Itinerary help with Devon and Cornwall

Good idea to skip Land's End since it has no historical significance or spectacular scenery. Might just as well skip the Longships, Scilly, and the whole dang Penwith peninsula too. Skip Penzance as well, since somebody wrote some tunes about it and made a lot of money.

My first suggestion would be to read a few different guidebooks and see if you don't get a different perspective. History books help as well. Rabbit archaeology is also an interesting subject.

Actually, since you like walking, some of the cliff paths along the coast are pretty good. Another one is the coast-to-coast from Portreath to Devoran. It's a easy one along an old rail bed. Since it's only ten or twelve miles, it works for an all day out-and-back - - but there's a way to get back by bus as well, I think.
Another walking idea is the paths through the Exmoor National Park and the area east of Minehead rather than focusing exclusively on Dartmoor.

If you are wanting a guidebook for this area, Lonely Planet and the Rough Guides both publish a good one.

Lands End is just horrific; you're wise to skip it. It's claim to fame is based on a false assumption by visitors anyway; it's neither the most westerly, nor most southerly, point of Great Britain. I'd always recommend any visitor instead heads down to the Lizard peninsular, which is the actual most southerly point and infinitely more beautiful. Hardly anyone goes that way so it's largely undeveloped, it's windswept, open and (unlike Lands End) properly romantic and mysterious particularly inland. It's hiking paradise - miles of relatively unspoilt gorse heathland for doing short/medium circular hikes (7-10 miles or so lets you get right into the heart of the pensinular, peel down to the South West Coast path & return to base) and some of the best coastal paths going. If you want to visit the Point itself I'd recommmend parking in Lizard itself and walking down as the lane is 6' wide if you breathe in and it's 2-way traffic. Add high hedges and few passing places and it's a recipe for stress and losing your rental deposit! The hike down from the car park in the village is 1km at the most.
Other recommends - swing by Coverack as it's ludicrously pretty, tucked into a tiny rocky inlet under high cliffs. Although still very popular with us Brits, seems to fall off of the radar for others, so it's much less commercialised than Mousehole. Just park at the top & walk down unless you have nerves of steel, lungs of leather and the mouth of a navvy.
For a sniff of modern history have a peek at the satellite uplink station at Goonhilly. The juxtaposition of the radio dishes (that were amongst the very first satelite communications stations in the world) and the heathland all around is something worth seeing. Also, if you like gardens see if you can squeeze in a visit to the Lost Gardens at Heligan which is just south of St Austell. One of the finest gardens in the UK, definitely worth a 1/2-day. The Eden Project is a favourite of mine too and worth a visit if you're near St Austell. Those 2 would make quite a good day between them. Because Eden is covered, it also makes an excellent foul-weather backup plan... There's loads more there of course - that's just 1 tiny area of 1 county.
On to Devon - if you're crossing Dartmoor, hit the B3212 at Exeter and stick with that one from north to south to Yelverton as that gives the most dramatic reveals. Stop at Warren Inn for lunch if you can - it's a pub in the middle of the moors with not another building inside a mile. I used to ride & drive up there from Plymouth and grab a pasty and a half of Flowers, sit outside & watch the wild ponies. South of there is Postbridge, with a clapper bridge a bit over 600 years old, then Two Bridges which has a nice rough-stone arch bridge near the hotel.
One of the best things about living near Dartmoor was the amount of folk tales & legends associated with the high moor, and if you want to get into the soul of the place you should read one or two - even if you just bomb across by car, the scenery with iron-age clearing and field boundaries is so much more significant if you have the tales and the music of the region in your head as you pass. A good (but sad) one is the tale of Kitty Jay; her tale was recently given a wider audience by folk musician Seth Lakeman - have a listen on YouTube & you'll get the feel of the place. You can then go find her grave when you visit, and see if the piskies have laid fresh flowers...

I compliment Aiken on a very well-written and ecocative post.

I will be in Cornwall myself in May, but traveling by train and only for two nights ( to see Port Isaac and walk some coastal path). But I am sure we will return, so I hopemI can find this post again.

( Webmaster: any chance of a "bookmark" function? )

I suggest you put Port Isaac toward the front end of the itinerary so you can generally stay along the west coast on the way down and hug the south coast on the way back. But the distances and drive times from one coast to the other aren't great so whatever works for you.

Add Tintagel before P Isaac. It doesn't matter if the legend is only that. It's a pretty and interesting place on the rugged coast. St. Ives is well worth a visit. I don't quarrel with the suggestion to drive The Lizzard because it's very pretty. However, the real gem of the area to me is Mousehole, one of the prettiest little fishing villages you'll see. As long as you're in the area, why not go to Lands End. I understand a lot of development has taken place since we visited years ago, however it's the kind of place that is personally is irresistable when I'm only a 30 minute drive away. The coastal views are great.

Mevagissey is a must stop on the South coast. To or from there, online maps don't recognize the ferry at Fowey which takes you on to pretty Polperro. If history is an interest of yours, stop in Plymouth for a walk on The Hoe (Sir Francis Drake) then see the marker for the Mayflower embarkation.

It is curious that Steves doesn't pay attention to this area which is very popular with Brits in Summer.

I have the RS England 2013 book which does have a section on Cornwall and surrounding area. I didn't notice any mention of Devon but I didn't read it too closely. He doesn't like Lands End either.

Thanks everyone for the comments and suggestions. Aiken's posting is particularly appreciated. And I will also look for the RS England guide (as opposed to the RS Great Britain guide that I own, which omits Cornwall and Devon for reasons of space, I assume. As it is, it is over 1000 pages long).

