Yes it’s true! Today, 4 July 2020, we have reopened the doors to our Cornish luxury yurt and lakeside log cabin to welcome back guests to our countryside retreat once more. Hooray! It feels like we’ve been waiting forever and I expect everyone else feels the same. At last, holidays in Cornwall are officially back ‘on’! Read on to hear our news and are some of our top tips on how to get the best out of your visit to Cornwall in 2020…
We’re all set and good to go for a busy season ahead – we’re fully booked in both our Sail House luxury yurt and Boat House lakeside cabin through all of July, August and most of September. And we’re filling up in October and November too. So if you haven’t already booked your Cornwall holiday, have a look at our Sail House luxury yurt and Boat House lakeside cabin to see what availability remains for autumn and winter 2020.
Of course reopening has meant us putting new procedures and protocols in place to make sure we are in line with government and industry advice for holiday accommodation in England. I’ve been glued to Visit Cornwall and Cornwall Council Webinars each week, to follow the new directives as they came out. It’s been a lot of information to digest and stay on top of but we’re confident we have everything in place , included enhanced cleaning protocols that we will follow very carefully in between each set of guests.
Just one of the many tweaks and adaptations we’ve put in place are these lovely wooden signs on the entrance doors of our log cabin and luxury yurt in Cornwall, as a reminder to use the hand sanitiser provided. These were created for us by Jamie from Zennor Made in Carbis Bay. We hear that quite a few of the shops in nearby St Ives have chosen to commission similar signs. It’s a very Cornish way for us to keep in line with advice without having to plaster up no-so-pretty Health & Safety posters…
And for the hand sanitiser itself, we’re giving the This Works Stress Check Clean Hands product a go. I’m liking it so far, it conforms to regulations but the essential oils make it smell lovely and it feels much kinder to hands than the bog-standard stuff.
We’ve also signed ourselves up to the AA’s Covid Confident and Visit England’s ‘Good to Go’ schemes as a commitment that at Pengelly Retreat is in line with all the government and industry standards and advice. And although running our business is a little more complex than before… to be honest we feel very blessed here that with just two lakeside properties and a peaceful spot in west Cornwall we are probably in one of the best locations for fresh air and social distancing!
If you are one of our lucky guests this year, coming for your own romantic getaway or solo holiday surrounded by Cornish nature and lakes, you can simply relax here by the wild swimming lake. Or if you are looking for things to do in Cornwall there are plenty of highlights within an easy 15-30 minute drive. We expect it will be busy in some of the Cornwall hotspots like Padstow or St Ives this year… but they always get busy in the summer months! As a family we only ever visit (the very lovely) St Ives and Padstow outside of the busy season.
Our top tip to get the most out of your holiday is to plan ahead. If there are National Trust properties, Great Gardens or other Cornwall attractions you’d like to visit, such as St Michael’s Mount, the Eden Project or Trengwainton, then you can, but you must book your tickets in advance of your visit. Each Cornwall attraction has a different approach so always check their websites well in advance. For example, the National Trust release their tickets each week on the Friday for the following week (Monday to Sunday). Availability is limited each day to ensure the gardens and attractions are not overcrowded and tickets do sell out quickly in some cases.
Beaches will also be busy, so our best advice here is to go either early or late when it will be quieter. And if the beach you head to feels too busy and the car parks are full, head up the coast and try a different location. There’s plenty of stunning West Cornwall beaches to visit nearby.
For more ideas on the best beaches and off the beaten track highlights in Cornwall have a look at our recommendations on the Explore pages of our website. Or just kick back and relax here at Pengelly Retreat, in a gorgeous area of countryside and lakes that never feels crowded or rushed. And – whisper it – if you come in the autumn or winter it will be even more peaceful and lovely down here in Cornwall! We look forward to seeing you at either the Sail House yurt or Boat House cabin for your countryside escape at Pengelly Retreat :).