"I actually prefer it here in Cornwall in the winter," says Cailean Swan, general manager of the Verdant Seafood Bar in Falmouth. I'm on the south Cornish coast that's lovingly nicknamed the Cornish Riviera. It's a crisp wintry day outside, the sun is hazily shining through clouds, and we've just got a table before a late afternoon rush – I can already quickly see the low season's benefits.
Though, it's an opinion that's not shared by most of Cornwall's 4.8 million visitors a year, as only around 20 per cent go during the winter months. Summer visitors spend endless hours on the beach and in the sea, attempting to lap up quickly melting ice creams, cradle fish and chips from belligerent seagulls and jostle for car parking spaces. But as with any UK staycation, May can offer up beaming sunshine, while August can be so soggy that wellies and raincoats règne le jour.
It's true that the seagulls largely outnumber tourists in winter, but less is expected of the weather – anything other than rain is championed as a bonus. So what draws people to this county that usually sees its boom in the summer months? It’s undeniably atmospheric and ethereal, even. Most people are sold on the idea of spending windswept yet halcyon afternoons walking over cliff tops or across vast empty beaches – especially with dogs who are allowed on the sand outside of summer. Surely it's enough to tempt anyone? For Cailean, the attraction lies in "the dramatic cliffs and the slightly moodier skies which gives a real sense of the scale of the place".
St Ives, Padstow, Penzance, Fowey and Falmouth are the most visited places in Cornwall, but Flushing, a small fishing village full of pastel-hued painted houses opposite the maritime hub of Falmouth, is flying much further under the radar.
If you arrive in Flushing by the ferry from Falmouth (so small, it carries just 12 passengers), your first stop should be the newly opened Harbour House pub that's right on the water's edge. It overlooks the busy waterworld of the Penryn River with passing yachts, keen kayakers and little boats bobbing on their moorings.
Owned and renovated by Tamara Costin and William Speed who are from Devon, the pub is as cosy as they come. An open fire sits at each end, a long curved wooden bar takes centre stage (made by a local boatbuilder), the original tiled flooring has been restored, and the walls are an artful mix of bare bricks and on-trend exposed lime plaster.
The duo gravitated towards Flushing to open their third venture (after School House restaurant and Beach House beach cafe, both on the south Devon coast) as they "always had a connection with Flushing. We visited William's family in Falmouth and would get the ferry over to do the Mylor Flushing walk," says Tamara. "We particularly loved the community spirit in Flushing as well as its natural beauty. It's the best of both worlds as you have the countryside and sea as well as the buzz of Falmouth," she adds.
It's a pub to while away sleepy afternoons, so work up an appetite first in the morning and stomp part of the 288-mile Cornish coast path on the circular walk from Mylor to Flushing. Or venture further to The Maritime Museum, Pendennis Castle and Gylly Beach on the other side of the water. Once back on Flushing's side, pick up a weekend paper from Flushing Stores before heading to the pub, and settle in for a mighty roast followed by an evening of local sea shanty singers, which will be a wholesome Sunday well spent.
In the pub's kitchen is head chef Andrew Tuck, who was previously at Cornwall's famed St Kew Inn pub (number 36 in the 'Top 50 Gastro Pubs' list) and earned a reputation for his expertise in cooking over fire. His provenance gives a real taste of the area: grass-fed beef comes from the famed butcher, Phillip Warren; Soul Farm, the community-owned garden in the village, provides salad and greens; and seafood is from Flushing's Sailors Creek fishery – the last in Europe still using sailboats. Run by local Martin Laity, whose family have been in the village for generations, they only catch European native oysters, which have rounder and flatter shells, not rock oysters that are tear-shaped. They're usually always on the menu at Harbour House, and Tamara says they're so popular: "We sell more oysters than beer".
Flushing's roots date back to the 18th century, and it cemented itself as an important village as the home to the packet captains, who operated the world's postal service by sea until the 19th century. Although it's pretty smooth sailing in the village these days, Martin says Flushing had a reputation for being a "bit of a party place" back in the 1970s thanks to the boom of lucrative mackerel fishing. It meant "most of the money earned ended up on the other side of the pub's bar here," he says. The closest the village might get to those heights now is July's annual regatta week.
