Dog-friendly The South Cornwall Coast

Bar and restaurant on the Fowey waterfront with a terrace over the harbour. Dogs are permitted in the bar, the lounge and the outside terrace but not the main restaurant. Be clear on the sleeping arrangements: dogs are only accepted in the self-catering apartment, not in any of the guest bedrooms.

Listed harbourside hotel and pub beside the tall ships in Charlestown's Georgian dock. Your dog is allowed with you in all areas of the Pier House except the main restaurant, and dog-friendly bedrooms must be booked in advance. Leads in the public areas and off the furniture.

Hillside pub above Falmouth's Greenbank with what it fairly claims is the best sea view in town. Well-behaved dogs are welcome throughout the pub, both indoor and outdoor areas, with no dining-room exclusion. A good stop on the walk round from the town centre to Pendennis.

Old sailors' pub on Custom House Quay, right where the Falmouth ferries come and go. Dogs are permitted in most areas of the pub, minus the main restaurant dining area, and a few of the bedrooms upstairs are dog-friendly. Leads in the public areas and not left unattended.

Fourteenth-century mill house at the top of Polperro, which is where the village car park is and therefore where most walks start. Dogs are very welcome in the accommodation as well as the pub, on a lead in the public areas and off the beds. Bring your own dog bedding — the inn asks guests to supply it.

Waterside pub on Fowey's Town Quay, with a suntrap courtyard right on the river and the Polruan ferry landing a few yards off. There are plenty of tables inside and the pub states it is dog friendly, so you are not exiled to the quay when the weather turns. Rooms above are let separately.

Café, bar and kitchen sitting directly on Swanpool beach with the coast path running past the door. Dogs are welcome everywhere at Beach House, including the upstairs Top Bar, which the owners describe as completely dog-friendly. Note that Swanpool itself bans dogs 10am to 6pm through July and August.

Just under three miles of coast path between a Georgian china clay port and a small sandy bay, about an hour and three quarters at a moderate grade with two short steep pulls out of the coves. Park at Charlestown, where the pay-and-display sits behind the harbour and the tall ships, and return by the field path above Duporth. There are no remaining stiles on the route, which suits any size of dog, but the cliff path is unfenced for most of the way and the beach picture is unusually strict here: Charlestown and Duporth ban dogs all year and Porthpean is closed in the peak weeks.

Five and a half easy miles right round the Pendennis peninsula, taking in the working docks, the castle headland and all three town beaches, about two and a half hours on largely surfaced paths. Start from The Moor in the middle of Falmouth or from the castle car park on the point itself; the town has two railway stations on the Truro branch, so this walk is genuinely car-free. There are no stiles and no livestock, but a good deal of it is pavement and dock road where a lead is needed, and every beach on the loop closes to dogs for part of the summer.

Five miles round the highest headland on the south coast, two and three quarter hours with 230 metres of climbing and a granite cross on the point put there for shipwrecked sailors. It starts from the car park above Gorran Haven, a few miles of lanes south of Mevagissey, and passes the long shingle sweep of Vault Beach on the way out. One squeeze-through stile that dogs manage, and all three beaches on the route take dogs all year, which makes this the pick of the area in August; the Dodman is unfenced, high and often windier than the forecast.

Three and a half miles round the Gribbin headland to the red and white daymark tower, about two and a quarter hours with 170 metres of climbing and views the length of St Austell Bay. Start from the National Trust car park at Menabilly Barton, a field car park up a narrow lane off the Fowey to Par road, and walk down past the lakes to Polridmouth. No stiles anywhere on the route, Polridmouth beach takes dogs all year and the lake behind it is the swim, but the headland is grazed and the coast path either side of the daymark runs along an unfenced edge with a long drop.

Just under four miles round two tidal creeks in old oak woodland, a little over two hours with 140 metres of climbing and almost no view of open sea at any point. Park at the Helford village car park at the top of the hill, because cars are barred from the village itself in season and a shuttle runs down; the walk goes out past Penarvon Cove. One stile, a flight of wooden steps, is awkward for a large dog, and leads are needed between Penarvon and the chapel loop where free-range chickens wander; otherwise the creekside is shaded, muddy and very good for a dog that likes water.

Three miles of oak woodland along the tidal West Looe River and back over the ridge on the line of a sixth-century earthwork, about an hour and three quarters and sheltered from any weather off the sea. Start from the Millpool car park in West Looe, which is the town’s main long-stay and sits at the wood gate, with Looe station five minutes away on the branch line from Liskeard. One stile with an open gate and a gap alongside, no fields of livestock anywhere on the route, and the river shallows at low tide make an easy paddle; the wood is a nature reserve, so keep to the paths in spring.

Country house hotel in gardens above Talland Bay, midway on the coast path between Looe and Polperro. Every room is dog friendly and your dog can join you in the conservatory for breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner, which almost no hotel of this sort allows. Four-legged guests get a hamper with a feeding mat, bowls, towels and a sleeping mat.

Waterfront hotel on its own quay at the head of Falmouth harbour, with harbour-facing gardens and the dog-friendly Working Boat pub below. Only some rooms are available for dog-friendly stays, and dogs must be on a lead in public areas and off the furniture. Very well-behaved dogs may join you for breakfast in the dog-friendly bar corner.

The former china clay pit turned garden above St Austell Bay, with its biomes sunk into the crater. You can bring your dog into the Outdoor Gardens at no extra charge, but with the exception of guide dogs they are not allowed inside the Biomes, the Link Building walkway between them, or the children's play areas. Plan a dog-sitting rota if you want to see the rainforest.

Subtropical ravine garden dropping through tree ferns and gunnera to a private beach on the Helford. Dogs are welcome in the garden and on the beach all year round, on a lead throughout, with water bowls dotted around the site and treats handed out at the entrance desk. Trebah Kitchen has labelled dog tables inside to the left and out on the terrace.