St Ives Holidays – January Edition
St Ives in January
How busy is St Ives in January?
If you book a St Ives cottage and stay in January, you can expect the town to be peaceful and quiet. It’s not so quiet that you feel you’re staying in a ghost town, though. St Ives never really gets that quiet! It’s far too a beautiful and sought-after destination for that.
You will have beaches to yourselves, almost. You shouldn’t need to book restaurant tables (although it’s always wise to), and if you walk into a coffee shop, you’ll find a table to sit at.
Parking in St Ives in January is one of the highlights too. You will get a space without queuing. If you make a beeline for the most central car park in St Ives; The Island, you should find a space quite easily even if you take day trips. That is a luxury only experienced one or two months of the year!
Some restaurants close in January but only one or two. There is still a great choice of restaurants to eat at whether it’s seafood, luxury burgers, tapas or steaks. Most cafes stay open serving wholesome lunches, sweet treats and great coffee.
Dog-friendly St Ives in January
St Ives in January, in our opinion, is a dreamy place to stay. You have room to fully immerse yourselves in the galleries, shops, eateries and beaches without the overcrowdedness. If you book a dog friendly holiday cottage in St Ives and treat you and your four-legged best friend to a holiday, they will also thank you. All the beaches are dog-friendly all day long in January.
What's the weather like in St Ives in January?
It’s a whole lot milder than it is in the rest of the UK, that’s for sure.
While temperatures across the UK are often below 5 degrees or even freezing minus temperatures with snow and ice. St Ives is normally a good few degrees warmer. We have a subtropical climate in Cornwall, so we rarely get frosts; our average temperature hardly ever dips below 5 degrees and we have many healthy and happy plants.
We get the most daylight hours too in the UK so while we often hear radio presenters saying it’s dark either in the morning or afternoons, in Cornwall it’s still light.
It can rain in January, yes. But we also get glorious days of sunshine and settled weather too. When the sun comes out and in a sheltered sunny spot, you will often see sunglasses on and scarves and coats being removed.
How much are St Ives holiday cottages in January?
It’s the cheapest time of year to book a holiday cottage in St Ives. You will get the best value for money!
Prices for a St Ives cottage on Orange Roofs portfolio can range from £350 for a short break of 3 nights for a smaller cottage to £950 for a short break in a larger luxury holiday cottage with parking. Week or two-week stays are even better value for money ranging from £525 for 7 nights to £1200.
Tinhay | sleeps 6
Did you know that 90% of our St Ives Cottages come with parking?
Luxury St Ives CottagesWhat's On in St Ives during January
Saturday 25th January – 10 am to 4 pm
Learn to draw in 1 day
Saturday 25th January – 3 pm to 6 pm
St Ives Community Orchard – Wassail
Saturday 25th January – 7.30 pm
Line Dancing
Restaurant review of the month
Ardor, Fore Street, St IvesArdor is (for those who know St Ives very well) where Seafood Cafe used to be on Fore Street. It’s half way along Fore Street and there are steps down into the restaurant off the cobbled street.
The food at Ardor is passionately led by Chef Patron Dorian Janmaat. The food at Ardor is influenced by the food cultures of the Mediterranean.
Expect decent sized servings of authentic pintxos & tapas, the freshest Cornish seafood, and dry-aged cuts, cooked simply over charcoal in the heart of St. Ives, Cornwall.
The Orange Roofs team visited on the 4th December and enjoyed their festive menu which came with a complimentary glass of fizz.
The restaurant is nicely and comfortably decorated and furnished. Patterned tiles on walls, earthy tones and padded bench seats as well as simple and modern tables and chairs, means you feel calm and warmly welcomed from the moment you step foot into the restaurant.

fried aubergine, honey, olive and crispy salt cod, piquillo pepper salsa

padron peppers and warm turkish bread, olive oil, balsamic

chicken souvlaki skewer, garlic & cumin yoghurt, apricot harissa (foreground) duroc pork ribs, quince & rosemary glaze (background)

cinnamon churros with chocolate sauce
Our Verdict
The food was absolutely delicious and the portion sizes for our lunch were just right. Nobody left hungry! Service was with a smile and the staff were all friendly and happy to help. The speed of service was also just right; no real waiting around but just enough time between courses. We didn’t feel rushed out the door. We had three courses of food and a glass of fizz on arrival for £45 per person and felt that it was good value for money given the two starter tapas dishes were generously portioned. We didn’t drink anything off their wine list (we had to go back to work in the afternoon!) but there seemed to be a really nice selection of wines from each Mediterranean region.
Property review of the month
Review from a guest that stayed at Porthia Penthouse for ChristmasFour of us stayed at the Porthia Penthouse for Christmas week. What an experience! The apartment, in addition to being beautifully maintained and presented, had been dressed for Christmas including a tree with lights. Lucy, the owner, had also left us an iced Christmas cake, chocolate, a bag of crackers to pull, and a welcome of scones, jam and clotted cream. All of the apartment’s furniture, fixtures and fittings are top class, with more than ample crockery and glassware. The views over Porthminster Beach are superb, and we were ideally situated being just a short stroll into the centre of St.Ives, or even for crossing the road to join the South West Coast Path towards Carbis Bay. A big thank you to Lucy, and to the Orange Roofs team, for providing such a memorable stay, and especially to Rod for attending very promptly to a small issue on the building’s external door lock – it wasn’t his responsibility, but his actions in freeing this lock was much appreciated by us, and guests in other apartments. Highly recommended apartment – and a highly recommended company.
Porthia Penthouse in St Ives
Fun Fact of the month
The name, Cornwall, originates from the two words: ‘Cornovii’ and ‘Waelas’.
Cornovii is thought to mean ‘horn people’. It’s not describing lots of people running around with horns, in this case, the horn refers to their location in the south-western peninsula.
‘Waelas’ is Anglo-Saxon and means ‘foreigners’, which is also the derivation of Wales.