on 06/04/2023
Cornwall is fortunate to be home to a variety of exotic marine life. Everything from leatherback turtles to small species of shark have been spotted in the waters of England's most tropical county. 'Seal Island' springs to mind as a poignant example of just how integrated marine life and Cornish life are.
However, few of these species are quite as sought after or as frequently spotted as the 6 varieties of Dolphin that swim in our waters year-round. Dolphins are widely considered one of the most 'human' animals in the wild as a result of their extraverted personalities, want for community and stark intelligence. This intelligence is often on full display on boat trips or coastal spottings where they decide to put on a show for spectators, swimming with boats and jumping as high as 9 feet in the air.
The good news is that as dolphins live in communities and so where you see 1 bottlenose, you'll always see many. The bad news, for now, is that you don't know where to look...
This is our Select Cornwall guide to Dolphin Spotting in Cornwall:
Before we get into where you should sit to see them, it's probably good to specify what you're looking for. In Cornwall, a dolphin spotter is most likely to come across a community of Common Dolphins. This species of dolphin can come in the form of a long-nose or short-nose variety and is always dark grey with an emerald hue and small yellow details on the side. These can be found in groups of 100 swimming the waters of Devon and Cornwall year-round.
Slightly bluer in it's shade of grey is the Bottlenose Dolphin, which is harder to find as less than 50 in total are Cornwall-based. Other species you could come across are the Risso, Striped and Atlantic White-Sided Dolphins. The appearances of the Striped and White-Sided Dolphin's are pretty self-explanatory but a Risso Dolphin might not look like a dolphin to you at all.
Viewed from the front, Risso Dolphins look like tiny white wales. Like most dolphins, this species' base colour is grey but this variety is made to stand out by it's all-over white detailing and snub-nose appearance. So just remember that if you see a chubby, chonky and pale dolphin, you have still seen a dolphin!
The most southern point of mainland Britain is also one of it's most prolific for dolphin sightings. The Lizard is perhaps more famous for it's geography than for it's wildlife but that doesn't mean it isn't also outstanding. In fact, we can guarantee you the opposite. The Lizard actually hosts a National Trust Watchpoint designated for allowing the public to to experience the unique marine diversity that can be observed on the site. This patch of sea is known for producing great sightings of Bottlenose and Common Dolphins as well as Whales, Porpoise and Seals.
We foremost recommend this spot because it can easily worked into a fabulous walk up the coast to Kynance Cove where even more biodiversity awaits.
Similarly to The Lizard, St Ives Bay makes an excellent dolphin spotting location because there is so much to do as well as so much marine life to see. In this, your dolphin spotting trip can be delightfully bookended by a fancy dinner, a cornish pasty or even some cocktails.
This is not to compensate for a lack of marine life though, as dolphins have been known to frequent the area in numbers well into the hundreds.
The accurately named Land's End, is the true end of the UK. The Lizard only beats it out as our famously 'most southern' point because of the UK's slightly squint disposition. This south-westernly point is the true farthest corner of the UK and in holding this title is warm, cliffy and quiet. Or at least it would be quiet if it wasn't for the swarms of marine life and birds that have taken a liking to it's environment.
Land's End has become known for frequent dolphin and porpoise spottings as well it's amazing perches to spot them from. One of these such perches, Gwennan Head is one of the best headlands in the UK for spotting marine life. It even has it's own converted coastguard building that is now in full use as a 'Coastwatch' stop for marine life enthusiasts.
Falmouth Bay has become known to locals as the premier destination in Cornwall, and perhaps even the UK, for dolphin spotting. The Bay isn't large, but it's more mild climate when compared to the winds and waves of the north coast mean that many dolphins, porpoise and seals feel comfortable swimming extremely close to the mainland. With some dolphins even venturing up through the River Fal during high-tide.
If you can only visit one of these mainland options, this might just be the one. There are few other spots on this last that have hosted both Dolphins and 50 foot Humpback Whales in the past few years.
Looe Island is our first spot that sits off of the mainland and, as a result, presents an oppertunity to explore the ocean by boat as well as from afar. Looe Island is famed for it's seal spotting as well it's popularity with dolphin schools and is breathtakingly beautiful on a summer's day.
A multitude of tour groups such as Looe Sea Safari are available to be booked to help you find the island's most exotic residants. As a result of it's idyllic climate, finding these residants shouldn't be too difficult with Looe Island reporting the most frequent sightings of dolphins and seals in all of Cornwall.
For a dolphin spotting trip, we recommend this colourful, dog-friendly, family home. It is located just walking distance from premier dolphin-spotting location The Lizard and is surrounded by equally serene views. There are not many properties where you might spot a school of dolphins out the window, so we believe a stay here to be quite unique.
Another option is the centrally located Valley Cottages, where you can spend a week in quiet luxury with or without your pups. These cottages also come with a hot tub option which is always nice. The Valley Cottages are situated between Cornwall's capital Truro and famed dolphin spotting site Falmouth Bay. Furthermore, this might just be the perfect spot to enjoy a holiday that is equal parts marine life and luxury.
We hope you enjoyed our list of recommendations! Feel free to let us know of your favourites via the comments below!
