Pencarrow House & Gardens

Tucked away between Bodmin and Wadebridge, delightful Pencarrow House & Gardens is a hidden Georgian gem which is also a family home with a Grade II listed garden.

Pencarrow means ‘head of the valley’ or ‘high fort’ so there, of course, is a hill fort along the mile long carriage driveway to the house; in spring the carpet of sweetly-scented bluebells is a spectacular sight to behold.

Inside the house is like stepping back into the past. Period sensitive, it contains portraiture by Sir Joshua Reynolds, but also charming china and porcelain collections, along with fine furniture, marble busts, and an intriguing collection of artefacts and treasures for you to see on the guided tour.

The guides are very knowledgeable and passionate about Pencarrow’s Cornish history, their encyclopaedic memories bringing this well-loved house well and truly to life through anecdotes you would otherwise never know.

You might recognise the house from the screen. It has been used for TV and film in Doc Martin and Fisherman’s Friends, advertisements, and some Rosamunde Pilcher adaptations.

The beautiful 50 acres of grounds, with a lake, are easily – accessible, relaxed, with plenty of benches for you to sit and admire the tree-studded landscape.