Falmouth Tourist | Photos | Webcam | Accommodation

Falmouth is the leading south coast resort, and has the third largest natural harbour in the world.

The setting is superb, with four bathing beaches and a bustling waterfront marina. The cliff top walks offer wonderful views over the wooded river country inland, and of Carrick Roads and Falmouth bay.

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There is a great deal of choice in Falmouth when it comes to accommodation, especially Falmouth Hotels. Here are two of the top hotels with the best reviews:

St Michaels Hotel & Spa Falmouth Cornwall

St Michael’s Hotel and Spa Falmouth Cornwall, opened in 2005, is Cornwall’s leading destination spa with a large, heated indoor swimming pool, Jacuzzi, sauna, steam room and well equipped gymnasium. Treatments include a wide range of massage, facials, body wraps, manicure and pedicure using marine, organic and aromatherapy based products.

St Michael’s enjoys a fine reputation for its food and has won a number of awards including a Rosette from the AA. The Flying Fish Restaurant offers fresh fish and seafood from our local fishermen. Steaks, salads, grills, fresh snacks and a host of daily specials served in a relaxed, fun & informal environment.

The St Michaels Hotel and Spa hotel is located on Falmouth's Gyllyngvase Beach, a two-minute walk from the South West Costal Footpath if you fancy a trek or two.

Falmouth Beach Hotel - Best Western

The Best Western Falmouth Beach Hotel enjoys an unrivalled location with spectacular panorama of the Cornish Coastline from Pendennis Castle to Lizard - Britains most southerly point. The hotel is within walking distance of the historic town and harbour of Falmouth.

Guests enjoy full facilities of the Beach Club with its hi-tech fitness suite, heated indoor pool, spas, steam room, sauna and free tennis. Accomodation is in a well furnished room, suite or apartment many with balconies and sea views.

Falmouth Accommodation Recommendations

We recommend you search the Interent for reviews and the best deals on hotels in Falmouth. Trip Advisor has reviews of all Falmouth Hotel. Searching the internet you can find the best prices and deals.

Popular things to do in Falmouth include Walking, Sailing, Bike rides, Beach Days, Shopping, Bird Watching and Eating Out.

Here is a list of the best attractions in and around Falmouth:

Pendennis Castle

Built by HenryVIII, has defended the anchorage of Carrick Roads for over 450 years. Re-visit the castle's history from Tudor times to the re-fortification in both world wars. Museum and discovery centre with displays of coastal defence armament and access to former secret installations.

Cornwall Maritime Museum

The CMM exhibits the Packet Ship and Oyster Fisheries Galleries; as well as many fine models, maritime artefacts, prints and port records.

Falmouth Art Gallery

Displaying contemporary art and sculpture, prints and drawings, photography and textiles. The permanent collection changes every 6 months, and there are 10 temporary exhibitions a year.

Trebah Garden

Dramatic uniquely beautiful, sub-tropical 26-acre ravine garden running down to private beach on the Helford River. There are water gardens, a koi pool, waterfalls and colour all year round. A paradise for plantsmen, artists and families.

Glendurgan Garden

A valley garden to the Helford River and Durgan. Planted since the 1820's by the Fox family and from 1962 by the National Trust. There is exotic vegetation, with camellias, magnolias, specimen trees, and a laurel maze.

Penjerrick Garden

This is a ten acre uncommercialised garden created by the Fox family in the 19th century. There are Rhododendrons, Camellias, Magnolias and magnificent trees. A bridge takes you to a luxuriant wilder valley with ponds, bamboos and tree ferns all set in a peaceful atmosphere.

Flambards Village

The ideal day out for everybody, whatever their age, tastes or enthusiasms. With more undercover than any other attraction in the South West it doesn't matter what the weather is like. With over 40 attractions ranging from the internationally acclaimed Victorian Village, Britain in the Blitz, Aeropark Collection, Cornwall's Science Centre, Super Family Rides, live entertainment and award winning gardens. Opens mid April. About 25 minutes from Chelsea House Hotel.

Gardens

Visits to the Eden Project, Heligan, Trellisick and Trebah are must do items for anyone interested in gardening. All within easy reach.

