With February half tem just around the corner and Easter just a couple of Creme Eggs behind it I thought it was high time I featured a Cornish gem on the blog that would make a perfect break for either holiday. If you have been following me for a while you will know that I am a big fan of a Cornish staycation. Not even the memories of a nightmarish 14 hour return journey after a caravan breakdown on the A40 can dim my love for this corner of the UK.
Miniest Malmo has inherited my love of Cornwall
We have spent many a happy holiday in a clotted cream coma on the Cornish coast. However, we have always tended to stay on the Roseland Penninsula or up on the North coast rather than heading west. So when we were invited to stay at the Carbis Bay Hotel, a mere hop and a scone away from St Ives, we eagerly accepted!
The heavenly setting of the Carbis Bay Hotel
The hotel is majestically perched just above its very own blue flag beach (the only hotel in the UK to have one!) with wide sweeps of soft golden sand stretching out to sea. It feels like you have discovered the best beach in Cornwall and no-one is in any hurry to tell other people the secret! The main hotel is in a sprawling white washed Victorian villa. However, we were invited to test out one of the newly added Scandinavian style self catering beach lodges that are nestled into hill below the hotel and which open directly out on to the beach.
The Beach Lodges at the Carbis Bay Hotel which front directly on to the beach
The front door of the beach lodges is actuallly at the top of the house (so far so Hobbit) with a roof terrace that features a large hot tub in which you can soak whilst taking in spectacular sea views. My youngest son loved this feature so much that he broke down in tears on the M4 when we had to break it to him that we had not been able to pack the 10ft by 8ft hot tub into the back of our already crammed full estate car to bring home with us.
Talk about a hot tub with a view!
As you can see we would have struggle to pop this in the boot of the car to bring home
The lodge we stayed in had three generous double bedrooms (all en suite) with two enjoying balcony’s and views out over the beach. To the boys delight they all have flat screen TVs and to my delight the master bedroom came with a cast iron slipper bath.
The cast iron slipper bath in the master suite
On the ground floor, at beach level, is a large open plan kitchen/dining/living space with huge sliding glass doors which lead out to a garden with sun loungers from which it is then mere steps to the beach. We visited in October so it was not exactly bikinis on the beach weather (or in my case sensible swimsuits on the sand) but it was still crisp and sunny and the boys absolutely loved the freedom of being able to run in and out between the lodge and the beach.
The open plan kitchen is super well stocked
There were lots of lovely touches like a lemon drizzle cake awaiting us
The kitchen is open plan with the living space
The views from the bedroom
When it got too chilly, even by their Lad-Labrador standards, we retreated back inside, turned the fire on and hunkered down on the squishiest of sofas to watch a film. The fireplace at the Beach Lodge was actually major inspo for our recently completed contemporary fireplace revamp (click here to read more about that). I loved how they had clad it in white washed rough sawn wood and the way the flames spring, James Bond style, up from the gas fire.
The contemporary fireplace at the beach lodge that inspired our own
I loved the curvy concrete staircase that ran through the middle of the house
The beauty of the Beach Lodges is that whilst they are set up for self catering but you also have the option to tap into the two great restaurants on site as well ( for days when your inner Delia Smith is feeling a bit down trodden). For casual dining that works well for those with kids we loved the relaxed surfy vibes of the Beach Club restaurant which serves up Mediterranean food with an amazing view. If you fancy a treat then the hotel also offers fine dining at its Sands restaurant. We didn’t brave that one just because we didn’t think the other diners would appreciate their Michelin dining experience being accompanied by the soundtrack of the number of episodes of Paw Patrol that would be required to keep my three year old in his seat for more than 30 mins.
The Beach Club restaurant was right up my modern rustic street
If you are feeling even lazier you can actually also order food from either restaurant to be delivered to your lodge instead. Breakfasts are served in the conservatory restaurant up at the hotel (where you can also enjoy afternoon tea) and received the thumbs up from Mr Malmo who could add breakfast buffet connoisseur to list of his hobbies behind running and watching Sheffield Wednesday tussle with annual relegation.
The terrace outside the conservatory restaurant
For the warmer months when you can venture outside without a coat without fear of losing a nipple to frostbite the hotel also has an outdoor swimming pool and year round non nipple risking relaxation is on offer at the C Side Spa.
We could easily have spent the whole weekend just happily flitting between the lodge, the beach and the hotel but a five minute drive or brisk walk along the coastal path brings you to St Ives, brimming with nice shops and places to eat, and, admittedly, in the height of Summer a lot of pensioners on coach trips searching for scones and souvenirs. To escape the crowds, if you carry on walking around the corner from the main bay you will come to Porthmeor beach. It is less crowded and has much more of a surf than silver haired feel to it.
Just one of the many lovely shops in St Ives
We loved getting lunch at the Porthmeor Beach Cafe, nestled into one of their (heated) outdoor booths and watching the surfers attempting to ride the Cornish waves whilst we ate a delicious lunch. We then tootled up to the Tate St Ives which is just minutes away from the beach. We didn’t visit owing tothe combo of our three year old and ceramics being a bad one, but the Barbara Hepworth Museum is also in St Ives and supposed to be beautiful.
The view from the outdoor terrace at Porthmeor Beach Cafe
We reluctantly left the beach lodge and Carbis Bay behind at the end of our stay leaving well truly converted to this corner of Cornwall. The cheapest way to stay at the Carbis Bay Hotel is by booking a stay in the main hotel, where the decor is nice but not as contemporary/Scandi as the lodges. Out of season at this time of year they often have good offers running as well . If you have a bigger budget or are looking somewhere for a special treat or celebration with family then I cannot recommend the beach lodges enough, they really are the most special place to stay. We are dreaming of one day returning and spending Christmas there as waking up on Christmas morning and walking straight out onto the beach would take some beating.
We would love to return to those stools one day
Goodbye Cornwall until next time
This February half term we will actually be Norway rather than Cornwall bound having booked 4 nights away in Oslo. I lasted visited 15 years ago for 2 night so if anyone has been more recently or is a Norwegian native then I would love all your tips!
Our stay at the Carbis Bay Hotel was kindly gifted to us