The History of The Rising Sun Inn

The Rising Sun Inn is a Grade II Listed building dating to around 1630, making it a genuine 17th-century free house right on the water in Portmellon Cove, near Mevagissey, Cornwall. The building retains its original features, alongside a recent refurbishment completed in summer 2024.

Tucked into Portmellon Cove, right on the water's edge, The Rising Sun Inn has been standing for close to four hundred years. The building is Grade II Listed, recognised by Historic England for its architectural and historic interest, and dates to around 1630 — making it one of the older working inns on this stretch of the Cornish coast.

That history sits alongside a proper modern refurbishment, completed in summer 2024, which brought the pub and its two sea-view rooms up to a high standard while keeping the historic character of the building intact. The result is a pub that still feels like a 17th-century inn — because it is one — but with the comfort and amenities visitors expect today.

Being a genuine free house also means there's no tie to a single brewery, so the range behind the bar changes regularly, drawing on both local Cornish breweries and further afield.

Whether you're stopping in for a pint, a meal, or a stay in one of the rooms, you're spending time in a building that's been part of this cove for the best part of four centuries — a rare thing to find somewhere still very much in daily use.