We had a wonderful time on our hike. The scenery was beautiful and we met some great people along the way. We liked all the places we stayed and appreciated all the help in planning the accommodations, food and tips on things to do in the areas we went through. We will be doing another section of the trail in the future!

This part of the South West Coast Path is magnificent. The walks are sometimes steep, but not insurmountable for regular walkers. The walking times given by Encounter Walking without the breaks correspond to reality.
Luggage transfer and the choice of accommodation is perfect. A little extra for the Hartland Quay Hotel because of its location, which we really liked. All the other accommodation was very good and the fish and chips at the Bush Inn in Morwenstow was excellent.
A big thank you to Encounter Walking for the excellent job they did, we'll definitely be calling on you again.

This was our sixth walk with Encounter and the first one back on the western stretch of the SW coast path. Boy, did we forget how challenging those cliffs! We always use the most relaxed route possible and build in rest days which help immensely. We belatedly realized we should have built in a couple more on this stretch. Clovelly was a delightful stop, and it would have been lovely to spend an extra day away there. But, all of the arrangements and accommodations selected for us along the way did much to ease our aches and pains every evening, and we are not too proud to admit that some of us cheated a day here or there by taking the bus - not always easy schedule-wise but it did help when it was available, and the feet and legs say no more. The scenery along this route was breath taking and we got to see seals exactly where the Encounter material said we'd have a chance to see them! As always, their route information was spot on and we cannot say enough good things about how easy they make our trips! We still have many miles to go before we finish the whole path so most definitely already deciding when our next walk will be.

It was great and the arrangements worked well. Thank you. All accommodations were great except the one in Tintagel. While in a great location for walkers the place had no soul. Paint was coming off behind the sink. Warm water in the shower could not be adjusted. Atmosphere was dingy and without style. I would not want to stay in there again.
We were a bit surprised that in most cases breakfast only started at 8:30. A bit late for walkers but we could manage.

This is my third walking holiday now with Encounter. I have walked Penzance to Falmouth and Falmouth to Plymouth by myself and this holiday my son joined me and we walked Bude to Padstow.

Once again a wonderful time was had and everyone at Encounter were brilliant with their organisation. We needed two rooms for single occupancy with own en-suites and this proved a challenge given the time of the year but Encounter worked really hard to accommodate us.

The accommodation along the way was excellent in particular Trevigue Farm near Cracklington Haven.

The walk was challenging but then the scenery along the way more than makes up for that. Be ready for the undulating paths.

I did take the easier route from Port Issac to Port Quin whilst my son took the more difficult path. I would however say that the ‘easier’ route was pretty difficult to start with. The beginning of the path was very overgrown with fallen trees requiring you to duck your head in several places which was difficult whilst having to keep watch on the path below your feet. Then there is a small wood to go through and with some overnight rain it made it quite slippery.

Once again a big thank you to the luggage transfer company they were amazing.

All reservations were in order. B & Bs were fabulous. Hiking was challenging. Scenery was amazing!

This was our third walk we booked with Encounter Walking. The walk was wonderful and great, we enjoyed every day of walking. The information and guidebooks we got from Encounter Walking were very helpful so we were well prepared. We stayed in nice B&B and small Hotels, the accommodations were clean, charming, friendly and very close to the Coast Path. Some parts of the Coast Path were full of ascents, descents and quite steep but the views were wonderful. The luggage transport was perfect and well organized.
We had excellent days of walking, thank you to the Encounter- Walking- Team for the perfect organisaton.

This was our final section of the SWCP (I know it is the first section, but we did it as our last one) ... challenging, exhilarating, interesting, definitely hard but altogether a superlative experience. This is our fifth walk with Encounter, who as always provided exemplary planning and execution support. Based on Encounter's recommendations, we altered the itinerary to decrease the distance on days with high ascent/descent elevation, which made a huge positive difference (we are 70 and 82) to both our enjoyment and end-of-day aches and pains. Accommodations were generally excellent. and many were superb. We greatly enjoyed the Witchcraft Museum in Boscastle, and Tintagel Castle in Tintagel and recommend that walkers spend time at both. We loved walking the beach at Saunton Sands and Polzeath to Rock. We used walking poles ("sticks") and found them extremely helpful on steep descents (of which there are a few!). The section from Westward Ho! to Padstow is not for the faint-of-heart, but the effort required is well worthwhile.

