| Located at the southern tip of Cornwall, Penzance is | | | | sure to book your hotel room early if you are |
| well worth exploring. The word Penzance actually | | | | planning to visit Penzance at the time of the festival. |
| means "Holy Headland" in the native Cornish language | | | | Opera fans will want to check out Penzance. As |
| and is a reminder that the town stands close to | | | | you'd expect from the title, it was the setting for |
| where the chapel of St Anthony stood over a | | | | the Gilbert and Sullivan opera "The Pirates of |
| thousand years ago. | | | | Penzance". In modern times, you can watch plays at |
| Although people have lived in Penzance since at least | | | | the local Acorn Theatre, which also shows films and |
| the Bronze Age, its importance was recognized by | | | | hosts dance music and cabaret. |
| King Henry IV, who granted the town the right to | | | | Despite their name, the Penzance Pirates rugby team |
| hold a Royal Market. | | | | are now located in nearby Camborne and have |
| Although it was once a major fishing town, Penzance | | | | therefore been renamed the Cornish Pirates. |
| now caters mainly for the tourist trade. Most of the | | | | On a more exotic note, the solo transatlantic yacht |
| town is subject to strict planning rules, so its | | | | race called the Mini Transat 6.50, so called because |
| character has been preserved without the blight of | | | | the maximum boat length is 6.5 metres, starts its |
| too many modern buildings and signage. Although the | | | | journey in alternate years from Penzance harbour. |
| poet Sir John Betjeman disagreed with that last | | | | Whether you choose to stay in Penzance itself or |
| statement - he thought that the town's character | | | | would prefer to use one of the many Cornish villages |
| had been blighted. | | | | nearby, there are plenty of places that you can stay. |
| As befits the area, there is a midsummer festival in | | | | These range from small, family run bed and |
| Penzance called the Golowan Festival. After a lapse | | | | breakfasts, often located in farms and other rustic |
| at the end of the 1800s, the ancient customs of the | | | | locations, through to the larger guest houses which |
| golowan Festival have been revived, including lighting | | | | give you many of the facilities of a hotel but the |
| fires and setting off fireworks to celebrate the | | | | warm welcome associated with Penzance's landladies. |
| midsummer solstice. You can also witness street | | | | Or if you prefer, you can choose one of Penzance's |
| artists and see the whole town decked with | | | | larger hotels. Whichever of these you decide on, you |
| greenery and other decorations. The popularity of | | | | can be assured of a warm Cornish welcome and the |
| the festival means that Penzance now attracts | | | | hospitality associated with it. |
| thousands of visitors at that time of year, so be | | | | |