Pentewan Beach in Cornwall
Beaches

10 Best Beaches in Cornwall (Ratings plus Reviews)

There’s no question that Cornwall is a beautiful state, home to stunning beaches and coastal towns. If you’re looking for the perfect beach to relax on this summer, you’ll want to check out our list of the top 10 best beaches in Cornwall. Based on ratings and reviews from various sources, these beaches offer something for everyone, from swimming and sunbathing to fishing and kayaking. So pack your sunscreen and head on down to one of these amazing seaside havens!

Best Beach in Cornwall

Perranporth Beach

  • Address: Perranporth Beach, United Kingdom
  • Map: Click here
  • Rating: 4.8 (5021)
Pentewan Beach in Cornwall
Pentewan Beach in Cornwall

5 Replies to 10 Best Beaches in Cornwall (Ratings plus Reviews)

  1. Great beach has all the tourists shops around, parking for the day was cheap, great choice of local takeaways makes it hard to choose. Kids loved climbing to the top of the rock to see the flag and has some great rock pools to explore

  2. It had been a long and hot walk from Crantock, a few miles to the north, through the back of Polly Joke, across Cubeet Common, dropping into the back of Holywell. Finally we arrived at the northern and remote extreme of Perranporth Beach, descending to the sand by the site of sacred spot that marks the point where the patron saint of Cornwall, Pirran, landed.

    Nothing about this windswept and largely untouched end of the beach can prepare you for the village tucked into the cliff at the southern end, which is utterly overwhelmed by the many summer visitors who come to enjoy its charms.

    We stopped to slake our thirst at ‘The Watering Hole’ a pub built on the sand, then ventured into the Main Street to wait for the bus back. Such is the level of traffic throughout North Cornwall, that the bus was an hour late. The driver later told us that this was entirely normal.

    As we waited we enjoyed the busy street scene and basked in the sun, in front of us, cars tried to find parking spots in the oversubscribed municipal car park. An immaculately restored azure blue VW Camper came past, with an equally beautiful restored Mini Mal on top. It turned gingerly into the height restricted car park, just making it under the bar, that was until it came to the tail fin of the board, which ripped clean off, taking the end of the board with it.

  3. We were here at low tide and I couldn’t believe how the beach just went on forever. We walked past the rock formation and still had sandy beach. This place is naturally gorgeous and you could spend days exploring and not see everything. We enjoyed exploring the rock formation, the tidal pools, and splashing around in the river of water that cut through the beach. Totally worth the cost of parking for an afternoon out.

  4. Excellent beach….spans over 2 miles. Peranporth beach is a truly remarkable place of beauty especially in the summer. It took me over 45 minutes to walk to the end of the beach. Coming back felt really stressful but I was glad I took the long walk to enjoy the beautiful ocean view from this lovely lovely beach.

  5. Our favourite beach!
    The beach is sandy and kept very clean.
    Great place to some explore caves, rocks pools and or paddle in the clear sea.
    It’s has wonderful bars, food places, shops and has a lot of great parking spaces.

Leave Reply

Your email address will not be published.

Top 10 Most Beautiful Beaches in Cornwall

Pentewan Beach in Cornwall
Pentewan Beach in Cornwall

Crantock Beach

  • Address: Crantock Beach, Crantock, Newquay TR8 5RN, United Kingdom
  • Map: Click here
  • Rating: 4.8 (2259)
  • Phone: +44 1208 863046
  • Website: Link
  • Opening hours:
    Monday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
    Tuesday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
    Wednesday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
    Thursday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
    Friday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
    Saturday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
    Sunday: 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
  • Reviews:
    Really lovely beach! River area great for paddle boarding and for kids to splash about it, lots of rock pools and caves to explore, and sand dunes are great for sand boarding! Be warned the car parks fill up sooooooo early and the beach can get quite crowded along the river side.
    ✭✭✭✭ By Kelly Wood (6 months ago)
    Love this beach so much. Have been visiting here since I was a young girl. Quite busy these days. Great little sandwich van on there too. Dog friendly. Large beach!
    ✭✭✭✭✭ By Katie (4 months ago)
    One of my favourite spots near Newquay for being on the beach! The parking spot is great here, gets very busy during peak season but is ideal for people who want to park close to the beach.

    We love paddle boarding from here so it’s great we don’t have far to carry the boards, can only paddle at high tide and everyone should be very careful with the tide here since it can be strong and dangerous at times!

    Coffee truck is here most days and there’s also a ice cream box and toilets however they are locked in the evenings.