Thanks, Aiken, for the great suggestions. We will be in a rental cottage in Devon (Kingsbridge) for a week in early June and are trying to decide what we most want to do/visit. Sentiment compels me to go to Land's End just to take a picture of the sign because I have one at John O'Groats and a college professor talked of traveling from LE to JOG.........................

Just some additional info for Cornwall - I spent a week last year based in Penzance, which is a very pleasant and scenic 5 hour rail trip from Paddington Station in London. I totally enjoyed Penzance, but the excellent public bus and rail system there provided easy , economical, and fun way to explore all of the surrounding area as well - Marazion (St. Michael's Mount), St. Ives, , etc. while mixing with local residents as well as other visitors. The town center of Penzance is a short walk from the rail and bus station, and there is a helpful visitors' centre right there also. I bought a very inexpensive bus pass for the week. It was an enjoyable walk along the seafront promenade from Penzance to Mousehole. Easy to pick up a bus if one chooses to ride back after walking to a destination. I'd like to return very soon. Judy- Perkasie, PA USA

It might be a moot question. Cornwall's getting hit by seventy-five foot waves right now. Roads, rail lines, etc are a mess. Photos will scare your britches off. And we thought the November (October?) storm was a bitch!

Another vote for Tintagle. I'll be going back there this fall. Don't forget the Minack....sorry if I spelled it wrong . . I'm tired. Another favorite was the Lost Gardens of Heligen and a ride on the King Harry Ferry when we got lost. Favorite village is Mevagissey. A few years ago we spent a couple of nights in Princetown and took a tour of Dartmoor Prison.

Ed has reminded me - don't forget to visit the extensive and beautiful Somerset Lakes. By May I'd expect at least half a dozen boat operators offering tours of the A358, with the option of adding in 2-day cruises across the Thames Sea to London. But bring a pack-a-mac, it's a bit breezy on the Berkshire coast!

Hi Bob. I'll be in Cornwall this May as well, perhaps we'll bump into each other! This will be my 7th trip to the UK, in addition to living in London, but I've never traveled to Cornwall. Not being familiar with the area, I did some research (including on this site) and decided to stay in Mevagissey on the south coast. It looks beautiful and peaceful, with a small harbor and some fantastic walks along the coast. Nearby, we plan to visit Caerhays castle, the Lost Gardens of Heligan, Veryan Bay, Gorran Haven (meant to be lovely and not overrun with tourists), and take the ferry from Mevagissey to Fowey. I know the Eden project is famous and looks wonderful, but I feel like I'd rather see more of "England" England, even if the place is amazing with it's design and biospheres with all the world's climates. After much deliberation, we decided not to rent a car, as this will be our honeymoon and we would rather rely on our feet, local taxis, and a couple of private tours (just us and the guide -- I found some reputable companies on-line). We are taking one tour along the north coast (St. Agnes to Tintagel). The Bedruthan Steps look gorgeous so we plan to stop there -- our guides are very flexible and told us to let them know where we want to go. Port Isaac is on the itinerary, Tintagel, and a few other places I've been researching. We'll do a tour of the Penwith penninsula as well but our guide wants to take us away from the touristy areas. (Though I won't feel guilty about taking a snapshot at Land's End. Going to places like this, I think, is part of the fun of being a tourist, and mixing it up with those off-the-beaten-path moments is all part of the joys of traveling.) Yes, St. Michael's Mount is on our agenda too (I've made it my screensaver for my work email!) I am approaching this trip realistically, recognizing that Cornwall is one of Britain's most popular holiday destinations and there are going to be tourists, and I'm one of them. I think May is a good time to go -- students are still in school and don't have their "half term" break until the last week of the month, following their bank holiday (our Memorial Day) weekend. Still, I think Cornwall offers many opportunities to go "off the beaten path" and connect with locals. I believe the Daphne DuMaurier festival is in May (mid-month), if you're a fan, and if you're there in early May (around the 1st), there are a bunch of those famous "May Day" festivals. For more travel info, I found an online guide through Britain's Guardian newspaper helpful, there is a whole chunk on the internet about Cornwall: http://www.theguardian.com/travel/series/a-holiday-guide-to-cornwall. Also, the book "Slow Cornwall" by Kirsty Fergusson, is excellent and gives a lot of info from a local's perspective. I emailed her personally and she recommended Falmouth and Fowey as places to base oneself. Rough Guide is good too. Have a wonderful time!!

Popular for a reason , Clovelly ,north Devon. Wouldn't like to vist on a Bank holiday but May should be more than fine.
On the Lizard, kynance cove is wonderful and in the care of tha national trust so will stay that way. Plenty of trails, but lounging on the beach with pfood from the beachside cafe can be recomended.

@Aiken... somehow I missed this post, so glad someone added to it....
So... although I have traveled to England a few times never made it to Cornwall... you have now made it a priority, as well as given
me a new artist to listen to. Seth Lakeman is amazing and the youtube outdoor concert is spectacular. I want to go:))

I want to thank everyone who responded to my post asking for recommendations in Devon and Cornwall. I wish my wife and I could visit them all. Unfortunately, in the time since I posted this message, my wife suffered a torn rotator cuff and had surgery last week, which will require two or three months of rehabilitation and physical therapy. She will recover by mid-summer OK, but we're committed to a trip to northern Spain in September. So we've had to postpone our Cornwall/Devon trip until next spring or summer. But we will definitely go then.