Home / Itineraries / A weekend of Cornish vineyards
Vineyard itinerary · Cornwall
Cornwall’s vineyards open on different days, so this route starts on a Friday at Camel Valley, which is closed at weekends, and finishes on Saturday above Mount’s Bay. If you have a midweek day to spare, a fourth vineyard waits on St Martin’s in the Isles of Scilly.
Opening days and prices checked on each vineyard’s own website in October 2026. See every Cornwall vineyard for more.
Friday is the day that works for both: Camel Valley opens Monday to Friday only, and Knightor’s cellar door opens Wednesday to Sunday. Its 10.30am tour also runs on Fridays all year.
Morning (10.30am)
Take the 10.30am guided tour of the vines and winery, then a flight of four flagship wines at a table kept for you until 12.30pm. It costs £20 (under-18s £5 with a soft drink) and must be booked ahead; cancellations with less than 48 hours’ notice are not refunded. No dogs except guide dogs, and the shop is closed on Saturdays and Sundays.
Book ahead
Lunch and afternoon
The cellar door near St Austell opens 11am to 4pm, Wednesday to Sunday, with a guided tasting of four wines for £16 or a self-guided flight of wines or vermouths for £11, no booking needed. Cornish cheese plates (£8.50) are best booked ahead. The Sunday winery tour is paused until 2027, and dogs are welcome.
No need to book
Food: Camel Valley has no restaurant, so have lunch at Knightor, where Cornish cheese plates are served from 11am to 3pm alongside wine by the glass. Book a plate ahead in busy weeks.
Getting between them: About 13 miles and 25 to 30 minutes from Camel Valley to Knightor. Ignore the postcode for Knightor and follow the brown signs from the road between Carluddon and the Eden Project.
Drive west to Penzance for Polgoon, whose shop opens every day. Leave the afternoon for Marazion and St Michael’s Mount just along the bay.
Late morning
The shop and deli open Monday to Saturday 9am to 5pm and Sunday 10am to 4pm, selling the wines, ciders and juices. The guided tour of about 90 minutes ends with five wines, and in summer there are self-guided tours with a flight of three; both are booked online, are non-refundable, and the booking calendar shows the days and prices. Use the directions on Polgoon’s website rather than the postcode: stay on the A30 towards Land’s End at the roundabout and look for the small brown grape sign.
Book ahead
Food: In summer, eat at Polgoon’s Vinehouse restaurant and bar; out of season the bar is closed, though the deli in the shop sells snacks. Penzance seafront is a short walk away for more choice.
Getting between them: About 45 miles and roughly an hour from Knightor to Polgoon on the A30.
St Martin’s Vineyard usually opens only on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays in the season, so it cannot follow on from the Saturday above. Plan it as a separate midweek stay of at least one night on Scilly.
Late morning or afternoon
Walk the self-guided trail through the vines above Par Beach, then taste the wines, for £12 (under-16s free, with an adult); there is no need to book. Opening times for the week ahead are posted every Saturday and can change in bad weather, so check before you cross. Well-behaved dogs on leads are welcome.
No need to book
Food: Seating at the vineyard is outdoors, partly covered, with wine by the glass and flights. Higher Town on St Martin’s is a five-minute walk away.
Getting between them: No car needed: take the passenger ferry from Penzance or a flight from Land’s End to St Mary’s, then an inter-island boat to St Martin’s.
Camel Valley’s shop opens Monday to Friday all year, and from October to March its 10.30am tour runs on Mondays and Fridays only, so a Friday still works. Knightor’s cellar door keeps its Wednesday to Sunday hours, and Polgoon’s shop opens daily, with a Christmas market on 21 and 22 November 2026. Polgoon’s bar and summer tours, and St Martin’s on Scilly, are seasonal.
Coming up, from the vineyards’ own websites. All vineyard events.
Christmas
Local stalls selling gifts, wreaths and crafts, with carol singers, mulled wine, mince pies and activities for families.
Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 November · 11am to 3pm · Free entry · Drop in
Christmas
Make a plastic-free wreath from local foliage on a willow base with a local florist. A food pop-up follows in the evening.
Saturday 12 December 2026 · 2pm to 5pm · £35 a head · Book ahead
Christmas
A shared Christmas party with a three-course meal, a disco and a bar open until midnight.
Friday 18 December 2026 · £50 a head plus £7 deposit · Book ahead
Christmas
Mulled wine, live acoustic music and last-minute gift shopping at the winery cellar door.
Thursday 24 December 2026 · Shop 12pm to 4pm, music 1pm to 3pm · Drop in
Polgoon lets Ortega, a three-bedroom cottage for up to six with a garden and hot tub, all year; contact the vineyard for availability. On St Martin’s, the vineyard’s shepherd’s huts are let by the week. Otherwise look in Truro or around St Austell for the first night and in Penzance, Newlyn or Marazion for the second.
Self-catering cottages in Penzance, Newlyn and the surrounding villages, close to Polgoon and the ferry to Scilly.
Camel Valley's morning guided tour of the vines and winery above the River Camel, with a tasting of four wines.
Good to know The same price as booking with Camel Valley, which charges £20 a head.
Yes, but not Camel Valley, which opens Monday to Friday only. Knightor opens Wednesday to Sunday, 11am to 4pm, and Polgoon’s shop opens every day.
The 10.30am guided tour with four wines is £20, or £5 for under-18s. It runs Monday to Friday from April to September and on Mondays and Fridays from October to March, and must be booked ahead.
Not for a guided (£16) or self-guided (£11) tasting at the cellar door. Cheese plates are best booked ahead, and larger groups should email first.
Partly. Polgoon is a 15 to 20 minute walk from Penzance town centre, and Knightor is about 5 miles from St Austell station. Camel Valley is a taxi ride from Bodmin Parkway.
It usually opens on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays in the season, with times for the coming week posted every Saturday. The self-guided tour and tasting is £12 and needs no booking.
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