The annual surf and skate festival is from 8th – 12th of August 2012, and attracts over 90,000 fans to celebrate the UK’s longest running surf event at Fistral Beach and music festival at Watergate Bay.

The festival is one of Cornwall’s biggest events attracting people all over the country, with big music acts headlining each year – so watch this space for the latest news!

Newquay is great for walking around anytime, with plenty to do for small children – whatever your budget! There are several car parks to park in – Manor car park, being the closest to the town centre, but it does fill up quickly, so get there early! There is also Mount Wise car park, and Tregunnel Hill is a long stay car park that is cheaper.

The Newquay Discovery Map is an excellent, and almost priceless guide, for seeing all of the town’s beauty spots, and getting an overview of the town’s history too! You can pick one up at Tourist Information Centre on Marcus Hill, for a couple of pounds. The walk is linked by a series of discs secured into the ground from the Killacourt to the Gannel. The Map hits all of Newquay’s hot spots, including the harbour, which is easily accessible with pushchairs and there are shops selling buckets and spades near by for sandcastle opportunities!

The map takes you to some stunning scenery like the Huer’s hut, little Fistral, and the Barrowfields. At the end of the Trail is the Gannel, with opportunities to spot lots of wildlife, and Trenace gardens – a perfect place for young children!

Some fabulous attractions

Newquay Zoo is a well-kept, charming zoo packed with over 130 species of animals to visit! There are lions, lemurs, monkeys, a red panda, a sloth, a fishing cat, and meerkats – to name a few! All of this is set in maintained grounds with picnic tables and play areas.

The zoo has parking next to it and is very close to Trenance gardens, an ideal place to go with young children. The gardens have colourful flowers, trees, a romantic rose garden, a small play park, a boating lake with ducks to feed and swans, and paddle and rowing boats. There is a shop and café for refreshments.

The Blue Reef Aquarium and Buccaneer Bay are unique Cornish attractions celebrating life near the sea! The Blue Reef is right next to Towan beach and has local marine species, from the Cornish coast, to hundreds of tropical species on display, complete with an ‘underwater’ tunnel.

Buccaneer Bay is just behind the Manor car park and when you step on the ship you take a trip back in time, when the sea was full of pirates, myths and legends! You take a swashbucklin’ adventure with live pirates, and learn about the secrets of pirate life plus listen to tales of Cornwall’s rich and turbulent past! Be warned – some young children may find it a bit scary.

Further afield…

DairyLand Farmworld is a unique all weather attraction that offers an insight into dairy farming along with outside and inside play areas, woodland walks, pony rides, farm animals and domestic animals, which children can pet. There’s the Bull Pen, which is designed for all ages with a younger children’s play area where adults can supervise and an Adventure Zone for older children. You can sample some local Cornish produce at Clarabelle’s Kitchen including clotted cream, Cornish ice cream and locally prepared picnics – yum!

Lappa Valley is a picturesque attraction, with three separate miniature railways running through the lush green grounds, where wildlife thrives in a protected environment. There are also children’s rides, play areas, a boating lake, a maze, crazy golf and nature trails.

The coast, although still just a beautiful on a cold and sunny winter’s day, a cold beach wind can sometimes be too much! Winter offers the perfect opportunity to head to the woods, with wildlife galore, and a different kind of beauty from the coast – minus the chilly wind!

Here is a run down of some of my favourite woodland walks:

Colan woods, just a few miles outside of Newquay

These woods are near Porth Reservoir, which is beautiful to walk around with rolling hills is the background and Colan woods behind it. The woods are the site of the old 19th Century Fur Hill estate, which has become neglected. The heir to this 1,000-acre estate is unknown and the estate is now in ruins. You can wonder around the few ruins left, which certainly makes an interesting walk, and these woods unquestionably have a spooky feel!

Golitha Falls, near St Neot, Liskeard

Golitha Falls is a great beauty spot on the edge of Bodmin Moor, this area of woodland is on the steep-sided valley gorge with the River Fowey flowing through it in series of amazing cascades! The river is home to salmon and sea trout. This mystical place is a great place to visit at any time of year.

Tehidy Country Park, near Camborne

This huge woodland has over 9 miles of peaceful woodland paths to explore, with a large lake. There is lots of wildlife to spot here, including swans, ducks, squirrels, and otters. There’s a café here, which is open all year around, perfect for a hard earned break!

Idless Woods, near Truro

These woods are just 2 miles from the city centre, great for a peaceful walk, with cycle trails too. There’s lots of local wildlife such as deer, otter, and badger.

Cardinham Woods, near Bodmin

Cardinham woods has mixed woodland ideal for walking, cycling and horse riding. The woodland has deer, buzzard, otter, and kingfisher. There’s a picnic area by the river and there are free to use barbecues (maybe make a trip here in summer too!). The woodland café serves refreshments.

By Clare Williams

January and February are a struggle to get through for all of us, as we wait eagerly for the spring. It is a good job that Caroline is here with her eight-part travelogue on Cornwall shot over the summer (ah, remember the summer, sigh!) in the most beautiful county in UK or, as she says, “Cornwall! A land of epic landscapes and dramatic coastlines!”

Surprisingly we agree completely! Even Cornwall, though mild and warmer than other places in the UK, can still get a bit too cold at this time of year. On Monday we were reminded of how we used to have summer barbeques on the beach as she met chef Matt Corner, who cooked up an impressive feast (we usually just chuck a couple of sausages on, but this was a gourmet barbie!), on Whitsand Bay, which is on North Cornwall’s Rame Peninsular. She also met the Lindo family who have their own vineyard near the Camel River, which looked like it could be in Italy’s Siena region with the rolling landscape and sundrenched vines.

The programme certainly took the edge off the January blues, as we impatiently wait for summer in Cornwall! We are looking forward to seeing the rest of the episodes, snuggled up on the sofa with a hot water bottle and a blanket, as we meet people all over the Duchy to remember what makes Cornwall so special.

Caroline Quentin’s ‘Cornwall’ is on every Monday, for 7 more weeks, at 8pm on ITV1.

By Clare Williams

Christmas has hardly finished but Newquay has been getting ready for it’s favourite party of the year for some time now – New Year’s Eve! New Year’s in Newquay is full of fancy dress fun which appeals to all ages, from groups of friends to families with young children who all take to the streets of Newquay in fancy dress, or some just for a wander through the town to soak up the atmosphere and enjoy Cornwall’s biggest street party!

Fancy dress shops spring up in Newquay everywhere turning the town into fancy dress heaven, selling almost every costume you can imagine, from gangster gear to giant baby grows – take your pick as it is the one night of the year you can be anything you want!

The town centre bustles, and people congregate outside of the Central pub to count the New Year in, or you may want to go down to Newquay’s picturesque harbour to watch the fire works and see in 2012. Whatever you choose to do this New Year – we all wish you a Happy New Year at Newquay Holiday Tips!