Tolcarne Beach Bay hotel review: A tranquil Cornish getaway

With cream teas, coastal walks and an icy but invigorating dip in the sea, a Cornish trip was the ideal escape after a lockdown spent in London.

Seven months after we had planned to go originally (we had booked for March - then everything shut) we finally arrived at our destination: the sought after Tolcarne Beach Bay.

The luxury boutique hotel is nestled in a scenic crescent-shaped bay of Tolcarne beach, where its background cliffs join the neighbouring beaches of Great Western and Lutzy Glaze. It's a tranquil hideaway and an ideal alternative to busier nearby Newquay.

Getting there

The 275 mile trip from London to Cornwall took us through open green countryside, scenic coastlines and quaint villages.

To break up the journey we stopped for lunch in Dartmoor National Park at family run eatery, Café on the Green. I swapped my electric car to reduce the stress of worrying about charging times and test drove the new Honda CRV-V hybrid - it's one of the smaller SUV’s, but still provides plenty of room. We didn't need to top up fuel en route.

The hotel

Each room is decorated with pieces picked up on the hotel owner family's global adventures - in our room an antique record player next to a ceramic kettle invited me to kick back and relax, watching the waves crash over the sand from our balcony.

If you're heading out for dinner, make sure you ask the taxi firm beforehand if they are willing to drive down the cliff edge road, as many will not. I booked a reservation at the new pop-up restaurant from local chef Emily Scott. Fresh, modern and local, a dinner for two featuring mozzarella panna cotta, local hake and warm tartare (with wine) will set you back around £130.

All hotel rooms at the hotel include breakfast, and after lazy mornings in bed with a cup of tea and the terrace doors open to the sea breeze, we would meander down to the restaurant for a strong cup of coffee and a hearty breakfast with spectacular views.

Things to do

Padstow, a twenty-minute drive away offers an 18 mile largely traffic-free cycling route, which passes through wooded countryside and coastal paths. You can stop off for Cornish cream teas in the village of Wadebridge or Bodmin or a pub lunch to break up the journey.

We cycled from Padstow to Bodmin and back, which is half of the Camel trail, with a late lunch at Rick Stein's famous seafood restaurant.