Pubs in St Ives

Queen's Hotel

High Street, St Ives TR26 1RR

Large, internally-modernised town centre pub, having an open interior with a monochromatic theme including a beautiful white marble bar top - the pub has the appearance and feel of a cocktail bar. There are three separate drinking areas, one with a large gilt-framed mirror and book library, another houses the gas fire. The St. Austell beer range may increase in summer, when the pub is often crowded. The room incorporates a pool table, sofas and small seating areas, while a separate dining area serves quality food. Live music at weekends.

Sloop Inn

The Wharf, St Ives TR26 1LP

One of Cornwall's oldest (reputedly from 1312) inns, situated right on the harbour front. Especially popular with the tourists, its three bar interior is full of character, with slate floors and open fires to reflect the past; beware the low beamed ceilings. Local artists' work is displayed around the walls. Seafood is a speciality on an extensive menu, which is served in the lounge and cellar bars. Bench seating outside offers panoramic views over the harbour. A number of rooms/apartments are available. The beer is expensive for the area, pulled through sparklers, and may be served very chilled (down to 6C).

Three Ferrets

17 Chapel Street, St Ives TR26 2LR

This local back street hostelry has been variously a stables, a munitions factory and a funeral director's office. It is now a no-frills (although still friendly) one bar boozer, refurbished in a minimalist modern style, though with plenty of woodwork including a planked floor and a dark beamed ceiling. Seating is on a few upholstered wall benches and a sofa, and a few stools and tables scattered around the central area. It attracts an interesting cross-section of drinking society but mainly the younger drinker, and the lively, sometimes boisterous atmosphere (especially evenings) reflects this; there is a pool table, and large TV screens show continuous pop videos or sport as the occasion demands - the continuous piped music can be fairly loud and this is supplemented by live entertainment at weekends.

Union Inn

20 Fore Street, St Ives TR26 1AB

This small, congenial town centre local has a warm and friendly atmosphere, and is full of character reflecting the area; it is a popular venue which can be crowded during the summer season. The pub is carpeted throughout on two levels, and old photographs of the nearby harbour and related activities adorn the walls, reflecting past connections with the Union Castle shipping line. The food menu is available at all times and offers several veggie options. Live music appears at weekends. Draught cider is Weston's Old Rosie.

Western Hotel

Gabriel Street, St Ives TR26 2LU

This is a solid granite-built town centre local drinkers' bar, part of the Western Hotel. The ale range may increase to three during busy summer periods with changing beers from Bath Ales and the St Austell main and small batch ranges, but reduce during the quieter winter months. Food is available only in high season on Mon to Sat. There is a large function room in the hotel which can also supply real ale when needed, and a courtyard garden at the back of the hotel. The town's main venue for live entertainment with blues on Monday, acoustic jam sessions on Tuesday & Sunday, open mic on Wednesday & Friday, rock & roll on Thursday and a band on Sat.

Hain Line

Tregenna Place, St Ives TR26 1SD

Newly opened in May 2012 literally in the town centre in the former Isobar nightclub, this is one of the more compact Wetherspoon branches, although it recently extended into the former shop next door. The split-level ground floor has a seating area at the lower front end, the raised part behind hosting a narrow bar space where 7 handpumps offer the usual Wetherspoon suspects plus three or four changing beers. A separate albeit narrow drinking/eating space is located along the side wall. Upstairs, a more spacious room, also on two levels, offers much more table seating space and its own bar with 3 handpumps where one of the beers might be different from the downstairs lineup. Although there is piped music upstairs, this is not a Lloyds Bar version of Wetherspoons; there are no noisy machines to distract and conversation dominates. It opens at 07:00 for breakfast each day.

Rum & Crab Shack

Wharf Road, St Ives TR26 1LG

Tucked away up a flight of granite steps above the waterfront, the Rum & Crab Shack may seem at first an unlikely place to find a real ale bar, the clue to its main activities lying in the name. However, the small, L-shaped bar inside the door does (occasionally) offer real ale. The beers vary, with an emphasis on Cornish microbreweries. The room itself is U-shaped and spacious, with the bar at one end and the remainder mainly for seating and eating, with impressive views straight over the harbour and bay as a bonus. Furniture consists predominantly of old wooden benches and settles, the décor reflecting the theme and including rum barrels and a sea chest. The bar end, where dogs are also welcome, also offers a huge range of rum as well as bottled beers from Belgium and the US. Food is somewhat but not exclusively crab-orientated, and is available daily. The bar may close during the month of January.

Pilchard Press Alehouse

Wharf Road, St Ives TR26 1LF

Newly opened in June 2016, this tiny bar in an old stone-walled cellar is Cornwall's first micro-pub. Difficult to find ('and that's how we like it') and easy to miss, being up a side-alley off the harbourside near the Lifeboat Inn, it is nevertheless well worth seeking out. The wood-topped bar has a few bar stools to sit on, and there are two tables with chairs; total capacity would be around 20-25 people at one time. It offers up to 6 real ales from micro-breweries, mainly although not exclusively from Cornwall. There are also up to 4 ciders available, especially in busy periods. No food is available. Note: the pub may close earlier than Sunday evening if the beer runs out. 'Winter' opening times extend from October to the following June.

St Ives Royal British Legion Club

Higher Stennack, St Ives TR26 1DB

Friendly, welcoming recently refurbished Club Is found near the top of Higher Stennock approx. 10 minutes walk from the town centre. It comprises two slightly irregularly shaped bar areas; the bar at the front is a spacious well-decorated room open to the public, whilst the adjoining pleasant rear bar ls mainly frequented by members and their guests although no restrictions apply. A pool table and dartboard are available where club members can play in their respective teams. Both bars serve an unchanging real ale and a real cider. The club is pleasantly furnished with a mixture of standard furniture and carpeted throughout except near bars where parquet-style flooring is present. Outside is a patio with limited wooden seating and tables, with the small car park adjacent.

St. Ives Arts Club

Westcotts Quay, St. Ives, St Ives TR26 2DY

Tregenna Castle Hotel Golf Club

St Ives, St Ives TR26 2DE

Beer & Bird

18a Fore Street, St Ives TR26 1AB

Describing itself as a 'craft beer bar', this family-run outlet is accessed up a narrow staircase next to the Castle Inn; there is also step-free access at the side towards the rear (Ayr Lane, off Fore Street beyond the Union Inn). With wooden floorboards and a single long bar, it offers 4 real ales, three of which change constantly; all are sourced from Cornish breweries. There is also a large (12 page) beer menu covering cask/craft ales plus bottled beers and keg brews. Locally-sourced 'comfort food' is largely chicken-orientated; table booking is available but you are welcome to go in simply for a drink or two. The pub closes during January. The beer is not the cheapest in town, but its quality is arguably worth paying for.