The village of Mevagissey is still a working fishing village situated on the southern coast of the beautiful county of Cornwall. There is always something to watch down at the harbour and the narrow, picturesque streets contain craft shops, art galleries, pubs, cafes and restaurants. The parish church of St. Peter has been the site of a religious foundation for over 1400 years and was rededicated in 1259. 

There are so many places of interest within easy reach that we have found it difficult to decide on our outline itinerary.  The Lost Gardens of Heligan are only 4 miles away - ‘lost’ because the gardens had been allowed to become overgrown - no paths were visible, only the tops of palm trees hinted at what lay underneath. In 1991 the ten year work of restoring the gardens began but they are now as they would have been in the 19th Century before the idyll was ended by the 1914-18 war.

We will take you to Lanhydrock dating from the 15th Century but on show now as the Victorian country house it was when last a family home. It is set in glorious grounds. We will visit Luxulyan Valley and the 14th Century Restormel Castle. We will call at the village of Lerryn set on a creek of the river Fowey where there has been a bridge for 700 years; the present one having been built by Queen Elizabeth 1 in 1573. 

We will journey along the Roseland peninsula starting at Tregony; there were 36 alehouses on the wide main street there in 1631 when the port on the Fal was prosperous before it silted up. We will then pass the 5 round houses of Veryan, built by a wealthy vicar.

We will visit St. Anthony Head, Place, the beautiful grounds of the church at St. Just in Roseland that slope down to a creek of the Fal river and then to St.  Mawes, a small but fashionable yachting resort. 

There may be time for a visit to Smugglers’ Cottage at Tolverne for a drink or a cream tea.

We will visit the beautiful garden at Trebah set in a narrow valley running down to the Helford River and containing many sub tropical plants. On D-Day 7,500 men of the 29th US Infantry Division embarked from the beach there.

There will be time for shopping in the cathedral city of Truro, which is the administrative centre of Cornwall. Truro has one of Britain’s most modem threespired cathedrals incorporating the ancient Parish Church - it was completed in 1910 after 30 years’ work. Around the cathedral the streets are in keeping with its venerable appearance. It is very much a small and cosy market town but with plenty of tempting shopping. 

We plan a branch line train journey to St. Ives, a picturesque tumble of gaily coloured stone cottages. James McNeill Whistler and Walter Sickert went to St. Ives in the 1800s and set the fashion that made the town internationally famous as an artistic centre. There is a Barbara Hepworth sculpture garden and a branch of London’s famed Tate Gallery.

Wednesday - Arrive and escorted to your hosts’ homes. Settle in and enjoy dinner with your hosts.

Thursday - Meet fellow guests and parishioners over coffee in Mevagissey. Tour round Mevagissey and a visit to the small Museum. See the Flower Festival in St. Peter’s. Visit to the Lost Gardens of Heligan.  

Friday - Lanhydrock House, Luxulyan Valley (rich in industrial archaeology), 14th Century Restormel Castle and Lerryn

Saturday - Explore the Roseland Peninsula.

Monday - Visit to the sub-tropical garden of Trebah.

Tuesday - St. Ives by branch railway from St. Erth. Freedom to visit the museum, art galleries and the little shops

Wednesday - The Cathedral City of Truro and then to Falmouth to tour Pendennis Castle built by Henry VIII in the 1540s.

Thursday - Farewell to our friends.