North Cornwall

Spectacular views

The north coast, also known as the Atlantic coast, stretches some 40 miles from Bude to St Agnes and beyond. There are many well-known towns, beaches and villages in this stretch of coast, including:

• Porth Isaac – otherwise known as Porth Wenn to Doc Martin fans
• Tintagel – the alleged birthplace of King Arthur
• Rock – a known holiday spot for members of the Royal family
• Padstow – home to Rick Stein and Paul Ainsworth
• Carnewas and Bedruthan Steps – spectacular rock stacks
• Watergate Bay – fantastic surf beach
• Newquay – the surf capital of England
• Crantock to Holywell Bay – wildlife reserve
• Perranporth to St Agnes – some of the best-preserved mine buildings

Porth, a great location

Porth is located on the outskirts of Newquay, just 2 miles from Watergate Bay. Centrally situated between Padstow and St Agnes, both are around half an hour’s drive. Tintagel and Bude are around an hour.

The sheer variety of things to do here will mean there’s something for everyone. Whether you want a relaxing holiday with great food and places to visit, a traditional seaside break or maybe you want something more energetic, such as surfing, walking or other outdoor fun, you’ll find it on the north coast.

There are a huge variety of beaches in north Cornwall. Fistral and Watergate Bay are known for their great surf, whilst Porthtowan in St Agnes, Trevone near Padstow, Polzeath near Wadebridge and Widemouth in Bude have all been awarded blue flags.

Porth Beach along with Crooklets and Summerleaze beaches in Bude have gained Seaside Awards for their cleanliness and facilities.

There are also plenty of places to visit and attractions along the north coast. The Blue Reef Aquarium, Screech Owl Sanctuary, Newquay Zoo, Trenance Gardens, Lappa Valley and Dairyland Farmworld are all close by.

Tintagel is where legend has it that King Arthur was born. Here and around the Camelford area there are various stop points synonymous with Arthurian tales.

The Heritage Coast around St Agnes has some iconic Cornish landmarks such as Wheal Coates, an engine house perched on the cliffs. Between Padstow and Mawgan Porth, there are also famous landmarks such as the lighthouse and Bedruthan Steps.

Head to Padstow for The National Lobster Hatchery and Prideaux Place, a teddy bear museum and park featured in a TV dramatisation of Rosamunde Pilcher’s novels.

The north Cornwall coastline was also featured in the recent Poldark TV series with Trerice, near Kestle Mill, being the inspiration for author Winston Graham and where the 1970s series was filmed.

In Cornwall however, nothing is very far away. From Porth, it takes around half an hour to drive to the Eden Project on the south coast and around an hour to reach St Ives and Penzance.