Gardens and grounds
Your own beach, your own cove, your own tennis court. The chance to spot foxes and badgers. With wild ponies foaling in spring. Nature brings its own overload to Surrounded by Sea, home to abundant wild flowers and migratory birds that wheel above the cove as the waves roll endlessly in.
Wild-swim in the cove around dolphins and seals, dive among wrecks, eat out on the terrace under the stretch tent to the call of the gulls and the sound of the waves breaking below. Play tennis on your own private court and croquet on the clifftop lawn. Then head to the terrace for a barbie and a sundowner beneath a glittering sky.
Living spaces
Life at Surrounded by Sea is all about an explosion of nature, with waves washing the shore and foxes and badgers among the wild flora. But behind the thick, thick walls, built to keep out Napoleon, you’ll find oodles of wow, all wrapped up in a sense of harmony and peace that not even a French general and his massed forces can disturb.
Even indoors here, the outside beckons. The windows gaze out over the waves that wash the cove. The logs crackle in spaces hewn from the natural world: stone and brick, while granite staircases spiral towards vaulted ceilings, so you feel a quiet spiritual connection with the outdoors at every step.
Spectacular spaces include the 80-foot-long vaulted entertaining room. Catch Sky, Netflix, Now TV and Amazon Prime on the 70” TV. Let kids dig into toys, books and DVDs, stream the Zen Wi-Fi, make sweet music with the Bluetooth speakers and the digital piano. Hit the games tent for pool, table football or table tennis.
Cooking and dining
This is a wedding venue, so you’ll have enough tables and chairs, but you’ll probably just need the two dozen you can get around the dining table or out on the terrace beneath the stretch tent above the crashing waves. Cook on the coal barbecue and eat your steak out in the briny air beneath the wheeling seabirds.
Inside, the wow continues in the shape of big commercial ovens with ten gas hob rings and large grill. Stock up the industrial-sized fridge with deliveries from Waitrose and goodies from The Old Bakery. Keep your drinks cool in the wine chiller in the Napoleonic Hall. Ditch the lot in the dishwasher when you’re done.
Need to be waited on, foot, hand and mouth? Call up our pro chefs for a one-off special celebration or a fully catered break. Why not head out to The Devonport Inn for real ales, fine wines and lightly baked Cornish pasties or real ale and homemade delights at The Rising Sun.
Fancy a restaurant meal? Try the handpicked crab sandwich or the Cornish seafood chowder at The Bay Bar and Restaurant or the Canteen at Maker Heights, a little off the beaten track on top of the last hill on the Rame Peninsula, but serving fresh, vibrant food in old wartime barrack buildings.
Bedrooms
Wherever you choose to sleep here, you’ll be lulled into slumber by the ever-present waves that lap the south-Cornwall shoreline. You’ll also enjoy Vi-Spring beds and the chance to bag a four-poster. But be quick.
On the main floor, bedroom one offers a superking bed and a double sofa bed, and comes with an en-suite shower room that’s suitable for disabled use. Bedroom two, with en-suite bathroom, provides a superking bed and four single pop-ups, while bedroom three (usually the bridal suite) provides a four-poster superking with en-suite bathroom.
On the lower floor, bedroom four offers a single bed and shares a shower room with bedroom eight. Bedroom five is an en-suite with a four-poster, while bedroom six is another en-suite with four-poster and double sofa bed. En-suite bedroom seven comes with a superking and two singles, and bedroom eight is another single.
Children welcome
A world of nature awaits kids at Surrounded by Sea. A truly wild time begins with wildlife-spotting in a place almost surrounded by sea. Wild-swim in the protected cove below the garden, discover rare flowers, spot deer, hedgehogs and wild ponies. Look out for foxes, badgers and bats, and dolphins and seals in the sea.
This world of nature comes all wrapped up in a Napoleonic fort with eight-foot-thick walls, cannon and its own drawbridge. Free-range kids here can walk the South West Coast Path towards Rame Head or Looe, kick a ball around the lawn that sits atop the rocks, or play tennis on the clifftop court with sea views.
Stay out there all night for a barbecue on the rooftop terrace under the stretch tent to the backdrop of calling seabirds. Get fed out on the terrace under the stretch tent to the sound of the shoreline waves. When darkness descends, stay up past bedtime to see a gazillion sparkling stars.
Indoors, the games room offers pool, table tennis and table footie, and a 70” telly beams a full Sky package, Netflix, Now TV and Amazon Prime Video into the log-lit room. Stream fast on Zen Internet Unlimited or fill your time with toys, books and DVDs. Keep the music coming on the Bluetooth or make your own on the digital piano.
What people say
Gin, clay and surf
Walk the coast path to Rame or Looe, tour Plymouth Gin Distillery, shoot clay at Cart Ridge. Or fire for a low score at Whitsand Bay Golf Course. Recover with pampering from Sarah of Cornwall Ayurveda onsite or have her lead a yoga session. Kids can ride the waves with Adventure Bay Surf School, burn off energy at Adrenalin Quarry or just hang out on the beach below.
