Cornwall by motorhome
Cornwall had been on our motorhome list for a long time, so rather than simply driving straight there, we turned the journey into a seven-day family road trip from Liverpool.
The journey, not a directory
This wasn't about trying to tick every famous Cornwall attraction off a list. We wanted to experience Cornwall from the motorhome: finding campsites that worked as proper bases, walking to beaches, using public transport rather than moving the van every day and seeing how some of Cornwall's best-known destinations actually felt when travelling as a family.
Our route took us from Liverpool via Lickhill Manor, through Cardiff and Tredegar House, before reaching the Cornish coast at Godrevy. From there we moved on to Polmanter Touring Park, explored St Ives, headed to Newquay and The Headland at Fistral Beach, and eventually broke the return journey at Broadway in the Cotswolds.
And we filmed the whole thing. This guide combines what happened on our actual trip with current practical information from the official campsite and destination websites.
Make the journey part of the holiday
Start
Journey stopover
Journey stopover
Cornwall stay
Cornwall stay
Cornwall visit
Journey stopover
Finish
Lickhill Manor, Cardiff/Tredegar House and Broadway are journey stopovers. They are not Cornwall campsites.
Featured Cornwall vlog
The hidden places, practical stops and family moments from Liverpool to the Cornish coast—and all the way home again.
Beyond Cornwall · Devon & the South West
This vlog continues our wider South West motorhome journey, with Devon as the main destination. We review coastal and countryside stays, family holiday parks and the campsite that became our biggest disappointment.
Why it appears here: it is the onward chapter of the same South West journey—not a Cornwall campsite review. The route also includes stops in Somerset before returning through Broadway and Plassey.
Two genuine Cornwall bases
These are the two principal Cornwall campsite stays documented in the vlog. Any price shown is what we recorded at the time—not a current quote.
Our first proper Cornwall base
£44 per night when we visited
The vlog follows our arrival, the campsite and facilities, the walk towards Godrevy Beach and our review. The Club describes a rear-gate route through the dunes to a cliff path facing St Ives Bay, making this a strong practical base for beaches and coastal walking.
Prices change. £44 was the price recorded during our trip; always check the campsite directly for current availability and pricing.
Our base for exploring St Ives
We arrived, toured the facilities and pool, then left the motorhome pitched and used the connection into St Ives. Polmanter's current official information lists a regular dedicated shuttle bus, but timetables can change—check directly before travelling.
For a large motorhome, that ability to stay set up and avoid taking the van into town was one of the trip's most useful practical lessons.
From the pitch to the coast
Practical destination notes grounded in where we actually went, with official links for current visitor information.
Godrevy · 15:27
From our campsite base we headed towards the sand, cliffs and wider coastline. The National Trust describes Godrevy as a vast sandy beach with dramatic coves, coastal walking, surfing and wildlife-rich headlands; the South West Coast Path continues above the sea towards Portreath.
Plan a Godrevy visitSt Ives · 23:49
Rather than packing everything away and taking a large motorhome into St Ives, we travelled in from Polmanter. That gave us the freedom to wander the town and beaches at our own pace—with the essential Cornish pasty stop and our review at 24:41 included.
Watch St IvesNewquay · 30:28
Our route continued to Newquay and The Headland, the landmark hotel overlooking Fistral Beach. This was a visit during the road trip—we do not present it as an overnight campsite stay. Fistral's own site centres the beach's surfing identity, while The Headland provides current visitor information directly.
Getting to Cornwall
From Liverpool, we chose to break the drive into real trip experiences instead of treating every mile before Cornwall as dead time.
Our Worcestershire campsite stop before continuing south and west.
Official siteCardiff Castle and the city centre, followed by Tredegar House Country Park Club Campsite near Newport.
Official campsiteA return-journey break at Broadway Club Campsite, with time to explore Broadway from 35:56.
Official campsiteThese are route stopovers outside Cornwall and are deliberately separated from our Cornwall campsite stays.
The series will keep growing
Start with our complete seven-day tour, then return as new Cornwall campsites, beaches, towns and vlogs are added to the official playlist.
Watch the Cornwall seriesOur honest answer
Absolutely—but Cornwall rewards a little planning.
For us, some of the best moments weren't necessarily the biggest tourist attractions. It was being able to park the motorhome at Godrevy and walk towards the coast, leave it pitched at Polmanter and travel into St Ives, explore the beaches and then move on when we were ready.
That's what this section of The Travelling Vocalist is about. We're not building a directory of campsites we've never seen. These are our actual journeys—where we stayed, what we experienced, what we paid at the time and what we'd do differently next time.
As we return to Cornwall, we'll keep adding new campsites, beaches, towns and videos to this guide.
Looking beyond Cornwall? Explore our real Yorkshire motorhome stays
The Travelling