The Tate Gallery St Ives

A unique introduction to modern art, where many works can be viewed in the surroundings and atmosphere which inspired them. Just 45 minutes from Chelsea House Hotel

St Michaels Mount

This magical island has a church, a medieval castle (home of the St Aubyn family for over 300 years), an exotic garden clinging to the steep flanks, and an ancient harbour. Open all year and just 40 minutes away by car.

Goonhilly Satellite Station

This the largest Satellite Earth Station in the World, with guided tour and multimedia visitors centre. Half an hour by car from Falmouth

The South West Coastal Path

Falmouth is an ideal base from which to explore the South West Coastal Path.

Royal Cornwall Museum

The largest and liveliest museum in Cornwall based in Truro, just 25 minutes by car or regular bus service from Falmouth Moor

The National Seal Sanctuary

Set in the picturesque Helford Estuary, by the beautiful village of Gweek, in Cornwall, with over 40 years experience in seal rescue, rehabilitation and release. Open all year. Half an hour by car from Falmouth.

Falmouth has a strong maritime tradition; Sir Walter Raleigh first saw the potential for a port here, with its natural strategic advantages. Sir John Killigrew developed the deep-water harbour, and in 1689 it became the base for the Falmouth Packets, which carried the mail to America.

The story of Falmouth really begins back in the 17th Century. A man named Sir John Killigrew created a little town and port at Falmouth in 1613.

With the slow silting up of long standing, further inland, ports Penryn and Truro, accentuated by waste material from mining, the advantages of Falmouth's situation in the deeper water near the mouth of the estuary gave rise to Falmouth's importance as a Port in the years to follow.

In the years 1540-1545 Henry VIII built 2 defensive forts, Pendennis Castle on the Falmouth Peninsula, and St Mawes Castle opposite on the St Mawes headland, which guarded the entrance to Carrick Roads. During the civil war of 1642-1646 Pendennis Castle was the second to last fort held by Royalists to surrender. Nevertheless, after the Civil War, Falmouth town continued to grow.

From 1688 Falmouth was made the Royal Mail packet station. The Falmouth Packet ships began to carry mail to distant parts of the world and as a result Falmouth town boomed.

Fishing has long been a major industry for Falmouth. Fish Strand Quay was built in 1790. And Falmouth is home to the only fishing fleet in the UK that still plies its trade under sail, the Falmouth Working Boats.

Another important industry in Cornwall in the 18th century and early 19th century was smuggling! The Kings Pipe is a brick chimney, which was used to burn tobacco taken from smugglers.

Falmouth developed rapidly until the 1820s when mail delivery was taken over by the Admiralty. The Post Office packet ships stopped leaving Falmouth in 1852. This was a blow to the town but it soon recovered.

However, the advent of the railway reached Falmouth in 1863. The railways brought a new kind of trade to Falmouth as it made it easy for tourists to reach the town. Soon Falmouth was a thriving sea side resort as well as being a busy port.

In 1801 the population of Falmouth was still under 5,000 but by standards back then it was a quite large and important town and port. By the end of the 19th Century the population of Falmouth had more than doubled to over 10,000.

St Anthony's Lighthouse was built at the entrance of the harbour to ward ships away from the danger of the Manacles Rocks in 1835. This was followed by the founding of the Falmouth Docks Company in 1859. Work on the docks began in 1860 and they were soon very busy.

A new Town Hall was built in Falmouth in 1906. During the Second World War 31 people were killed in Falmouth by German bombing. By 1951 Falmouth's population had risen to about 17,000 people.

Today Falmouth is a thriving Cornish Town and is reputedly the 3rd largest natural deep-water harbour in the world with the Fal Estuary offering 12 miles of navigable water with one of it's many tributaries reaching as far as the cathedral city of Truro. The population of Falmouth is over 20,000 people.

The town has retained its importance as a port, with the docks providing services including dry docking for many large shipping lines such as P&O , and Falmouth Bay and Carrick Roads providing sheltered anchorages for ships in rough weather, Pendennis Shipyard which opened in 1989 builds world famous superyachts.

Falmouth has been the starting and finishing port for many famous racers and races, such as Robin Knox Johnston, Ellen Macarther, Mari Chaa IV, J80 Worlds and many others... The Coastguard MRCC Falmouth is the main Coastguard station covering the Atlantic as well as local waters. The ever growing number of pleasure craft visting and the local boats racing enjoy the scenic and tranquil rivers and beaches. However the main industry in Falmouth today is tourism.