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Eden Project, St Austell (Bodelva)

Companionship careCornwall

Days out in Cornwall for an older parent

Nine places in Cornwall that make a good day out for an older parent, from Eden Project to Bude Canal and Marshes. For each one: what its own access information confirms, what it costs, how long to allow, and the carers nearby who drive and could take them.

Researched by PrimeCarers from each place’s own website and access information  ·  Updated September 2026

Eden Project. Photo: Jürgen Matern, CC BY-SA 2.5

Nine days out across eight towns

The best places to take an older parent in Cornwall

Four of them are free to visit or to walk around. The access information for four confirm an accessible toilet. Where a place does not publish its access, we say so.

Eden Project, St Austell (Bodelva)

Photo: Jürgen Matern, CC BY-SA 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons

Garden · St Austell (Bodelva)

Eden Project

The Eden Project is a huge garden built in a worked out china clay pit just outside St Austell, with two covered Biomes holding rainforest and Mediterranean planting. Outdoors there are landscaped gardens, sculpture and planting to walk through, plus the Core exhibition building, shops and places to eat under cover if the weather turns.

Manual and powered wheelchairs can be borrowed free at the Apple car parks and all toilets offer accessible facilities, and because the route down from the car park is a slope of about 400 metres the carer can use the drop off point at Apple 1 or ring the access line to arrange help.

Time to allow
A full day
Cost
Paid entry, personal assistants get in free

What their access information confirms

  • Partly step-free
  • Accessible toilet
  • Wheelchairs to borrow
  • Blue Badge parking

Their websiteAccess information

Carers who drive, based near St Austell (Bodelva)

Trengwainton Garden, Penzance

Photo: David Hawgood, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Garden · Penzance

Trengwainton Garden

Trengwainton is a National Trust woodland garden on the edge of Penzance, with walled kitchen gardens, streams, ponds and views over Mount's Bay. There is a plant collection to look round, a café in its own walled garden, a shop and a second hand bookshop in the old head gardener's cottage.

There are accessible toilets in the car park, at the café and in the garden, an all terrain wheelchair to borrow free if booked ahead, and the carer should know the garden runs half a mile on a steady incline with tarmac and gravel paths, so a drop off near reception is worth asking for.

Time to allow
Half a day
Cost
Paid entry, free to National Trust members

Access

Their website does not set out its access in detail, so ring ahead about parking, paths and toilets.

Their website

National Maritime Museum Cornwall, Falmouth

Photo: Tim Green, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Museum · Falmouth

National Maritime Museum Cornwall

This museum on Discovery Quay in Falmouth tells the story of Cornwall and the sea, with historic small boats, the Tin Ticket gallery, changing exhibitions and a tidal window looking under the water of the harbour. A lookout tower gives long views over Falmouth harbour and the Carrick Roads.

The museum says it is fully accessible to wheelchair users, with level access at the entrance and all five levels reached by lift or ramp, wheelchair accessible toilets and a self propelled wheelchair to borrow, so a visit can be broken up with a sit down in the Waterside Café.

Time to allow
Half a day
Cost
Paid entry

Access

Their website does not set out its access in detail, so ring ahead about parking, paths and toilets.

Their website

Carers who drive, based near Falmouth

Pendennis Castle, Falmouth

Photo: Willhsmit, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Castle · Falmouth

Pendennis Castle

Pendennis Castle stands on the headland above Falmouth, with Henry VIII's round keep at its centre and later gun batteries, a First World War exhibition and a Second World War guardhouse around it. There are volunteer led gun talks, a Discovery Centre with tactile exhibits, wide lawns for a picnic and views across to St Mawes Castle.

English Heritage says there is disabled parking and a drop off point at the castle gates, with a lift to the first floor of the Royal Artillery Barrack Block and benches around the site, although the keep itself is reached only by steps and spiral staircases so it is best left out.

Time to allow
Half a day
Cost
Paid entry, free to English Heritage members

What their access information confirms

  • Blue Badge parking

Their websiteAccess information

Carers who drive, based near Falmouth

Tate St Ives, St Ives

Photo: Marika Reinholds, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Gallery · St Ives

Tate St Ives

Tate St Ives is a gallery above Porthmeor Beach showing modern and contemporary art, including artists who worked in Cornwall such as Alfred Wallis, Ben Nicholson and Peter Lanyon. Displays change through the year, free staff led tours are included in the ticket, and the top floor café and roof terrace look out over the beach and the sea.

There is a ramp into the main entrance and lifts suitable for wheelchair users serving all gallery floors, three wheelchairs can be reserved free with a day's notice, and folding stools and seating in the galleries mean there is always somewhere to rest.

