LIFEBOAT STATIONS AROUND THE COAST OF CORNWALL AND THE ISLES OF SCILLY
- The history of the Cornish Lifeboats dates back to before the founding of the RNLI in 1803.
- The first RNLI boat was stationed at Penzance.
- Over the years there have been lifeboat stations in 28 different locations around the coast of Cornwall & the Isles of Scilly.
- Cornwall now has more Lifeboat Stations and more Lifeboats around its coasts than any other county in the UK.
- Today there are 14 lifeboat stations around Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, all run by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, with a total of 21 lifeboats.
- These range from the latest Tamar Class All Weather Lifeboat down to the D-Class, smallest of the Inshore Lifeboats. Amongst the Cornish Lifeboat Fleet nearly every current class of Lifeboat is represented.
The lifeboat stations are categorised as Explore, Observe or Discover:
- Explore
- Explore stations offer the best visitor experience. With free access, you can go inside and look around the station, see the lifeboat and, in most cases, pre-book a tour. They are normally open all year and have an RNLI gift shop. The three Cornish Explore lifeboat stations are marked below.
- Observe
- Observe stations also welcome visitors but many are in inaccessible places and best suited to maritime rescue rather than visits. However, they are situated in stunning locations so why not enjoy the local area, using the station as a starting point? The three Cornish Explore lifeboat stations are marked below.
- Discover
- The crews from Discover stations are equally welcoming to visitors but many of these stations were built before visitors were considered. These stations normally open their boathouse doors during the summer months. The eight Cornish Explore lifeboat stations are marked below.
Click on the station location to open it's dedicated page. Some now include video links.
Open map of Cornwall showing locations of the lifeboat stations
