WELCOME Caerhays Castle, the home of the Williams family, is located in a sheltered valley overlooking Porthluney Cove on the south Cornish coast, equidistant from Truro and St Austell. You can visit the castle and gardens, walk in the grounds and visit the stunning beaches and coastal paths which make up the estate. Owing to its spectacular landscape, Caerhays is a renowned shooting estate, a popular venue for weddings and corporate hospitality, and a regular location for photography and film shoots. Enjoy the tranquility, beauty and history of the whole estate for a day, or for longer if you choose to stay in the restored Georgian splendour of The Vean, or in one of the estate’s many holiday cottages.
SETTING THE SCENE It is difficult not to be stunned when you visit Caerhays Castle and its 140 acre gardens. The natural beauty of the coastline and its steep valleys, the architectural surprises, the inescapable sense of history, and the range of activities and facilities that the estate offers all set the scene for a wonderful day of discovery and exploration. You can visit the castle and gardens, walk in the grounds, while admiring the stunning beaches and coastal paths, all of which play their part in making this location so outstanding.
HISTORY Caerhays has been owned by only two Cornish families in nearly 650 years. From 1370 – 1840 the Trevanion family lived in a succession of 4 different houses culminating in the castle itself that you see today. The castle was designed by the famous regency architect John Nash, and built between 1807 and 1811 for John Bettesworth Trevanion. In 1840 huge debts from the construction of the castle, gambling and incompetence, together with a lack of male heirs, forced Trevanion to flee the country to Paris to escape his debtors. The castle contents were sold at auction and the inadequate paper-tarred roof soon collapsed. Michael Williams of Burncoose and Scorrier purchased the derelict property in 1854 for around £5,000 and spent the next 6 years restoring and furnishing the castle. He was reputed to be ‘the richest man in Cornwall’ and the wealth of the various branches of the family had come from their tin mining interests in the Redruth area over the previous hundred years. It was however his grandson and landowner, John Charles Williams (known as JC) (1861 – 1939), who created the gardens and landscapes that you see today. JC had heard of the enormous wealth of new plant material, then unknown in Europe, which was supposedly to be found in China. He quickly commissioned the great plant hunters Ernest Wilson and George Forrest to bring back the seeds of these new plants from expeditions to Yunnan and Szechwan to Caerhays. This was the foundation of the gardens that you see today.
CASTLE & GARDENS The 140 acre woodland garden is at its best in the spring. The gardens are therefore open to the public from mid February to mid June. The castle is open for a more limited period for guided tours. Groups are however welcome throughout the year with prior booking. There are structured walks around the garden giving views over the estate and grounds, the lake and out to sea. Guided tours of the gardens by the head gardeners are available and usually last between one and a half to two hours. These must be prebooked for groups. Caerhays is not a manicured or planned garden in the conventional sense. It has its own unique microclimate, and the prevailing and frequently westerly gales rage over the top of the sheltered gardens. Sea mists bathe the woodland in moisture and humidity, which is very similar to the Chinese mountain habitats from which so many magnolias and rhododendrons originate. In addition the rich acidic soil is ideal for growing ericaceous plants. At the start of the 20th century Caerhays received a wealth of seeds from newly discovered species of Chinese rhododendrons, magnolias, camellias, azaleas and evergreen oaks, to mention but a few. A large number of these unique plants and record trees can still be seen growing in maturity at Caerhays today.
HOW TO FIND US From Truro: First turning right off the A390 after Grampound (signposted to Tregony) then follow the signposts to Caerhays.
From St. Mawes and King Harry Ferry: Take a right turn from the A3078, signposted to Veryan and Portloe ( just before the Texaco garage). Then take the first turning to the left, signposted to Caerhays.
From St. Austell: First turning off the A390 after the end of the Sticker bypass (signposted to Tregony - B3287) then turn right at first T-junction and from then on follow signposts to Caerhays.
For directions from Bristol, Exeter, Okehampton and Launceston please visit our website.
Hollywell
A390
Fraddon A30
A3075
St Stephens
Perranporth
St Austell
A3058
A39
Grampound Road
B3275
A30 Shortlanesend
A39
Scorrier
Threemilestone
Sticker Hewas Water B3287
Grampound B3284
Tresillian
Chiverton Cross
B3287
A390
Truro
St Ewe
A3078
Burncoose Nurseries & House Ponsanooth A393
A39
King Harry Ferry B3289
Penryn
To Helston
St Mawes
Falmouth
Veryan Gerrans Bay
Gorran Haven
Porthholland
Carharrack Gwennap
Mevagissey Bay
Gorran High Lanes
St Day
Lanner
Heligan Gardens
Mevagissey
Tregony
A30
Redruth
St Austell Bay
A390
St Agnes
Portloe
Caerhays Estate Veryan Bay
Direct Routes
VISITOR INFORMATION The gardens are open to the public from mid February to mid June. The castle is available for guided tours from mid March to mid June. Where possible group visits are also welcome out of season by prior arrangement. Disabled and elderly visitors are welcome to park at the castle, close to all facilities. Dogs on leads are welcome in the gardens. More information is available on request and on the website (www.caerhays.co.uk)
Contact Us Caerhays Estate | Gorran | St Austell | PL26 6LY 01872 501310 enquiries@caerhays.co.uk
Caerhays Estate | Gorran | St Austell | PL26 6LY 01872 501310
enquiries@caerhays.co.uk