We're back (even though we never went anywhere!)

We might have been quiet recently - sorry about that - its been very busy at Sail Lofts HQ! The last month has seen sun, surf, flat spells, a bit of rain and lots and lots of happy visitors to St Ives.

Since we last posted we welcome a new team of cleaners to The Sail Lofts, we have launched our next venture in Suffolk (see below for more info) and we have launched 2012 pricing - if this isn't enough we have some other exciting new projects coming soon.

A late cancellation means our Bay apartment is available next week, grab a bargain as we have reduced the price to £1249 and it sleeps 8 - thats only £22 per person per night.

Moving on, our new venture is a pub in the pretty village of Stoke by Nayland in Suffolk, it is a 16th century inn, which we have added our touch to with a sympathetic refurbishment, a new chef and a new menu (new website is coming soon - we'll keep you posted). If you are around the area do pop in for a drink, some food or stay the night in one of the boutique rooms. We wish the team in Suffolk the best of luck over the coming months. Here are some pictures to give you a flavour...

St Ives September Festival 10-24 September

Ahh, the St Ives September Festival - one of those special times in St Ives. The school holidays are over, the sun is shining, the sea is at its warmest, a sense of relaxation settles into the town as the season is coming to an end - time to celebrate!

The September Festival is time for locals (and everyone in the know ;-) ) to celebrate the end of another summer with two weeks of live music, arts, poetry, and everything in between. Guests who stay during the festival almost always book for the next year, if you haven't been before - try it!

This years line up is even bigger and better than before, the important thing is to get your tickets early for the main acts...

Here is our pick of the bunch for this years festival:


The Big Chris Barber Band - Saturday 10th September 2011 8pm at the Guildhall
81 year old band leader Chris Barber is world renowned, now with an 11 piece band the combination of blues and jazz make this a must see! Tickets are £25 and we strongly recommend booking these early.

Brodsky Quartet & Jacqui Dankworth - Monday 12th September 2011 8pm at the Guildhall
The Brodsky Quartet are at the forefront of the international chamber-music scene, mastering the string quartet to become very well know for their work with other artists including Elvis Costello, Bjork and Sting. Their skill lies in their diverse performances of complex compositions from the likes of Hayden, Beethoven, Bartok, Britten and more. If you like this type of music it should be an excellent night of music.

Lau & Adrian O'Reilly Wednesday 14th September 2011 8pm at the Guildhall
 A must see if you like folk, winners of Best Group at the Radio 2 Folk Awards for three years in a row (2008, 2009 and 2010) this is the perfect time to see Lau. Three very talented chaps make up the group who are by no means restricted to the 'folk' genre and instead explore across genres to create a fabulously unique sound.


We'll be back with more recommendations as and when the acts are announced. If you still haven't arranged for accommodation in St Ives during the festival we recommend booking early as it is a very popular time.

If you have any other comments or recommendations do feed them back on the blog!

3 New (ish) Restaurants and a great weekend

For the first time I had the privilege of staying at The Sail Lofts. My partner and I chose Zennor, the big master bedroom, large bed and the living area made it 'The One' for us.

A quick trip back home to pick up some belongings and the other half and we were back in St Ives to watch the sunset over Porthmeor - perfect way to start the weekend!

After the madness of a Friday and with it being the end of the week we felt good old fish and chips were deserved, so we headed along to the recently opened and stylish Harbour Fish and Chips. We were surprised at how professional and friendly the service was right from the start, I opted for traditional fish and chips with homemade tartar sauce, crispy batter, excellent fresh fish and good chips, my partner went for the mussels which I'm told were excellent as well. Overall a great experience and great value with nice touches like fried parsnip crisps on the fish and reasonable presentation.

After a day pottering around West Cornwall including Sennen, Gwynver and back to St Ives through St Just, Botallack and a sneaky pint at the Tinners Arms we headed back to get ready for the open evening of St Ives' newest restaurant - Seagrass.

A great turnout and some superb examples of some of the food they will be serving made it a great evening and we can't wait to try out the full menu soon.

On Sunday, the clear blue skies drew us to the beach, and Porthmeor Cafe was just too tempting! Recently refurbished and with a change in direction last year we had to try it out. We shared a platter of tapas which was fantastic, coupled with a glass of wine it was all very pleasant with some of the best views in town.

A great weekend, great weather and some super food - #happydays

If you would like to enjoy this and more we still have limited availability in May and June, have a look at our last minute deals for more information.

20% Discount at Sail Lofts Ocean Spa

Sail Lofts Ocean Spa are celebrating the launch of a new treatment room this Friday by offering a 20% discount on all treatments over £40.


