Launceston Cornwall
Skip to main navigation listLaunceston, the 'Gateway to Cornwall', is set between the Bodmin and Dartmoor Moors just off the A30, the main route into Cornwall. A traditional market town with narrow medieval streets, Launceston Cornwall has a good range of shops and services and things of interest, including the large Norman castle which stands over the town.
Launceston Cornwall is a good place to shop for gifts or to stock up with provisions as it has specialty shops which sell locally produced foods and products. Launceston also has an indoor Friday Market at St Mary's Hall selling local food and crafts and the Butter Market, held in the Town Square on the first Saturday of each month, again selling local foods and crafts.
Launceston Castle is set on a large natural mound and dominates the surrounding landscape. Begun soon after the Norman Conquest, its focus is an unusual keep consisting of a 13th century round tower built by Richard, Earl of Cornwall, inside an earlier circular shell-keep. The tower top is now reached via an internal staircase. The castle long remained a prison and George Fox, founder of the Quakers, suffered harsh confinement here in 1656. A display traces 1,000 years of history, with finds from site excavations. Dogs are welcome to visit Launceston Castle leads.
www.english-heritage.org.uk/launceston
Other things to see in Launceston Cornwall are St Mary's Church, famed for its extravagantly carved exterior, Lawrence House Museum which informs on local history and the Launceston Steam Railway on which you can enjoy a ride through the beautiful Kensey Valley countryside to the hamlet of Newmills.
For the outdoor enthusiast Outlook Adventure are based in Launceston and offer a wide range of land and water based activities including Climbing and Abseiling, Coasteering, Mountain Biking, Kayaking, Surfing, Bushcraft.
Around Launceston:

See attractions in Cornwall list for nearby attractions
ONLINE GALLERY, INFO ON CORNISH ARTISTS & LIST OF GALLERIES IN CORNWALL. VIEW OUR CORNWALL ART GUIDE...
Cornwall has some fabulous places to eat out including delicious seafood restaurants serving local Cornish fish, cozy Cornish Cafes, traditional pubs. See our list of places to eat in Cornwall to find out more.