The walk and the scenery were lovely, especially the first two days from Westward Ho! to Clovelly and then further on to Hartland Quay. The accomodation was also good except the stay at the hotel in Padstow: the rooms and sheets were dirty, the accomodation lousy. We don´t recommend this hotel. On the other hand the Red Lion Hotel in Clovelly was fantastic. We also loved the Bush Inn in Morwenstow.
The organisation of the trip worked very well, the luggage transport was smooth. If we had to wish something for our next trip, we would recommend that your company would provide us with our transfer from and to the train stations at the beginning and end of our journey. So did Russ from Western Discoveries at our last trips. ENCOUNTER WALKING - Thank you for your comments. Our policy is to encourage the use of public transport where possible. Not only is this better for the environment but it helps local people as well by keeping local services operating that we can all use. So, where there is a good regular bus service we encourage our walkers to use this. We appreciate some walkers prefer to use taxis and we do supply numbers for local operators in our itineraries for those who don’t want to use the bus.

This was my second walk booked with Encounter Walking Holidays and it was incredible. This was a much more difficult stretch than my last walk but the information Encounter Walking Holidays provided via the itinerary and guidebook ensured that I was well prepared, including travel to Bude, where I was to start my walk. Accommodations were charming and friendly - I especially loved the Coome Barton Inn in Crackington Haven and The Old School Hotel in Port Isaac. This section of of the Coast Path was full of ascents and descents but the views were rewarding. My only regret was that I didn't ask for the section from Crackington Haven to Tintagel to be split into two shorter days - it was a very difficult 12 miles for me - but it all worked out in the end. I'm glad I arranged for a rest day in Tintagel so that I got to see the castle. Luggage transfer was prompt and smooth every day. It was a trip to remember and I'm already looking forward to another walk in the future.

We enjoyed every day of this walking holiday. Everything was very well organized. We stayed in nice hotels/B&B’s in cute villages. The luggage was perfectly taken care of every day again.
This was our second time we walked with Encounter and we’re already looking forward to next year.
We appreciated the way you thought along with us while we were planning the trip. Almost everything was possible and could be arranged.

Every day was different with great scenery, historical points of interest, camaraderie with other walkers and mostly good walking weather. Highlights were the rugged coastal scenery, forests with spring wildflowers, historical sites and buildings, old mining relics, quaint villages and small harbours. All our accommodation chosen by Encounter was excellent, easy to find using the notes provided, and well suited to walkers. Encounter provided great organisation for our walk.

A seamless holiday with no problems with any if the organisation. Beautiful scenery and beautiful wildflowers in April.

Zuerst muss ich sagen, dass die Tour vom Team encounterwalking absolut top organisiert war. Kontakt schnell und zuverlässig, Unterkünfte top, Gepäcktransport absolut zuverlässig, die Leute vor Ort freundlich und hilfsbereit. Die Gesamte Strecke von Minehead bis nach Lizard war fantastisch. Natur, Geschichte, Museen und Begegnungen haben mich absolut beeindruckt. Die Strecke des South West Coast Path bietet alles was einen Wanderer herausfordert und begeistert: Viele steile Auf- und Abstiege, fantastische Ausblicke, Wegbeschaffenheit aller Art (Gras, Schlamm, Felsen, wurzlig, Bach über oder durchquerungen u.s.w.), Wind, Regen, Sonne, Tierbegegnungen, Geschichte, Natur und vieles mehr. Ich möchte daher keinen Streckenabschnitt hervorheben, selbst die flache Strecke (41 km) von Braunton nach Westward Ho!, von vielen als langweilig beschrieben, hat seinen Reiz. Wer einmal am South West Coast Path unterwegs war wird wahrscheinlich wieder kommen, ich auf jeden Fall. Der von mir gewählte April Termin war ideal, noch keine Hauptsaison, Wetter war gut, von 23 Wandertagen waren nur 2 Tage an denen ich die ganze Etappe im Regen laufen musste. Der Wind war an manchen Tagen stark aber kein Problem und die Temperatur lag zwischen
+5 Grad und +18 Grad. Fazit; eine fantastische Wanderung, wenn man mit Freude, Neugier, Wissenslust und Akzeptanz der Elemente (Wegbeschaffenheit, Sonne, Regen, Wind u.s.w.) unterwegs ist, deshalb Danke an das encounterwalking Team für eine perfekte Organisation. TRANSLATION - First of all, I have to say that the tour was absolutely well organized by the encounterwalking team. Contact was quick and reliable, accommodation was top-notch, luggage transport was absolutely reliable, the people on site were friendly and helpful. The entire route from Minehead to Lizard was fantastic. I was absolutely impressed by the nature, history, museums and encounters. The South West Coast Path route offers everything that challenges and inspires a hiker: lots of steep climbs and descents, fantastic views, all kinds of path conditions (grass, mud, rocks, roots, crossing or crossing streams, etc.), wind, rain, sun, animal encounters, history, nature and much more. I therefore don't want to highlight any one section of the route; even the flat route (41 km) from Braunton to Westward Ho!, described by many as boring, has its charm. Anyone who has been on the South West Coast Path once will probably come back, I certainly will. The April date I chose was ideal, not yet peak season, the weather was good, out of 23 hiking days there were only 2 days where I had to walk the whole stage in the rain. The wind was strong on some days but not a problem and the temperature was between +5 degrees and +18 degrees. Conclusion: a fantastic hike if you go with joy, curiosity, a thirst for knowledge and acceptance of the elements (path conditions, sun, rain, wind, etc.), so thank you to the encounterwalking team for perfect organization.