Time to allow
An hour or two
Cost
Paid entry

What their access information confirms

  • Partly step-free
  • Accessible toilet
  • Wheelchairs to borrow
  • Café

Their website

Truro Cathedral, Truro

Photo: Tim Green, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Cathedral · Truro

Truro Cathedral

Truro Cathedral is a Gothic Revival cathedral in the middle of the city, finished in 1910, with tall stained glass windows, the Father Willis organ and the older St Mary's aisle built into its south side. Entry is free, there are guided and virtual tours, a gift shop and a restaurant and coffee shop, and choir services and recitals are often on.

There is ramp access at the front on High Cross, a wheelchair kept by the ramp entrance for visitors to use and an accessible toilet near the Chapter House, and as it sits in the city centre the carer can combine it with a short flat walk and lunch nearby.

Time to allow
An hour or two
Cost
Free entry, donations welcome

What their access information confirms

  • Partly step-free
  • Accessible toilet
  • Wheelchairs to borrow

Their websiteAccess information

Carers who drive, based near Truro

Camel Trail, Wadebridge and Padstow

Photo: Sludge G, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Nature reserve · Wadebridge and Padstow

Camel Trail

The Camel Trail is an 18 mile traffic free path on a disused railway line linking Wenfordbridge, Bodmin, Wadebridge and Padstow, with the Wadebridge to Padstow section running beside the Camel estuary. Cornwall Council manages it, the surface is made up and virtually level, and there is an accessible bird hide beside the trail near Wadebridge for watching waders and wildfowl.

The council describes the trail as surfaced, virtually level and suitable for wheelchair users, so a carer can drive to Wadebridge or Padstow, go out as far as suits and turn back, with toilets at Wadebridge and in Padstow town centre and refreshments at Padstow and the old Quarry on the way.

Time to allow
Half a day
Cost
Free to use

Access

Their website does not set out its access in detail, so ring ahead about parking, paths and toilets.

Their website

Carers who drive, based near Wadebridge and Padstow

Mount Edgcumbe House and Country Park, Torpoint (Cremyll)

Photo: Derek Harper, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Historic house · Torpoint (Cremyll)

Mount Edgcumbe House and Country Park

Mount Edgcumbe is a Tudor style house rebuilt after wartime damage, set in a country park of 865 acres on the Rame Peninsula looking across Plymouth Sound. The park is free and open every day, with formal Italian, French and English gardens in the lower park, the Orangery restaurant, follies and long coastal views, while the house and its exhibition rooms open in the main season.

There is a disabled car park on the driveway to the house, accessible toilets at the Orangery restaurant and the main car parks, and a passenger lift inside the house, so the formal gardens and the Orangery can be visited without tackling the steeper park paths.

Time to allow
Half a day
Cost
Country park free, house and gardens charged

What their access information confirms

  • Accessible toilet
  • Café

Their websiteAccess information

Carers who drive, based near Torpoint (Cremyll)

Bude Canal and Marshes, Bude

Photo: Derek Voller, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Coast · Bude

Bude Canal and Marshes

The Bude Canal runs inland from the harbour and beach in the middle of Bude, with a level surfaced towpath of about two and a half miles up the valley to Helebridge past working locks. Alongside it Bude Marshes Local Nature Reserve has reedbed and wet grassland where herons, kingfishers, ducks and swans are often seen from a wheelchair accessible bird hide.

Cornwall Council describes a gentle stroll along an accessible towpath, so the carer can park on the Crescent by the tourist information centre, walk as far along the flat water's edge as suits and use the bird hide as a sheltered place to sit and look.

Time to allow
An hour or two
Cost
Free, pay and display car park on the Crescent

Access

Their website does not set out its access in detail, so ring ahead about parking, paths and toilets.

Their website

Carers who drive, based near Bude

Regular groups and events in Cornwall

Something to go back to every week or every year, from our research into what older people enjoy doing in Cornwall.

  • Music · MouseholeMale voice choir concerts in west CornwallMousehole Male Voice Choir, founded in the fishing village near Penzance, rehearses regularly and publishes a concert list that takes in village halls and chapels across west Cornwall. A carer could check the concerts page, book seats near an exit and drive to the venue so the evening does not depend on buses.Details
  • Dancing · HelstonFlora Day and the Furry DanceEvery 8 May, Helston dances the Furry Dance through the streets and in and out of buildings, with dancers in formal dress and the Flora Day band playing the traditional tune. A carer could find a seat or kerbside spot on the flatter part of the town early, before the crowds build for the midday dance.Details
  • Reading · FoweyThe du Maurier Fowey Literary FestivalA long running festival of author talks, walks and music held in Fowey each May, growing out of the town's association with Daphne du Maurier. A carer could book seated indoor talks in advance and arrange parking or a drop-off, as Fowey's streets are steep and narrow.Details
  • Sports · TruroBowls at Truro City Bowling ClubAn established Truro club offering lawn bowls and short mat bowls, with membership and roll-up sessions for players of different standards. A carer could handle transport and carry the woods, so the outing is playing or watching and the tea afterwards.Details
  • VolunteeringVolunteering with Cornwall Wildlife TrustThe county wildlife trust lists volunteering roles across Cornwall, from practical reserve work to record keeping, events and office support. A carer can help filter the list for tasks that suit sitting down or short sessions and arrange lifts to the site.Details
  • Volunteering · TruroFinding a role through Volunteer CornwallVolunteer Cornwall, based in Truro with outreach across the county, recruits and places volunteers in roles including befriending, driving, admin and supporting older people. A carer could sit with the older person to register and shortlist opportunities close to home.Details

