Top St Ives Private Sightseeing Tours

Cornwall’s rugged coastline has shaped St Ives for millennia, transforming it from ancient Celtic settlement, to bustling fishing port, to world-renowned artistic center. On this coastal walking tour, you’ll explore the winding streets and sheltered coves that tell the story of its remarkable transformation. You’ll discover how pilchard fishing once powered the economy, learn about the smuggling networks that flourished along these shores, and understand how the unique Atlantic light drew artists from across the world. The tour starts at St Ives railway station above Porthminster Beach. You’ll weave through ancient lanes too narrow for cars, and past cottages where fishermen once dried their nets on the walls. The tour ends at the iconic Tate St Ives gallery overlooking Porthmeor Beach, where you’ll hear how this fishing town became an artistic colony that transformed British art.

Run by passionate Cornish local tour guides, this experience weaves a magical combination of iconic Cornish landmarks, majestic and expansive beaches and idyllic fishing villages and harbours. But that's not the whole story... We are driven by wanting to share with visitors some of the harder to access and 'off the beaten path' locations that make Cornwall so unique. Neolithic stone circles and underground burial chambers, medieval churches that contain ancient wooden carvings within, engine houses signifying tin mines underneath - and parts of the 'hidden Cornwall' that many locals never get to see... Cornwall’s history and culture examined in a lively way with SO much to see and learn! PLUS : very many points of interest en route – some visible from vehicle, others just moments from the car. There is so much to take in on this circular Cornwall tour. An absorbing tour of West Cornwall that gives a vibrant understanding of this part of the world in a relatively short space of time.

Every Poldark fan knows West Cornwall’s beauty. Discover it in real life and capture photos too when you book this private door-to-door tour, for a glorious taster of the region customized to your interests. You pick which spots you visit—perhaps Cornwall signatures such as St. Michael’s Mount or Land’s End, perhaps Poldark favorite locations such as Porthcurno or St. Levan. Please note: any entrance fees are at your own expense.