Super 8 days walking, look forward to continuing the next leg of SW Coast Path

There are many steep stairs on the Coast Path. Walking may be quite strenuous but we were aware of this beforehand and we liked our walk very much! We walked last year from St.Ives to Penzance and planned this time an even longer route. It was perfect! The luggage had to be ready for the transfer at 9 am but breakfast was usually only possible from 8:30 am on so we sometimes had to hurry! It was just great, a wonderful experience! The South West Coast Path is exeptionally beautiful!

Brilliant. I had such an excellent time. Thank you!!

we live in the states & all questions were answered about the trip in a very timely manor. the book was very helpful along with the added comments from Encounter W H as to any recent changes with the route. Directions to B&B were very good. Directions for buses did not relate how exciting that can be as the VERY Big city buses run on the tiny little lanes in the countryside ! Drivers were amazing. also we found in the bigger little hamlets that public toilets were not marked but if there was a public parking lot near by then most of the time so was a public toilet. we asked for B&B with private ensuite bath 3 star and above. this was delivered. we found that this usually put us on the top floor with a view and maybe a bigger room. most required us to take our luggage up and down the 3 flights of stairs . but , what are a few more stairs after doing this walk ! it was our second trip with Encounters W H and we would use them again .

Together with Encounter Walking Holidays we could plan our holiday just the way we liked. They are very flexible. In our case we asked for some changes in accomodations and brought in some suggestions. They gave us advice in which accomodations they could work with and which they would not advise us to go to. Website is very good. Lot of information , complete and clear. On a 20 leg (400 km) part of the SWCP we could see that different parts of the Path are maintained not so well as other parts. Sometimes signes are missing, or broken while on other locations they are new and made out of fancy materials. Also the tracks are sometimes difficult to walk because plants are growing over it while on other plants are nicely removed. We used our own navigation. Walking notes we got from Encounter Walking Holidays are very good, We always checked them the night before to see what we could expect the next day. Which parts of the track are easy, moderate or strenuous and a lot of sightseeing topics. Luggage transfer never went wrong. One time however we found a note on our luggage. That day we waited for the rain to clear and left after 9 o'clock . We did not realize that we should have put our luggage at the pick-up point before 9 o'clock. They people from the luggage transfer service did pick it up later. Thank you ! Some of the locations we picked ourselfes where maybe not the best choices after all. We had one room in the attic where we had to stoop constantly to avoid bumping our heads. Our choice and our mistake. But 95% were very good. Very friendly, with good breakfast, when available. Very good overall. This was our second time with Encounter Walking Holidays. We will probably travel with them in the future.

Well organised and willing to make personal concessions - for example we wished an overnight stay at Morwenstow where our family come from. We found the walks longer than inticipated. In the guidebook it looks like the distances are as "the crow flys" without taking into account that there are lots of ups and downs. The maps are very good. We found the books less easy to follow, with lots of information about places away from the track. We ordered two sets of books and maps as we were a group of five arriving from two different countries. We did recieve two sets of books, but only one set of maps. Great experience and pretty good weather.

This was our second walking holiday and once again, it was perfect! Beautiful nature, charming villages, and great food and lodging! We will definitely take another trip as soon as possible!

Loved our walking experience on the SWCP. We can't stop raving about it. The scenery was spectacular, accommodation fantastic. This was our fourth long distance walk over the years, and I would say that this was the best. I am more than happy to recommend Encounter Walking Holidays and Luggage transfers to anyone considering doing this walk. I can't thank the Encounter Walking Holiday Team enough for helping us to have such a wonderful experience.

Great trip. Looking forward to doing more with you.

This is the second time we have walked part of the South West Coast Path using Encounter Walking and we cannot recommend them highly enough. They were excellent in every way, all arrangements went perfectly and the coast path is truly a spectacular walk.

Most enjoyable but very challenging and would recommend that trekkers consider very carefully the distances and investigate the terrain and gradients in detail before confirming each day's itinerary. That way you'll have time to appreciate the sights and sounds along the way more!!