Praa Sands has something for everyone.

Children will love its big sandy beach, which carries the blue flag award, while parents will be reassured that the beach has lifeguards on patrol.

Teenagers might try their skill at surfing, for Praa is a sought-after place to learn, and from time to time its wide sweeping waves attract international surfing competitions.

Those who prefer to sit and watch the waves have a mile-long open stretch where if you are lucky you may see a pod of dolphins, or a seal swim past. Or you may join them for a swim.

If walking is your thing, the coastal path to Porthleven, which takes you past former tin mines, such as Wheal Prosper, will takes about 90minutes, where you can have a pastie and either return on foot or take the bus back to Praa.

Going the other way will take you past Prussia Cove, Bessie Cove to reach Marazion (allowing for stops, that will take about three hours). At Marazion you will be greeted by St Michael’s Mount, where at low tide you can walk via the causeway (at high tide boats operate). Once again a bus or taxi can return you to Villa Comino.

Fishermen (and women) enjoy the chance to cast towards dusk for seabass, whiting and mackerel; recently someone found a 4.5 lb cod on the end of his line. Deep sea fishing is also available from Porthleven and Penzance, while those keen on fly-fishing, or spinning can visit the reservoir near St Just, or lakes near Cambourne.

Golfers need only venture a mile up the road from Praa Sands, to find an 9-hole golf course. Additional courses can be found on the Lizard and near St Ives

Art enthusiasts will enjoy visiting Tate St Ives, with its magnificent setting, and the Barbara Hepworth Museum and Sculpture Garden. Artists have long been attracted to St Ives - Turner, Whistler and Sickert, to name a few, while at Newlyn a School of Artists evolved around Lamorna Birch and Stanhope Forbes, specialising in capturing the spectacular light and seascape life.

Literary types might visit Betjeman’s grave near Polzeath where he also spent much of his life; D H Lawrence lived at Zennor and Virginia Woolf based To the Lighthouse on Godrevy Lighthouse in St Ives Bay, while Daphne du Maurier lives at Mevagissey, with Cornwall providing the setting and inspiration for Frenchman’s Creek, Rebecca and Jamaica Inn.

Theatre goers should not fail to treat themselves to a trip to the Minack, by Porthcurno: No theatre can have a more dramatic setting: on the cliffs with the sea as backdrop. But remember it is open air, so take a rug as evenings can turn chilly.

Gardeners will find themselves spoilt for choice, with Trewithen, Trelissik, Trenwainton, Godolphin, Lanhydrock, St Michaels Mount all within easy reach, together with National Trust houses to explore. The Eden Centre and Lost gardens of Heligan are within an hour's drive.

Lapidopterists might scour the local beaches for amethyst, rose quartz or citrine at Praa or more especially Mounts Bay, and should also find serpentine, especially on the Lizard.

History afficianados might like to make a tour of Cornwall’s neolithic past and explorethe standing stones at Lanyon Quoit, Men an Tol, the holy well at Madron and the Chysauster Ancient Village.

Birdwatchers can look out for razorbills, gannets, cormorants, sandpipers, terns, oystercatchers, whitears, stonechats or even a chough, which are now are tentatively beginning to breed again on the Lizard.

A tour of interesting churches will include Gunwalloe, built on the beach, and Zennor, inside which they will find the mermaid wood-carving. Cornwall was the refuge of the pagan Celts, until the arrival of missionaries from Ireland and Wales. Their sites of worship were marked by a Celtic cross, stone cairns or primitive chapels. Some 300 crosses can still be found in Cornwall, generally marked by Celtic-Irish knots whether interlacing or simple carvings.

Adventurists might be attracted by the idea of a day trip on the Scilly Isles, just thirty miles off the coast. Take a helicopter ride (30minutes) or a ferry (2-3hours) both from Penzance and find yourself discovering the history of Hugh Town, capital of St Mary's, or find yourself in the tropical gardens of Tresco, where the white sand beaches and crystal clear waters will make you wonder if you have strayed into the Caribbean.

The main problem you are likely to face is how to cram everything into your time at Villa Comino. No wonder visitors keep coming back...