Cornwall

Cornwall juts into the Atlantic like a defiant fist, and the sea defines everything here. The north coast is wild — surf beaches backed by towering cliffs, the roar of waves, the salt-crusted car parks of Newquay, Polzeath, and Sennen. The south coast is gentler — hidden coves, subtropical gardens fed by the Gulf Stream, fishing villages where the boats still go out at dawn.

St Ives is the artistic heart, its light so particular that Barbara Hepworth and Ben Nicholson relocated here and the Tate built a gallery overlooking Porthmeor Beach. The South West Coast Path traces the entire coastline — 630 miles of the most spectacular walking in England, with every headland revealing another cove. Padstow is the food capital, transformed by Rick Stein’s restaurants into a destination for seafood lovers. The Minack Theatre — an open-air amphitheatre carved into the cliffs above Porthcurno — stages performances with the Atlantic as its backdrop.

When to go: May through June for wildflowers on the cliffs and quieter beaches. July and August for swimming weather. September for surf season.