Coast Walking with Language Tree

Cornwall has the largest amount of coastline of any county in the UK.

And around this coastline, there is an ancient path that follows the entire Cornish coast!

In fact, it is an uninterrupted path of over 600 miles (or 1000 kilometres), that stretches into the counties of Somerset, Devon and Dorset too.

For many thousands of years, these paths have been trodden by mariners, miners, fishermen, locals and the clergy. Visitors from the Roman Empire trading tin and pirates and smugglers hiding their contraband from Customs & Excise.

This path is now known as The South West Coast Path and it is a special experience to walk these routes and delve into stories of Cornish history and culture.

Our coast walking holidays take you to some of our favourite parts of the coast path full of unforgettable sights and even UNESCO World Heritage sites! In fact, 71% of the Path is in either a National Park or an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

The variety of landscapes along this stretch of coast is incredible. From the north coast with its steep cliffs facing the Atlantic Ocean, to the sheltered south coast with its creeks and woodlands.

Find out more about our coast walking holidays

Family Summer School group walking on the coast path

Did you know...?

The South West Coast Path is England’s longest nature trail.
It has 115,000 feet of ascent and descent. That means that if you walked the whole thing, it’d be the same as scaling Mount Everest four times!
The whole path is more than 1,000 kilometres long. Completing it involves crossing 230 bridges, catching 13 ferries, opening (and closing!) 880 gates, climbing over 436 stiles, passing over 4,000 Coast Path signs and going up or down over 30,000 steps.
Around 71% of the Path is in either a National Park or an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The also passes through 2 World Heritage Sites, a UNESCO Biosphere and a UNESCO Geopark.

Students on a coast walk after a beach clean, Harlyn Bay.

Language Tree walking group enjoying the South West Coast Path at Porthcurno

Language Experience students on a coast walk.

Langauge Tree Junior Summer School students on a coast walk.

Adult students walking through a field on a sunny day.

Walking the coast path

Walking the South West Coast Path has always been part of my life. Since starting Language Tree, it has always been an integral part of our courses too.

Regardless of age, everyone loves our special walks on the coast path 🙂

On our Junior Summer School, we aim for at least one coast walk per week. We usually combine our coast walks for Juniors with our trip to the Minack Theatre or as part of our Beach Cleans.
For adults on our Family Summer School, there is the chance to do one or two extra coast walks while the kids are enjoying surfing or other water sports (though we know some adults prefer to do the water sports with their kids which is fine too!)

For those adults who join us for a Language Experience, there are opportunities to do three or more coast walks per week.
We also offer a special Coast Walk Experience. Every day, we will take you for a different walk on the coast path. At the end of each walk we will finish in local pub for a delicious pub supper.

With such a huge section of the British coastline represented by the South West Coast Path, there are so many different types of walk to choose from. And that’s why our journeys along it are so unique and memorable experience for our students.

Find out more about our coast walking holidays

The South West Coast Path with a cove across the water.

A few of our favourites

There are too many routes to list but you can read more details on some of our favourite coast walks here:

Zennor to St Ives

This coast walk starts in the sleepy little village of Zennor. Hidden away is St Senara’s Church where we can see the story of the Mermaid of Zennor etched into the church pews.

From there we join a dramatic and beautiful stretch of the South West Coast Path that will lead us to St Ives.

It is one of our more challenging walks, but the reward as you turn the corner at Clodgy Point to see St Ives is something special.

The seaside town of St Ives is a perfect finishing point for the walk with wonderful shops, galleries and cafes to explore.

Read our blog post about this walk

Lizard Point to Kynance Cove

This relaxed, easy walk starts at the most southerly point of the UK mainland, Lizard Point. From here, we work our way up along the west coast of the Lizard until we reach the breathtaking views of Kynance Cove.

Along the way, we get to soak in the rare beauty of the Lizard. This is one of the most wild parts of Cornwall. It’s home to incredible biodiversity and some of the most stunning coastline Cornwall has to offer.

We like to remind our coast walkers to bring swimsuits because there’s always a chance for a dip in the sea at Pentreath Beach or Kynance Cove. It’s the perfect way to round out this special walk.

Read our blog post about this walk

Sennen to Land’s End

This walk is suitable for all abilities and is a firm favourite in our summer school programme.

Beginning in the cute surfy town of Sennen, we following the last of the North coast until we reach Land’s End, the most westerly point of the UK.

Students can learn all about the legend of Lyonesse, see an actual shipwreck against the rocks and walk past the historic houses of the lighthouse keepers.

We usually make this walk a part of our trips to the Minack theatre, where we can watch a show backdropped by the sea.

For groups who love to walk, we can complete a loop via Nanjizal, a stunning hidden beach with the iconic Song of the Sea rock formation.

Read our blog post about this walk

Discover the South West Coast Path with us

No two walks are ever the same, so be ready to make entirely unique summer school memories with us. Expect lots of conversation, local knowledge, photo opportunities and discovery along the way.