Hawker's Cove in Cornwall

Who’d have thought that you could find such a quiet spot on the sand, just a stone’s throw from Padstow?

Tucked away along the coastal path (you can walk it from Padstow Harbour), Hawker’s is one of those places you feel reluctant to tell people about – or at least we did…

The walk from Padstow takes about 40 minutes, and your reward is a sheltered spot of sand where there are rock pools for the kids to play about in, gentle waters if they fancy a splash and lots of birdlife milling about.

If you really want to get away from it all, though, how about booking a room at Lellizzick Farmhouse just nearby? It’s walkable from the beach (in the opposite direction from ‘Padstein’) and has a gorgeous garden looking out across fields and along the coast.

The couple that run the place, Rupert and Verity, are really chilled – and can recommend lots of other nearby places to check out.

How about a trip to Jamie Oliver’s restaurant at nearby Watergate Bay?