    Doesn’t ever seem busy in the evenings here, can still park and enjoy the sunset but they use a bar at the entrance to stop vans and campers getting in for the night, this happens about 6pm roughly!

    ✭✭✭✭✭ By Jo Olive (6 months ago)
    This beach is great. The views are super and the sea is very clean. The price for parking isn’t bad considering it’s National Trust. Toilets, Food & Watersport facilities on site. It’s a great place for dogs and the family for a day trip or just a few hours. If your in the area then visit you won’t be disappointed
    ✭✭✭✭✭ By Happy Camper (6 months ago)
    The Stunning National trust Crantock beach and dunes , NT car park adjacent which gets very busy in the summer months private car park also close by , ferry boat or low tide bridge takes you to the popular Fern Pit Cafe with its amazing views.
    ✭✭✭✭✭ By Glyn bull (9 months ago)

Porthcurno Beach

  • Address: Porthcurno Beach, Porthcurno, Cornwall TR19 6JX, United Kingdom
  • Map: Click here
  • Rating: 4.8 (1804)
  • Website: Link
  • Opening hours:
    Monday: Open 24 hours
    Tuesday: Open 24 hours
    Wednesday: Open 24 hours
    Thursday: Open 24 hours
    Friday: Open 24 hours
    Saturday: Open 24 hours
    Sunday: Open 24 hours
  • Reviews:
    A must-go place and the most beautiful beach in Cornwall. Super glad that I got a chance to be here. To have a spectacular view, you can either go around the track or climb up the rocks on the right side of the beach.
    ✭✭✭✭✭ By Duc Toan Nguyen (Benjamin) (6 months ago)
    I’d wanted to visit this beautiful beach for many years. Finally got to stay nearby and the beach is amazing. We visited at the end of October so it was thankfully quiet. It’s not a massive beach but the water is so crystal clear and an aquamarine colour. There is a good car park with toilets at the top of the beach. I love the amazing history of this place with the submarine cables and the cable hut. It’s stunning.
    ✭✭✭✭✭ By Nicola Byrnes (a year ago)
    Easily one of the best beach i’ve been to in the southern coast of England! The water is as clear as it can be.
    However, the path to the beach can be treacherous, especially at the end there is a very steep/vertical drop so I would try to avoid that path if you have child or if you are not physically fit.
    Apparently, there is another path you can take which consists of sandy slope and is advised by the official to avoid injuries or accidents.

    Overall, an absolutely beautiful, wonder of a beach!

    ✭✭✭✭✭ By Sub Lmbu (4 months ago)
    Really very beautiful bay. Not too big but white beach, embedded in rocky cliffs. From the car park, which was completely crowded, there is a path and a few steps down. What we found very good is that a lifeguard was always watching. If you stay longer, remember to bring something to drink and eat if possible. We didn’t see anything where you can get something to eat in between.
    ✭✭✭✭✭ By Marcus Schuler (4 months ago)
    The most beautiful beach in UK. This place is worth visiting. If it’s not on your bucket list you should add it. Incredible torquoise water and nice sandy beach.
    ✭✭✭✭✭ By Wioletta Luka (3 months ago)

Praa Sands Beach

  • Address: Praa Sands Beach, S W Coast Path, Praa Sands, Penzance TR20 9TB, United Kingdom
  • Map: Click here
  • Rating: 4.6 (1259)
  • Phone: +44 1872 261735
  • Website: Link
  • Opening hours:
    Monday: Open 24 hours
    Tuesday: Open 24 hours
    Wednesday: Open 24 hours
    Thursday: Open 24 hours
    Friday: Open 24 hours
    Saturday: Open 24 hours
    Sunday: Open 24 hours
  • Reviews:
    One of the finest beaches I have been to anywhere. Reminds me of somewhere in NSW. Great sand, clean, not over developed (yet). Car parking and toilets available and the new bar below the Sand Bar is a welcome new place to chill with a beer and soak up the views. Beautiful.
    ✭✭✭✭✭ By Benny K (8 months ago)
    Stunning beach! Clean sand and crystal clear water. There’s a couple of places to buy food and very reasonably priced also.
    Finally the parking is cheap and plentiful also. What more could you want? Highly recommend ☀️🏖
    ✭✭✭✭✭ By Andy Patrick (5 months ago)
    Nice sandy beach with plenty of space. Good for swimming and a bit of water sports – even saw a big male seal bobbing about near the shore.