Obviously, those heady days are over, and tourism has been the main source of income for the village. But people are holidaying differently now and want to create a deeper connection with the place they're in. Sarah Hemsley, head of portfolio at holiday rental company Cornish Gems, says holiday homes are "more than just a beautiful place to stay. It’s about experiences and connections to local places and people". Visitors want to embrace the community and get a true sense of the place with experiences like coastal foraging, Cornish wine-tasting and local chefs who can come and cook for them. It's reflected in where to stay too. Sarah says traditional-style Cornish homes and barn conversions are what visitors are looking for, like Hir Barn at the top of the village and overlooks Falmouth. It's a five-bed modern converted barn with plenty of light and high ceilings, mixing original exposed beams with contemporary interiors.
It's not all about turning houses into lucrative holiday homes in Flushing though. Cornish Gems doesn't take on properties that are under £350k, which could be better used as a family home. Adding to this notion is Lainey Stockman, who's lived in the village for seven years and says Flushing doesn't struggle with empty properties in the same way that other parts of Cornwall do. "It's a good balance here; it's about 75 per cent of people living in the houses, and about 25% owned by people outside of the county," she says.
For visitors, one of the most supportive things to do at any time of year (but especially in low season) is to spend money there. Each Saturday morning the Food Barn operates its collective food market, with around 20 producers stalls and food trucks. The hefty toasties from Bien Manger Cornwall's French food stall are not to be missed and serve as a hearty breakfast.
One of the founders, Martha Wiekens, explains the idea sprouted when restaurant closures meant producers had nowhere to sell their wares. It runs 51 weeks of the year, whatever the weather and sees around 400-500 people come each week from as far as Truro (25-minute drive away).
Although there's still plenty going on at this time of year, it's also the slower pace of life that really comes into its own during the low season. "I like the peace and quiet of winter," says Cailean, who eventually moved from Scotland to Cornwall after years of working summer seasons. "In summer, you don’t get time to sit back and relax and enjoy it all, which is what winter brings," he adds.
When it's quieter, it's easier to get a booking at the ever-popular Verdant Seafood Bar, where Cailean works. It's tiny inside, and for this reason, it doesn't take bookings. If it did, locals likely wouldn't be able to get a table during the busy summer. But by offering tables for walin-ins only, holidaymakers are getting the same experience as locals and people happily queue outside for a table.
Away from restaurants, pubs and beach walks, a new growing trend is hitting the shores that are perfect for winter – Nordic sauna culture. It sees saunas popping up along the coast.
Henry Miller, Steve French and Luke Culkin, who are all from Polzeath, co-founded Saunas By The Sea, which are currently at Baby Bay, New Polzeath and Harlyn Bay, Padstow. They wanted to promote wellbeing and healthy living in their area and do something that would be popular in both seasons and with locals too. "During the summer it's about 70 per cent holidaymakers to 30 per cent locals using them, but come winter, that inverts and we run 12 months of the year," says Henry.
Although the saunas sit on the beach, a sea dip isn't compulsory. But if you do want to brave it, Henry's preferred system is to start with a swim, then head to the sauna and finish with a swim, as it "gets the endorphins going and wakes you up, instead of leaving you feeling sleepy," he says.
One side of the sauna is a large aspect window that frames the beachside view, so it feels less claustrophobic than a normal sauna. "When you're inside, it’s a serene and tranquil experience. It’s so well insulated if there's a storm outside, you can’t hear anything outside, and it’s almost like watching a movie," Henry adds.
Further down in Penzance, the art Deco Jubilee Pool is open-air and full of chilly seawater. It now has a geothermal pool that's much easier to get into for those who aren't experienced cold water swimmers, with a bath-like temperature that sits comfortably between 30 and 35 degrees. For the bravest swimmers who are in Cornwall over the festive period, the ultimate challenge is the traditional festive sea swims, covering locations along the coast from Falmouth to Bude. It sees hundreds of people dash into the sea without wetsuits, plunge underwater and run back out again. It's a memorable – and invigorating – way to start Christmas Day, if ever there was one.
Cornwall has always been viewed as the quintessential British summer destination. But to see it as just that, and not to experience its year-round beauty, is to not really see it at all.