Short answer: Tate St Ives and the main galleries run year-round, and the town keeps a real winter trade. Beach cafés and some seasonal shops close. Parking becomes possible again, which alone changes the visit.
The reason painters settled in St Ives was the light — and winter light here is genuinely the best of it, low and clear off three sides of water.
Tate St Ives and the Barbara Hepworth Museum run through winter, as do most of the independent galleries. This is what St Ives does best and it doesn't stop in November.
The single biggest practical change. In summer the park and ride is essential; in winter you can genuinely drive in.
Porthmeor and Porthgwidden are dramatic in winter and largely empty. Dog restrictions lift out of season, which makes them properly good for a winter walk.
Beach cafés reduce or shut, some galleries go to weekends only, and a number of seasonal shops close entirely. The core of the town keeps going.
Still there, still bold, still worth eating undercover for.
Independent galleries in particular change hours at short notice out of season. If a specific one is the reason for your trip, check before driving.
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