Hobbies and carers who share them in Cornwall

At a glance

The nine places side by side

What each place’s own access information confirms. “Ask” means it does not say, not that it is missing.

PlaceTimeCostStep-freeToiletCafé
Eden ProjectSt Austell (Bodelva)a full dayPaid entryPartlyYesAsk
Trengwainton GardenPenzancehalf a dayPaid entryAskAskAsk
National Maritime Museum CornwallFalmouthhalf a dayPaid entryAskAskAsk
Pendennis CastleFalmouthhalf a dayPaid entryAskAskAsk
Tate St IvesSt Ivesan hour or twoPaid entryPartlyYesYes
Truro CathedralTruroan hour or twoFreePartlyYesAsk
Camel TrailWadebridge and Padstowhalf a dayFreeAskAskAsk
Mount Edgcumbe House and Country ParkTorpoint (Cremyll)half a dayFree outside, paid insideAskYesYes
Bude Canal and MarshesBudean hour or twoFreeAskAskAsk

Where the places are in Cornwall

The county’s boundary, numbered as on this page, with the main towns for reference.

BodminSt JustLauncestonHayleLooePadstow123456789
  1. 1Eden Project, St Austell (Bodelva)
  2. 2Trengwainton Garden, Penzance
  3. 3National Maritime Museum Cornwall, Falmouth
  4. 4Pendennis Castle, Falmouth
  5. 5Tate St Ives, St Ives
  6. 6Truro Cathedral, Truro
  7. 7Camel Trail, Wadebridge and Padstow
  8. 8Mount Edgcumbe House and Country Park, Torpoint (Cremyll)
  9. 9Bude Canal and Marshes, Bude

What it costs

What a day out with a carer costs in Cornwall

Carers in Cornwall charge £19 to £22 an hour through PrimeCarers, typically £20, with our fee included. A four-hour outing is about £80 for the carer’s time. Entry, food and parking are extra, and travel costs are only payable if you agree them with the carer in advance, in writing. The cost of home care in Cornwall has the full figures.

Photographs on this page are from Wikimedia Commons, credited under each one.

Questions

Questions families ask about days out in Cornwall

Eden Project in St Austell (Bodelva), Trengwainton Garden in Penzance, National Maritime Museum Cornwall in Falmouth, Pendennis Castle in Falmouth, Tate St Ives in St Ives, Truro Cathedral in Truro, Camel Trail in Wadebridge and Padstow, Mount Edgcumbe House and Country Park in Torpoint (Cremyll) and Bude Canal and Marshes in Bude. Each has its own section on this page with what its access information confirms, the cost and how long to allow.

Eden Project, Tate St Ives, Truro Cathedral and Mount Edgcumbe House and Country Park have an accessible toilet. Eden Project, Tate St Ives and Truro Cathedral lend wheelchairs. Access changes, so ring ahead about anything your parent depends on.

Truro Cathedral, Camel Trail, Mount Edgcumbe House and Country Park (outside free, inside paid) and Bude Canal and Marshes. Parking is often charged even where entry is free.

Yes. A companion carer can drive your parent there, walk at their pace, help with the toilet and meals, and bring them home. 13 of the carers with a rate near Cornwall drive. Visits are booked by the hour, typically £20 an hour here with our fee included. Companionship care in Cornwall shows who is available.

Often. Many attractions let a carer or companion in free, or at a reduced price, with a disabled visitor, and some ask for proof such as a letter or a benefit award. It varies, so check each place’s access or prices page before you go.

Where the nearest carers live

From the profiles of the carers based within about 45 minutes of Cornwall

Where the nearest carers live. A carer close to home can manage a longer day out.

Companionship care in the counties around Cornwall

Days out in the areas around Cornwall

Companionship care by town in Cornwall

Each town page shows the carers who list it as home, with their rates and reviews.

Find a carer who could take them out in Cornwall

See carers near Cornwall who drive, with their photos, interests, rates and reviews. Talking to them is free and nothing is booked until you say so.

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