Land's End

Land's End is the last granite of the Penwith peninsula, cliffs of about sixty metres with reefs and stacks running out to the Longships lighthouse a mile and a half offshore and the Isles of Scilly forty-five kilometres beyond, visible on clear days. The rock is genuinely dramatic and the coast path either side, toward Sennen Cove north and Nanjizal south, is among the finest in Cornwall. The site itself is another matter: it was bought in 1987 and developed into a visitor complex with a hotel, gift shops and family attractions, and the signpost giving the distance to John o' Groats is operated by a photographer who charges to add your home town, which visitors regularly assume is public. The Land's End to John o' Groats route, 1,407 kilometres by road, starts or ends here.

What you'll find

• The granite cliffs - sixty-metre faces with reefs and stacks offshore.
• The Longships lighthouse - a tower on rocks a mile and a half out.
• The signpost - a photographer's prop, charged for, not a public monument.
• The coast path - excellent walking north to Sennen and south to Nanjizal.

When to go

April to October for the coast path; clear days show the Scillies. The complex is open year-round. Walking twenty minutes in either direction leaves the development behind entirely, which is the standard advice.

Good to know

The commercial complex on the headland is widely disliked and was voted one of Britain's worst attractions in several polls. Parking is charged whether or not you use anything. The famous signpost is a paid photo service. The cliffs themselves cost nothing and are the reason to come.

Nearby

Sennen Cove and Cape Cornwall lie north; the Minack and Porthcurno are east.

Key facts