What is the cancellation policy for this tour?

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

How long does this tour take?

Please check the tour page for the exact duration.

Driving Tour of West Cornwalls Ancient Roads

Q: Where does this tour start?

This tour starts at: This tour starts at Heliport Retail Park - B&M Car Park. Before arrival, please install the mobile app and use the code provided on your confirmation ticket. Detailed starting point instructions are available after downloading..

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Overview

West Cornwall has more history per mile than almost anywhere else in Britain. On this self-guided audio driving tour, you’ll trace the deep roots of Kernow, a Celtic kingdom with its own language, legends, and hard-won identity. You’ll make your way through coastal villages, prehistoric monuments, and the ruins of an industry that once powered the world. The tour starts at Penzance – a working port that gave the world both a famous opera and Humphry Davy, the scientist who discovered laughing gas and its possible use as an anaesthetic. You’ll drive through Poldark country at Porthgwarra Cove and arrive at Land’s End, where legend says a drowned kingdom called Lyonesse once stretched toward the Isles of Scilly. The tour ends at Lanyon Quoit, a Neolithic chambered tomb on the open West Penwith moorland, with wide views across the peninsula.

Gallery

Driving Tour of West Cornwalls Ancient Roads — photo 1

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What's Included

✓ Included

Lifetime access to this tour in English before your booking date and after it
Offline access to audio, maps, and geodata
Flexibility to explore at your own pace with a self-guided GPS tour
App for Android and iOS
Directions to the starting point so that when you’re in the right place, the tour will start

✗ Not Included

Smartphone and headphones
Transportation
Food and drink
Personal expenses for admission fees not included during the tour

Itinerary

Stop 1

Marvel at this extraordinary tidal island rising dramatically from the waters of Mount's Bay, crowned by a medieval monastery and fortress that has served as castle, priory, and family home across eight centuries. Explore the cobbled harbour village at its base and discover how this iconic silhouette shifts shape with every change of light, tide, and angle.

Stop 2

Drive through this impossibly charming fishing village, its granite cottages clustered tightly around one of Cornwall's most picturesque harbours. Hear the beloved story of the Mousehole Cat, the local legend that has made this tiny village known to generations of children far beyond the Cornish coast.

Stop 3

Gaze at this remarkably well-preserved Bronze Age stone circle, nineteen granite blocks standing in near-perfect formation on the open West Penwith landscape. Discover the Christian folk story bolted onto this ancient monument centuries too late, and consider the far older rituals that drew people to this windswept field long before Cornwall had a name.

Stop 4

Marvel at this breathtaking open-air theatre carved into the granite clifftop above the Atlantic, one of the most dramatic performance venues anywhere in the world. Explore the terraced seating hewn from the rock and enjoy the staggering views across the sea that form the backdrop to every performance staged here.

Stop 5

Stare at the westernmost tip of mainland Britain, where the Atlantic crashes against the cliffs and the horizon stretches toward the Isles of Scilly and the drowned kingdom of Lyonesse beyond. Enjoy one of the most photogenic and elemental landscapes in Britain, where the sheer scale of the ocean makes the rest of the world feel very far away.

Stop 6

Admire these iconic clifftop engine houses, perched on the very edge of the Atlantic in one of the most dramatic industrial landscapes in Europe. Explore the ruins of a tin and copper mining operation that once extended its shafts far beneath the seabed, its pumping engines audible above the sound of the waves.

Stop 7

Drive past this mysterious Bronze Age monument, three ancient granite stones arranged in a unique formation with a perfectly holed centre stone that has puzzled archaeologists and enchanted visitors for centuries. Discover the extraordinary folklore surrounding this enigmatic site, where locals once passed sick children through the hole in the hope of a cure.

Stop 8

Marvel at this striking Neolithic chambered tomb, a massive granite capstone balanced on three upright stones that have stood on the open West Penwith moorland for over 4,000 years. Enjoy the wide, sweeping views across the peninsula and reflect on the ancient civilisation that hauled these vast stones into place long before the first written word.

Meeting & End Point

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Meeting Point

This tour starts at Heliport Retail Park - B&M Car Park. Before arrival, please install the mobile app and use the code provided on your confirmation ticket. Detailed starting point instructions are available after downloading.

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End Point

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Good to Know

Wheelchair accessible
Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Suitable for all physical fitness levels

Known For:

Bus Tours in Newquay, Cultural Tours in Newquay, 4WD Tours in Newquay, Private and Luxury in Newquay, Audio Guides in Newquay, Private Sightseeing Tours in Newquay, Car Tours in Newquay, Historical Tours in Newquay

Special Instructions

VOICEMAP CODE
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Please check your email at the address you provided when you made this booking. You've been sent an eight character code you'll need to redeem your tour.

DOWNLOAD INSTRUCTIONS

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Once you've received your code, please follow these steps:

Install the VoiceMap Audio Tours mobile app

Create an account

Select Tour Codes from the menu, then select Enter Codes

Enter your code then select Download Now

PLEASE NOTE
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You can download the tour at any time, before or after your booking date. It’s best to download the tour before you set off for the starting point.

This tour follows a set route and includes turn-by-turn directions. It works best if you start it in the right place and follow the directions from one location to the next.

When the download completes, you’ll see a screen with a photo of the starting point and directions to it. The red start button will become active when you are at the starting point.

Remember to bring your own headphones, unless you have booked a driving tour.

SUPPORT
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For technical support and other queries, please email support@voicemap.me