Start the weekend how you want it to continue by relaxing... From pampering your skin to easing your muscles from a week of work with a luxurious massage.

We are also offering a 15% discount on Spiezia Organics Rose and Vanilla Oil throughout May, this can be ordered over the telephone or purchased in store.

As part of our May offers, the luxurious Head in Heaven treatment will be reduced from £52 to £38 as well.

To book or find out more contact the spa team on 01736 448545.

Happy Days...

What a fantastic few weeks we have had (and its still going but we don't want to jinx it!), but we felt we just had to write a little something about it. 


Glorious spring sunshine has been basking down on us for a few weeks now, bikinis are out on the beach, wetsuits are off for the brave ones, and BBQs are definitely on the menu... To top it all off, those that surf have had a great run as well with most racking up impressive water time. 


It felt only right to post a few of our favourite pictures from the last month.... Enjoy! 

If you would like to take part in a bit of all this loveliness then we still have a few gaps, just take a look at our last minute deals or pick some of the last few weeks in May, June, July or August.  

St Ives Food and Drink Festival

As promised here is the second installment of our pick of the best events happening in St Ives. This week we are featuring the St Ives Food and Drink Festival, a relatively new festival to the town, but one of our favourites.

Starting on Monday 16th May for six days the festival promises to highlight the culinary delights of St Ives and the local area amongst a host of cooking demonstrations, foraging, walks and wine. 

Here is a pick of some of the events we are looking forward to most:

Tuesday 17th May - Coastal forage and beach barbecue with Porthminster Cafe

A foraging walk along the coast with one of St Ives' most renowned restaurants to forage for food to cook later at the beach. We think this sounds great, there are so many hidden treasures along our coasts, with the help of some experts this should be a great day out. It is limited to 15 people and tickets cost £20 - make sure you book in advance with Porthminster Cafe on 01736 795352. 

Thursday 19th May - South African Wine Evening with Scarlet Wines in Lelant

A sharing of tables in a relaxed setting - guests will be provided with six wines to taste served with South African inspired dishes. A great way to try new wines from a very knowledgeable team, with a growing reputation for the quality of food this should be a great sociable evening. 

Friday 20th May - Wine and Cornish cheese evening with Mark Elwood at Cornish Deli 

Sample some of the best Cornish cheese with Mark, its a great place to eat at any time, but this should be even more special! 

Sunday 22nd May - Cooking Demonstrations

There are going to be several cooking demonstrations on the Sunday, our favourites would be at the Porthminster Cafe, Porthgwidden Cafe and the Seafood Cafe. These should be great and we look forward to seeing you there! 

Next time we will be looking at the big one, the St Ives September Festival.

Another award for St Ives? Really?

Yes, St Ives has scooped another award, this time from the coveted Traveller's Choice Awards. We felt this deserved some space on the blog, so we will continue with the events theme next time. So what was this award for?

After winning ‘best UK holiday destination’ in 2010, St Ives has now been awarded ‘best beaches in the UK’ by Tripadvisor users at the Traveller's Choice Awards.

All with naturally soft sand, beach cafes and hire shops, they have something different to offer everyone. Porthmeor (30 metres from The Sail Lofts) is the year-round surfers beach. With the newly refurbished Porthmeor Beach Café, a surf school, chalets that can be pre-booked, and world famous Tate St Ives, Porthmeor faces northwest and is perfect for the Atlantic waves. If you’ve got small children or toddlers, 

Porthgwidden (a minutes walk from the Sail Lofts) is the one to choose. Nestled beneath the slopes of the ‘Island’, with uninterrupted views across St Ives Bay to Godrevy Lighthouse, it’s smaller crescent shape is sheltered and just right for children. There’s also got the wonderful Porthgwidden Beach Café serving food all day, with their own hire shop and beach chalets to pre-book. 

A ten minute walk round the harbour front, past the Lifeboat House and up through the Warren brings you to Porthminster, a traditional family beach with a choice of cafes, shops, and hire facilities. Don’t miss having a meal at the award winning Porthminster Beach Café which is on the sand itself, with fantastic views from the restaurant and their outside terrace across St Ives Bay towards Gwithian and Godrevy. 

Not forgetting the Harbour Beach at low tide and Carbis Bay for a spot of crabbing, St Ives is lucky to have such a selection of beaches. 

If you want to take advantage of all these lovely beaches in this lovely spring weather then we have had two unfortunate cancellations for this Friday 15th April in our Island and Zennor apartments.