall, particularly in the north. Parking can be a problem, particularly in Summer. PI now has, I think, a large car park on the outskirts but is hard to find parking in the village and the last time I was there you were no longer allowed to park on the beach at low tide.

You don't say when you are going but Cornwall is very popular with British holiday-makers and it gets very crowded during school holidays; typically the last week in May and then from late July to first week of Sept.