St Just in Penwith

St Just (Cornish: Lannust) is the most westerly town on the mainland of the UK. It's in West Cornwall and had population of around 4,800 in the area in 2011. Traditionally a mining town, the last mine closed in 1996. St Just now makes the majority of its income from passing tourists.

Understand

Penzance Tourist Information Centre (between the rail and bus stations in Penzance), ☏ +44 1736 362207. Can help with information and accommodation 

Get in

The main way to get to St Just is by travelling via Penzance, 7 miles from the town.

  • By bus: From Penzance there are a couple of bus services (First Bus Cornwall route 10/10A) which takes 30–40 minutes and runs every 30 minutes during the day M-Sa, less frequently in the evenings and on Sundays and (Western Greyhound route 509) which takes 30 minutes and runs via Sancreed on Mondays to Saturdays there is no Sunday service on this route. Alternate buses run via Pendeen. In addition there is an open-top summer service (First Bus Cornwall route 300) which runs Lands End - Sennen - St Just - Zennor - St Ives every couple of hours.
  • By road: St Just is at the end of A3071 which runs to Penzance and the A30 to England. There are also local B-class roads to Sennen (and Land's End) to the South and St Ives to the North.
  • By train: Nearest National Rail station is Penzance, a taxi costs around £20 or catch the bus.
  • By coach: London Victoria to Penzance.

Get around

The town is very small and easily walked. Plenty of free parking as well.

See

Sights are largely outside but near. Anywhere on the north Cornish coast near here is great with Cape Cornwall as the scenic highlight. Sennen Cove to the west and St Ives to the east have excellent beaches.

Nearby beaches
  • 🌍 Cape Cornwall, Cape Cornwall Road, St Just, TR19 7NN (Coastal road B3306 from St Ives to Lands End. A3071 from Penzance to St Just. Take Cape Cornwall road, signposted from the centre of St Just and follow to the end). The distinctive headland juts out into the ocean where two great bodies of water meet. Part of the Tin Coast and Cornish Mining World Heritage Site. Rocky beach with a bathing pool (Priest Cove), used by small day fishing boats. 
  • 🌍 Cot Valley. SSSI beach with a unique raised beach. 
  • 🌍 Porth Nanven. Over the saddle to the South of Cot Valley is a body rock beach with great swimming and snorkelling. 

Various other beaches dot the coast near to the town.

If you have a car, you could try the tourist-orientated beaches of Sennen Cove and Gwenver near Land's End or St Ives town beaches.

Industrial remains

The whole area is full of mining remains but the following are outstanding.

  • 🌍 Botallack, on the Tin Coast, near St Just TR19 7QQ (off B3308 towards Zennor), ☏ +44 1736 786934. On the wild Tin Coast, the famed Crowns engine houses cling to the foot of the cliffs. Part of the Cornish Mining World Heritage Site and Poldark filming location. 
  • 🌍 Kenidjack (off B3308 at Tregeseal). Wheal Owles, Boswedden Mine and the Kenidjack arsenic 

Also Ding Dong Mine near Sancreed and Levant mine and beam engine in nearby Pendeen.

Prehistoric remains
  • 🌍 Ballowal Barrow, Carn Gloose (SW355312). Round Barrow with a fine viewpoint overlooking Cape Cornwall h

Also see sites in nearby St Buryan and the parishes of Madron and Sancreed.

Granite churches

Although the granite churches here have much in common, they all have distinctive features.

  • 🌍 St Just. has ancient frescoes 

There are plenty more in the area such as in St Levan, St Buryan and Saint Senara's Church in Zennor.

Do
  • Walk up to the moors above the town.
  • St Just is good placed for an overnight stop on the Coastal Path (from Penzance, Lands' End and Sennen to the South and Zennor and St. Ives to the North).
  • Scenic flights or trial flight lessons from Lands End Airfield 2 miles from town.
  • Visit Cape Cornwall 2 miles down Cape Cornwall Road (past the grey grim looking Secondary School). Once thought to be the most Westerly point in the UK, proved wrong with modern mapping. Stunning scenery and a welcoming Coast Watch Station (www.ccnci.org.uk) on the sea facing slope of the cape. A good circular walk (3 miles, an hour, plus stops) is: down Cape Cornwall Road to the cricket club, turn left and follow on to Carn Gloose, carry on down the track to Cape Cornwall. On the way back follow the road for 100 m and turn left 45 degrees along a foot path track, follow this round past the house on the left before turning left onto a foot path. Follow the valley all the way back to the town.
  • Visit the ancient stone circles around the town.

Events
  • Lafrowda Festival: performing arts festival with (free) live music into the night. Mid July.
  • St Just Feast: on 1st November every year is the start of the St Just hunt (which isn't allowed to hunt any more), general 'piss up' in the town.
  • New Year's Eve: fancy dress night. Normally every one spills out from all the pubs and dances round the Christmas tree in Market Square (the one with the Co-op) just before midnight.
  • Market Jew Day in early April every second year is another excuse for a party. It is traditionally the day when the Jews would be shipped out, but luckily now this is only celebrated in a tongue-in-cheek manner.

Eat
  • 🌍 McFaddens butchers, 11 Market Square, ☏ +44 1736 788136. A large steak pasty. One of the best pasties in Cornwall. 
  • 🌍 Jeremys Fish and Chips, 2 Market Square, ☏ +44 1736 786002. Locally caught fish, take away and during the summer restaurant upstairs. 
  • 🌍 Red Star, 1 Cape Cornwall St, ☏ +44 1736 788104. Chinese takeaway. 
  • 🌍 Kegen Teg, 12 Market Square, ☏ +44 1736 788562. Cafe which does decent evening meals and operates a bring your own bottle of wine policy. 

Drink

St. Just is a small hard-drinking town, expect good chat from locals but don't say Cornwall is part of England.

On Friday and Saturdays its not uncommon for people to club together and share a taxi to the night clubs in Penzance "Oii my lover are you going down barn tonight?" is what you may be asked, which refers to the Barn Night Club in Penzance. A taxi is around £20 each way — not too bad if you get 7 people and a 7-seater minibus taxi.

Sleep
  • Various B&Bs in and around the town. Contact the Penzance TIC for booking and more information.
  • 🌍 The Commercial Hotel, 13 Market Square (attached to the Commercial Arms), ☏ +44 1736 788455. 
  • 🌍 Land's End Youth Hostel, Letcha Vean, St Just-in-Penwith (a 1.5-mile walk (partially down an unlit hiking path so take note if arriving late in the evening) from the town), ☏ +44 845 371 9643. it is pricey compared to a B&B if you are a group of 2 or more. 

Stay safe

St. Just is a safe place with low rates of petty crime. Be sensible though and don't leave valuables on display in your car over night. St. Just is a major gateway for narcotics dropped off by small speed boats in the middle of the night at the large number of coves dotted around the coast. There is a significant organised criminal network operating, although this should be of little significance to the visitor it does create some of the lowest street prices for illegal drugs in Western Europe.

Go next
  • Geevor - tin mine Pendeen.
  • Visit the Isles of Scilly, a 15-minute flight from Land's End Airfield 2 miles from the town or a 2-hour, 40-minute sea crossing from Penzance.
  • St Ives: drive (or take an open top bus in summer) the 15 miles along the North Coast road (B3306) to St Ives. Spectacular scenery, and various pubs to stop at along the way. Luckily the UK has a higher drink drive limit than the US or other European countries and it's perfectly normal to have a couple of pints and still drive. While the limit is higher, the police still crack down hard on anyone caught driving above this limit.

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