St Merryn Maize Maze & Sunflower Trail

The maze changes every year, which is the whole point of coming back. You'll find yourself genuinely lost in towering maize walls near St. Merryn - not for five minutes, but properly turned around for a good stretch. That's exactly why families drag their kids out here summer after summer.

It's a seasonal thing, typically open July through September, so time your visit accordingly. The sunflower trail runs alongside it, which sounds twee until you're walking past actual fields of the things in full bloom. The maze itself demands a proper hour minimum, longer if you've got young kids who'll want to take every wrong turn twice. There's something satisfying about the whole thing - no screens, genuine navigation puzzles, and you can see your mates on the other side of the maze wall but absolutely cannot reach them for another ten minutes.

Family groups will get the most from this. Teenagers? They'll tolerate it. Serious walkers won't find it demanding enough to be interesting, though the surrounding Cornish countryside is worth exploring if you're based nearby.

If you're staying at Porthilly Beach Holiday Park or The Laurels, you're fifteen minutes away at most. It works brilliantly as a half-day activity - not something that justifies a special trip from further afield, but ideal for breaking up a lazy week in North Cornwall. Go mid-week if you can; weekends get rammed with school groups and families fighting for space in the pathways.