As I was going to St Ives, I recited the classic rhyme for my daughter – and waited for her to fall into the trap. And as I was leaving St Ives, after her too short first visit, I was determined to return again soon to make the most of all there is to do in St Ives with kids.
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Known for its surf beaches and its art – the light in this part of Cornwall inspired a whole school of painting – St Ives has plenty of the classic Cornish temptations that make the county perfect for a family holiday, from seaside walks to fun on the sand (and pasties).
But with some less well-known attractions to discover, including ideas for rainy days in St Ives, here’s why you should plan a holiday in St Ives with kids.
Check out my complete guide to Cornwall with kids, as well as my downloadable ebook version of the guide
Hit the beach
Like much of Cornwall, you’ve got a string of gorgeous beaches to choose from but if you’re looking for the best beaches in St Ives with kids, my own three favourites are helpfully three of the easiest to get to.
Porthgwidden Beach is one of the smaller ones, lined with brightly coloured beach huts (and a café), plus rocks to clamber over between sandcastles.
Or head to Porthmeor Beach, not far from Tate St Ives. One of the best places to learn to surf (more on that below), it’s a longer stretch of golden sand with rockpools and a fantastic café above the sands with activity books to entertain kids and a fabulous chocolate tart on the menu.
In summer, there are sometimes cinema screenings on the beach too.
Porthminster Beach is another favourite for families, especially with younger kids. At low tide, the shallow water is just right for paddling, there are lots of places to get food and drink, and plenty of sand to play and build sand fortresses on.
There are a few dog-friendly beaches in St Ives year-round, but most have restrictions during the summer months.
Search for sea glass
The town’s central beach, Harbour beach, has its own temptations as it’s a great place to search for sea glass at low tide.
Picking the smoothed off fragments of long-shattered bottles, bleached to faded blues, greens and whites always makes me wonder what story lies behind the find.
If you’re very lucky, you might even spot some Lego lost at sea, the remnants of five million pieces in a container washed off the cargo vessel Tokio Express in 1997 by a freak wave.
The current tends to take most finds – including pirates and the occasional Lego octopus – to other points on the Cornish shore, but you never know… (plus anything you do find removes another piece of plastic from the sea).
Go for a walk
There are some fantastic walks along the coast around St Ives, and they’re doable even with younger children.
Blue Flag beach Carbis Bay is just a mile east of St Ives, part of the South West Coast path – you can take the train back if little legs get too tired.
I always love getting tips from local accommodation companies too for things to do: St Ives Holidays have been based in St Ives for 50 years, so they’ve had time to hunt out the best, as well as collecting some gorgeous holiday cottages perfect for families.
Their ideas for easy circular routes include a three-mile wander west towards Zennor, another great option to get outdoors in St Ives with kids.
Or you can also find longer options along the beautiful coast down to Pendeen if you want a challenge.
Check out the Southwest coast path website too which lets you choose walks aimed at families. You can put a maximum length and choose the difficulty rating, as well as get tips on whether it’s suitable if you’re pushing a buggy.
For a walk with a difference, check out the walking tours from Shanty Baba including a ghost walk, pirate walk and one themed around Cornish folklore.
Go surfing
Cornwall is one of the best places in the UK to go surfing and one of the county’s top surf schools is based here if you fancy trying surfing in St Ives with kids.
The St Ives surf school, based on Porthmeor and Porthminster beaches run lessons as well as offering coasteering, kayak tours and stand-up paddle boarding, so there are plenty of options if you’re visiting St Ives with teens.
Absolute beginners are welcome and kids aged under 10 can also join surf sessions as long as they’re supervised by a parent or guardian, although there may be age restrictions for some of the other watersports depending which activity you choose.
Take a boat tour
There are a string of boat tours from St Ives which will take you around the coast or out to spot wildlife on the waves.
St Ives boat trips has several options which are suitable for kids, including a one-hour sea safari to seal island, as well as a 90-minute tour in a restored lifeboat to learn more of the area’s history and spy the lighthouse from the sea.
Or board the Four Sisters from St Ives Boat Services for another choice of sea safaris and seal spotting trips, with kids go free if you book an off-peak trip (max two).
For something more adrenaline-fuelled, Blue Thunder RIB tours includes a 25-minute blast around the harbour as well as longer trips.
Visit Tate St Ives
The Cornish branch of the Tate, one of only a few in the UK outside London, specialises in modern British art – with plenty for kids to do as well.
There is an entry charge for adults of £9.50 (and £1 for any activities) but it’s free for under-18s.
The gallery’s website has tips on games you can play as you’re exploring, as well as details of the facilities if you’re visiting Tate St Ives with a baby.
There are also often special family activities and events on at Tate St Ives, especially during the school holidays.
Walk along the pier
Head to Smeatons Pier and you can get some fantastic views back to St Ives itself – but it’s also a great place for a stroll.
A working pier rather than a pleasure pier, you can still watch fishing boats sailing back towards the harbour, occasionally trailed by seals hoping for some of the catch to be thrown overboard – check out more ideas for where to spy seals below.
Built in the 18th century from a design by civil engineer John Smeaton, it was originally 120m long with Smeaton’s lighthouse at the end, before being extended to almost double its length in the 1890s with a new lighthouse added.
Explore St Ives Museum
If you’re looking for ideas for rainy days in St Ives, Cornwall history is on display at the St Ives Museum, particularly exhibits on local fishing, farming and mining.
There are activity sheets for children too, which cost 20p, as well as tiny models of cats and kittens scattered among the display cases for younger kids to find – a nod to the famous rhyme, ‘As I was going to St Ives’.
