Crowan Beacon

The walk up Crowan Beacon takes about twenty minutes from the car park, and it's properly steep in places - nothing catastrophic, but you'll feel your legs working. Once you're up there, the views across the Cornish mining landscape are genuinely striking: you can see right across to Redruth and beyond, with the old engine houses dotting the hillsides like forgotten monuments to another era.

This isn't a destination that'll keep you entertained for hours. You come up, you have a look around, maybe grab a bite if you've brought one, and you head back down. Most people allow an hour total. The beacon itself is modest - a modest stone structure marking the summit - but the reason to be here is the walk and the views, not any particular attraction at the top.

It's excellent for families who don't mind a proper walk but don't want anything too technical. History buffs will appreciate standing on ground so central to Cornwall's mining heritage. Walkers should time it for clear weather - on a murky day you'll see about thirty metres and wonder why you bothered.

Free to access, open year-round. If you're staying at Lanyon Holiday Park, just 2.5 miles away, it's an ideal half-day outing. The nearby parks - Little Menherion Glamping and Stay Wild Camping are both within a few miles - make this a solid addition to a wider walking holiday in the area. Go on a clear morning before the school groups arrive.