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Location & Access
Location & Access
 

DIRECTIONS
Coaches:
Please click here for directions by Coach. The lanes are narrow around Caerhay, so we have special directions if you are coming by coach.

From Exeter/M5:
Click here to download written instructions

From Truro:
first turning right off the A390 after Grampound (signposted to Tregony and St Mawes) then follow signposts to Caerhays.

From St Austell:
first turning after the end of Sticker by-pass (signposted to Tregony - B3287) turn right at first junction and then follow signposts to Caerhays.

From Mevagissey:
head for Gorran Churchtown and look for signpost to Caerhays at Gorran High Lanes.

From St Mawes & King Harry Ferry:
take right turning from A3078 (signposted to Veryan) and next turning left signposted to Caerhays.

Address:
The Estate Office
Caerhays Castle
Gorran
St Austell
Cornwall
PL26 6LY

Telephone:
01872 501310 / 501144
Fax: 01872 501 870
estateoffice@
caerhays.co.uk

HEALTH & SAFETY GUIDELINES

FOR GARDEN VISITORS

  1. Please wear suitable clothing and footwear (ie boots) for your trip around the garden which will extend to around 1 1/2 miles and involve some steep slopes if you opt for the longest routes.

  2. Slipping and tripping hazards are very real in a woodland garden like Caerhays especially after spring gales and heavy rain. Please therefore stick to the paths at all times and proceed with particular care when conditions are wet underfoot.

  3. The woodland gardens and pathways were laid out and created long before modern health and safety requirements were even thought of so please explore carefully.

  4. The garden does contain hidden hazards especially for children (eg steep slopes and quarries) and it is therefore essential that children are accompanied at all times.

  5. Those with disabilities should seek more detailed help and advice on arrival.

  6. While the Caerhays Estate has taken reasonable measures to eliminate risks for visitors it is not possible to remove every conceivable risk in a woodland garden of this sort. The responsibility for the safety of visitors should therefore be seen to be shared between visitors and the Estate.
Map1 Zoom Zoom

Access for the elderly and disabled visitors

Caerhays gardens are situated on a tall hillside and, consequently, the routes to the top of the gardens and back down towards the house are steep. Some of the garden is therefore not easily or readily accessible for wheelchair users. There are also some steps on the last piece of the Blue Route garden walk which are impossible for wheelchair users to negotiate.

Elderly or disabled visitors should not however be put off from enjoying those parts of the garden which are flatter and more easily accessible. In particular the area around the castle and the Green Route up the main drive which is tarmaced, is readily accessible to wheelchair users.

The Red Route is also designed specifically for those who do not want to walk very far and there are several seats along the way as indeed there are throughout the garden.

Those wheelchair users who have help and are accompanied should be aware that the main garden paths are wide and reasonably hard underfoot. Once the paths to the top of the garden have been negotiated the core of the main garden is then fairly flat. By using the Green Route back to the house the steps on the Blue Route can be avoided.

THE IMPORTANT THING IS THAT ELDERLY AND DISABLED VISITORS SHOULD ASK FOR ADVICE ON ARRIVAL TO ENSURE THAT THEY ENJOY THEIR VISIT TO THE FULL.

A new toilet block which includes new disabled toilet facilities was formally opened in March 2004 in time for the spring season.

The tea rooms are now easily accessible for wheelchair users and close to the disabled parking area.


Access for Coaches

The narrow Cornish lanes around Caerhays mean that coach drivers need to plan their route approach carefully. The straightest and best route from the main A390 is marked in red on the map. For those coach parties who are also visiting Heligan (only 4 miles away) or who are in smaller coaches the blue route on the map is another alternative route.
location map
You should note that what may appear on the map to be a short cut from Heligan via Gorran High Lanes and Rescassa is in fact currently impassable to all large coaches because of a sharp corner and this route should be avoided.

The top and bottom lodge gates at Caerhays have low stone arches and it is impossible for coaches to enter the grounds. All coaches must park at Porthluney Beach, which is the main car park for the gardens. If some of the group are elderly or infirm and find walking difficult we can sometimes arrange to meet coach parties on the road at the top of the garden so that the walk back to the coach (which then goes on to park at Porthluney Beach) is all downhill. By prior arrangement (and for an increased entry charge) we may be able to lay on transport by tractor and trailer from Porthluney Beach to the castle and garden entrance.

The logistics of this are unfortunately not simple and arrangements of this sort for very elderly visitors must be negotiated in advance. The trailer is not suitable for wheelchair users.


For more information, please ring 01872 501310

© Caerhays 2004-2008           photo credits for images: Twinkle Carter, Caerhays Estate & Burncoose Nurseries     WCAG