Of course you don’t need a rainy day to visit – it’s just £5 for adults and free for kids, so it’s great for a short visit or if you’re looking for cheap things to do in St Ives. Open from April to October.
For more ideas on things to do in Cornwall in the rain with kids, check out my top picks here
Crafting at Barnoon Workshop
My daughter would happily spend all day drawing, crafting, painting and generally getting artistic – and where better to try this than around St Ives.
At the Barnoon Workshop in the heart of St Ives, there are various arts and crafts activities that you can try with kids, some specifically aimed at families and others which would appeal to artistic teens.
I first came across the workshop on the lovely blog Otis and Us, where Katy and her girls made shell mobiles, as well as painting shells and threading beads. Also a great option when you need things to do in St Ives in the rain.
Pick up souvenirs
If you’re not making your own souvenirs to take home, you can find some lovely independent shops throughout the cobbled streets of the town – don’t miss the Drill Hall on Chapel Street too.
Once a Methodist chapel, it’s now been converted to house Café Art with exhibitions and events (and good coffee!), as well as shops such as Raar Emporium selling gorgeous toys.
Spot seals
In summer, you’ll find seal spotting boats galore – including trips out to Seal Island, one of the little rocky isles just off St Ives, where (unsurprisingly) there are lots of Atlantic grey seals to be seen.
At some times of year you can spot basking sharks, sunfish and dolphins in the waves too.
Otherwise, one of the best places to see seals is Godrevy Head – and if you’re visiting St Ives in winter, you’ve actually got one of the best chances as there are bigger numbers in the colder months (although you can see them year-round).
Head to Mutton Cove at Godrevy Point and look down from the cliffs to the beach to see them lying on the sand.
Discover subtropical gardens
Everyone needs a little green oasis to retreat to at times, and Trewyn Subtropical Gardens are enough of a local secret that you can find a peaceful spot among the subtropical plants.
Just between Richmond Place and Bedford Road, it’s a lovely place to sit with a picnic in spring with the blossom flowering (and escape some of the seagulls) as well as to enjoy the view out across the nearby church. It’s also home to a memorial to sculptor Barbara Hepworth.
Not far away from Trewyn gardens are the Barbara Hepworth Museum and Sculpture Gardens, where she sculpted and where her bronze creations still stand among the plants.
Go for a walk in the woods
There’s more to discover than just the coast near St Ives with kids – venture a little outside the town and you’ll find ancient woodland too.
The Steeple Woodland Nature Reserve is a 10-minute walk from the bus route between St Ives and Carbis Bay – take the number 14 or 17 bus – with 40 acres to explore, including woods and heathland. It’s also a good place for spotting butterflies at the right time of year. If you’re feeling energetic, there are footpaths to lead you from town to the reserve as well.
If you’re happy to venture a little further, Tehidy Country Park is just north of St Ives with 250 acres of woods and lakes, plus nine miles of paths – you can go for a stroll around the water or wander deeper into the woodland.
There’s also a bike trail and some cheeky squirrels to spot along the way.
Find the fabulous wildlife
The wildlife sanctuary of Paradise Park and JungleBarn at Hayle is a bird lover’s paradise, with over 130 species ranging from local Cornish choughs to flamingos and toucans, as well as red pandas and farm animals – don’t miss the penguin feeding too.
As well as wandering around to check out the animals, you can also hop onto the Jungle Express Train, which takes you on a small route around the grounds and some of the garden.
There’s also an indoor play area, including a toddler zone soft play and jungle theme – tickets include an option just to check out the Junglebarn play, or for a ticket which covers this and the animals.
Head to the Farm
Trevaskis Farm near Hayle is another lovely option if you’re looking for things to do around St Ives – and perfect if you’re visiting St Ives with a toddler.
You can wander around the farm and orchards spotting the animals, from chickens to pigs and ponies, and best of all there’s no entry charge or charge for parking, so one of the free things to do in St Ives with kids.
There is a pick-your-own section (pay for what you pick) with various different fruits and vegetables throughout the year, including summer berries but also good for autumn in St Ives as somewhere to pick your own pumpkins in Cornwall.
Step back in time
Just a few miles from St Ives lies Chysauster ancient village, an English Heritage site with the remains of houses lining a village street.
The Romano-British settlement was originally occupied almost 2,000 years ago, and the stone-walled courtyard houses are only found around here on the Land’s End peninsula and on the Isles of Scilly.
For more Roman places to visit across the UK, check out this post
You can still walk around the settlement and ponder what the mysterious underground passage known as a ‘fogou’ was, as well as spotting bluebells in spring.
If your kids love history, make a stop at the nearby Iron Age fort of Castle An Dinas near Nancledra, with its defensive circles (there is another Castle An Dinas in north Cornwall, closer to Bodmin, so don’t get the two confused!).
Discover mining history
For a chance to discover some of Cornwall’s mining history – and another free day out near St Ives for kids – head to Heartlands in Pool.
Set on the site of a former tin mine, there’s also a great adventure playground plus sculptures you can climb on, gardens to roam and exhibitions on mining.
With indoor options for rainy days in Cornwall, there are 19 acres to discover in total so whatever your kids love, you won’t be short of children’s activities during a holiday in St Ives.
For more things to do with kids in Cornwall, check out my pick of the best from across the county as well as free things to do in Cornwall with kids, or read my complete guide to Cornwall with kids…
*First published 2019, updated 2022*
PIN FOR LATER: ST IVES WITH KIDS
Disclosure: Compiled in association with St Ives Holidays. This post contains affiliate links – any purchases you make are unaffected but I may receive a small commission. All opinions and decisions to recite rhyming puzzles to my daughter are my own.
Images courtesy Depositphotos