    There is a beach bar and ice cream stall at one side and a small shop selling food and beach stuff too. Cornish Gin and Fever tree tonic £7.30 (£1 beach glass deposit). Double scoop Kelly’s Cornish ice cream cone £4.70. Cheese pasty £4.

    The toilets could be better maintained.

    Car parking is the cheapest near the toilets with one small place being £3 all day but there is a much larger car park before this which is only £4 for all day.

    I have had a dog previously for many years and will never fail to be amazed at the scummy people who do not pick up the mess their dogs leave – as there were quite a few piles left just near where we decided to stop😫

    Without the dog mess this would be a fantastic beach.

    ✭✭ By Andrew Marshall (5 months ago)
    Lovely sandy beach with wonderful waves and so clean as well…

    …which makes it a shame where there are people that can’t control their dogs or have any respect for other people. The vast majority of dog owners are very considerate but there is always one (group of) idiot(s) with a dog that won’t stop barking for over an hour while they waddle back and forth…ugh

    ✭✭✭✭ By Philip (3 months ago)
    Loved Praa sands, clean, lots of parking, Maggies patch is the cheapest. There’s a bar, cafe, ice cream and surf, paddleboard and bodyboard hire as well as paddleboard lessons and not forgetting toilets. The water is lovely and clear, even when up to my neck I could still see my toes. Lifeguards always patrolling which made me feel safe. Fabulous little gem of a beach which was not very far from my campsite.
    ✭✭✭✭✭ By Larissa McConkey (3 months ago)

Great Western Beach

  • Address: Great Western Beach, Newquay TR7 2NE, United Kingdom
  • Map: Click here
  • Rating: 4.7 (1159)
  • Phone: +44 1637 878772
  • Website: Link
  • Reviews:
    Although the veiw is stunning the hill down to the beach is very difficult to get down for disabled people (ie wheelchair hard to walk or breathing issues) the hill is steep on the way up and down. But beautiful beach clean, waters clear warm and pleasant. The caves are fun for the children. The surf school still leave plenty of space for the day trippers. Lovely views.
    ✭✭✭ By Samjam Wamalam (5 months ago)
    Lovely little beach.
    Bit of of a little walk down though.
    Spent a nice sunny afternoon there.
    The dogs 🐕 loved it.
    Great to have a bar there too.
    ✭✭✭✭✭ By Guys Who Dine (5 months ago)
    Not the golden sands of Porthcurno, but it’s okay for a hot afternoon to cool down. Spectacular sunset to take your breath away.
    ✭✭✭✭ By Ionela B (5 months ago)
    Lovely to look at and take pictures, but difficult for wheel chair users as the slope is too steep.
    ✭✭✭✭ By Vanessa (4 months ago)
    A very beautiful, spacious sandy beach, and one I enjoyed visiting. Not quite unspoilt, but still pretty stunning given that it’s just below the centre of Newquay. Well worth a visit if you’re in the area!
    ✭✭✭✭✭ By Caleb (3 months ago)

Fistral Beach

  • Address: Fistral Beach, Newquay, United Kingdom
  • Map: Click here
  • Rating: 4.6 (856)

Hayle Beach

  • Address: Hayle Beach, Hayle TR27 5AF, United Kingdom
  • Map: Click here
  • Rating: 4.8 (814)

Porthmeor Beach

  • Address: Porthmeor Beach, Porthmeor Hill, Saint Ives TR26 1JU, United Kingdom
  • Map: Click here
  • Rating: 4.8 (594)

Bamaluz Beach

  • Address: Bamaluz Beach, Wheal Dream, Saint Ives TR26 1PR, United Kingdom
  • Map: Click here
  • Rating: 4.6 (509)

Carne Beach

  • Address: Carne Beach, Veryan, Truro TR2 5PF, United Kingdom
  • Map: Click here
  • Rating: 4.7 (419)

Portscatho Beach

  • Address: Portscatho Beach, The Roseland, Portscatho, Cornwall TR2 5LW, United Kingdom
  • Map: Click here
  • Rating: 4.6 (366)
Pentewan Beach in Cornwall
Pentewan Beach in Cornwall

That’s it for our list of the best beaches in Cornwall! If you have any arguments or additional information, please leave a comment. We love to hear from our readers. And don’t forget to check out some of the other posts on our blog for more travel inspiration. Happy beachcombing!

Posted by
Brishon Azura

Coastnavi.com is a website that shares photos of beautiful memories from vacationers at beaches around the world, hopes to be more love beach.