Tintagel

Built in the 1930s by a wealthy devotee of the Arthurian legend, King Arthur's Great Halls is a remarkable folly containing the largest collection of stained glass windows depicting Arthurian themes anywhere in the world. The Hall of Chivalry, with its round table of Cornish granite, is a unique and slightly surreal monument to the power of the Tintagel legend.

Merlin's Cave Viewpoint is a worthwhile natural stop near Tintagel, valued for open views, sea air and the kind of landscape that gives Cornwall much of its identity. It rewards slow exploration, whether that means a clifftop walk, a pause at a viewpoint or simply taking in the changing weather and light.

High on a wind-scoured peninsula above the Atlantic, Tintagel's clifftop ruins are Cornwall's most dramatic historic monument. The site's association with the Arthurian legend dates to the twelfth century, though the castle ruins are themselves thirteenth-century royal. A new footbridge connects the mainland to the island site, and the recent discovery of a sixth-century inscription bearing the name 'Artognov' has rekindled scholarly debate.

A small fourteenth-century manor house in the heart of Tintagel village that served as a letter-receiving office for the district in the Victorian era. Now managed by the National Trust, the building's wavy slate roof and ancient proportions make it one of the most charming medieval vernacular buildings in Cornwall — a counterpoint to the castle drama half a mile away.