Padstow is small enough that you can easily cover it by foot in a morning. The high street is great fodder for mooching around, with a nice mix of independent and mainstream shops. There are one or two well-priced clothing boutiques, as well as art galleries and a standard clutch of quaint fudge and postcard outposts.

There are plenty of boat rides to be had from the local harbour, or you could hop on a ferry to Rock over the estuary – home-place of Sharp’s brewery, who make the brilliant Doombar (so named for the treacherous sand bank in the estuary that has waylaid a number of boats in its time). A really nice way of getting to grips with the coastal landscape is to hire a bike and head along the Camel Trail to Wadebridge. This is an easy and flat but exhilarating route, affording a front-seat view of the rugged North Cornish coastline. If you’re feeling energetic, you could even head to Camel Valley Vineyard, located further down the route and the setting for one of England’s finest sparkling wine alchemists.

Cooking up a seafood feast in Padstow, Cornwall