Cornwall

From the Penzance train station, there are buses going various places in the area. Coverage to St Ives, Mousehole, and other towns is good. I used the buses; some are double-deckers with great views from the top. It is easy to walk out to St Michael's Mount from one of the towns. I took a bus to that town, but it is possible to walk on a coast path from Penzance. I don't know where Helston is, so this may not help.

I'm pretty sure the town Swan refers to in order to walk out to the mount is called Marazion .

Sarah , We visited Cornwall about two years ago during an extended trip to Great Britain . We also used Helston as a base . You are correct that bus transportation is sporadic at best . We had a car ( with the exception of London and Edinburgh ,at the finish ) and found that it afforded us much more freedom ,particularly in areas like Cornwall , The Cotswolds , and the Scottish Highlands . True , Cornwall is laced with narrow lanes , but we didn't find that to be an issue once we became accustomed to driving on them . With a car you will be able to see much more . The only caveat is that most rentals are manual transmission ,so if you do not have the skills to operate one , you would need to rent an automatic if possible . ( Cornwall is not the place to be learning to drive a stick shift ) . Even if you do , be aware that you will be shifting with your left hand , and that will take some getting used to . But if you can , a car is the way to go . While in Cornwall , make it a point to see some of the mine sites in the Penwith area around Helston . Two very good ones are the Levant mine and the Geevor Mine on the north coast between St. Just in Penwith and Pendeen on the B3306 coast road . An easy ride from Helston , they tell a good part of the story of Cornwall's tin mining heritage .

Another thought ; even without a car if you go to Penzance you can walk along the waterfront promenade from Penzance to Newlyn to Mousehole ( pronounced mow-zle , about three miles ) . Mousehole is a cute little fishing village with a history that somewhat resembles that of the fishing communities of Cape Ann , Massachusetts . There is a wonderful book " Gloucester ,the last fish tale " by Mark Kurlansky that devotes a chapter to this ,a great read !!

My wife and I spent a week in Cornwall some 10 years ago. We stayed in Penzance and used our rental car to go to various sights. Rent a car with automatic. The roads are, indeed narrow but with a little patience and driving very slowly, you will get around fine. There is not alot of traffic there. We visited St. Ives and found it delightful and just a short easy drive from Penzance. Park in the car park at the upper level and walk through town. Don't miss The Lost Gardens of Heligan- an absolute treasure- much better than the Eden Project. Don't bother with Lands End- it is ticky tacky tourist trap with very little beauty. St. Michaels Mount is wonderful. Park your car and walk over at low tide. Incredible castle and grounds. In the summer, an absolute must is the Minnack Theatre carved out of a cliff overlooking the ocean- it is one of the most spectacular theatre experiences you will ever have- watching a play being performed with the Atlantic Ocean and the sunset as your backdrop.
We loved Cornawall; the people were friendly and helpful and the scenery was breathtaking. I know driving in Englad and Ireland can be nervewracking; but if you take your time-rent a small car with automatic-you will be fine; and it is really the only way to see the countryside and the sights

Thank you to all who have posted. I do drive stick, but I will still have to think about driving, but the input is quite helpful. Thanks also for the suggestions for places to visit. I'm taking notes! Though we visited several places a day where I was there 2 years ago, there are many more places we didn't get to. I do have to say that we went to Land's End at the end of the day, after most people had left, with the sun still out and shimmering on the water, and it was quite beautiful and memorable; other readers should not discount a visit there. I understand the dislike of a "touristy" atmosphere. Maybe the trick is to go earlier or later in the day!

Sarah , Needless to say , we loved Cornwall . Are you a Doc Martin fan ?

Another question to those who've replied to my previous questions:
Any advice on comfortable overseas flights in Economy--US to London...I'm looking at flights with American, United, Delta, and British Airways right now at similar prices, though I noticed that BA flights seem to jump up in price faster. Are economy seats up to chance--has anyone had reliable experience --or more than one flight-- with carriers that they liked... Thanks! Sarah

We prefer Virgin Atlantic - I believe they fly out of Chicago. We usually pay the extra for economy plus. However, I believe that VA has some seats towards the back of the airplane that are two across instead of three. If you can't get seats like that, consider two aisle seats across from each other. Way better than being the unlucky person in the middle seat.

Hi Sarah, I'm not sure if you could "borrow" a car to drive. Englands car insurance is different from ours, their insurance has to state that it includes someone else driving their car, some people include this and others do not have that on their insurance. Our friends told us to take her car one morning and her son who was there and is a barrister (lawyer) asked if her insurance included other drivers which it did.

Don't know if you can find nonstop from Chicago or not. If not, you might want to look into BWI to Heathrow. British Air has one flight a day with seating pattern 2-3-2. We have found that to be the most comfortable economy class. Whatever you do, try to avoid American flag airlines.

Hi Sarah,
I fly united out of Chicago non stop to Heathrow a few times per year. I pay the extra $100 for economy plus which gives you 5 inches more leg room. United usually flies 767 aircraft that have 2 seats by the window and 4 middle seats. I book a two seat row, often I have an empty seat in economy plus. I usually take flight 958 and return on 959. I have flown BA a few times, OK but usually more money. BA also has an economy plus called world traveller plus, but I found it more expensive than united. As for flying out of Milwaukee,forget it. I prefer not to connect for international flights. Also, take the coach USA bus to O'Hare, drops you right at door, hassle free. The puddle jumper flights from MKE to ORD are often cancelled when weather is iffy. Coach USA has a bus every hour from 5am to 8pm. I catch it at the downtown Amtrak station or Mitchell airport.

Linda,
Thanks for the info! I flew BA out of Chicago to LHR 2 years ago by myself, and took the bus down, yes. This year my father is coming from Madison, so rather than have us meet at O'Hare via bus separately, we decided to start together from Milwaukee. We can make sure between us we have everything set, and then leave from here. I'm OK with connections when I'm not in a hurry. What I really don't like is sitting or trying to sleep on a plane, so I got a shorter connection from JFK. There is always a trade-off and we'll see how this goes. I think our flight my dad booked (Air France/KLM turned out to be a Canada Air (I'm assuming that's the same as Air Canada) to LHR, looking at the flight info.:)