Newquay holidays

How to reach Newquay

• Flight time: Direct flights to Cornwall Airport Newquay from London take around an hour, and a similar time from other major cities like Manchester and Birmingham.

• Transfer time: From the airport to the town centre, the bus journey takes around 25 minutes and it’s roughly 15 minutes by car.

• Price: The bus fare from the airport to the centre of town is around £5, and a taxi around £15–£20.

Best time to visit Newquay

For a coastal town, Newquay is surprisingly busy year-round, albeit mostly with surfers (the winter surf is particularly good), but really the town comes into its own during the summer.

• Spring (March to May): Temperatures are mild, ranging from 8°C to 15°C, and although rain is not uncommon, surf conditions are usually excellent. This is also a good time to walk the coast path without the soon-to-descend crowds.

• Summer (June to August): This is peak season for holidays to Newquay as the town is thronged with surfers and holidaymakers. Therefore be sure to book ahead any accommodation and excursions. Temperatures average between 16°C and 22°C but are often much higher.

• Autumn (September to November): Beaches are quieter but the water is still warm enough to surf, while temperatures gradually cool from 18°C to around 10°C as autumn draws on. It's a good time to enjoy what else the town and surroundings have to offer.

• Winter (December to February): While cooler and wetter, with temperatures between 5°C and 10°C, winter in Newquay can be just as enjoyable, with often dramatic coastal scenes – it’s also a good time to hunker down in one of the town’s many convivial pubs.

Practical information

• Spoken languages: English is the primary language, with a distinct Cornish accent often heard in more rural areas.

• Local habits and customs: Newquay is a laid-back beach town, so casual attire and a relaxed approach to life is the norm. However, respect for the local environment and community is highly valued.

• Health and safety: The town is generally safe, but always take usual precautions to protect your belongings, especially on crowded beaches.

• Currency: Currency is the British Pound. Cash machines are readily available and credit cards are accepted in most places.

• Getting around: Newquay is compact and can be easily explored on foot. For trips to nearby attractions, there’s a good local bus service and fares are reasonably priced.

• Time zone: GMT, switching to British Summer Time from late March to late October.

Best things to do in Newquay

The UK’s surfing capital has dozens of other aquatic activities on hand, not to mention some of Cornwall’s finest beaches – but it’s far from a cultural wasteland with one or two unusual historic sites.

Viewpoints and panoramas

• Fistral Beach: From whichever angle you approach it, Newquay’s main surfing beach affords stunning ocean views and sunsets can be spectacular.

• Pentire Headland: It’s a decent walk to Pentire from the town centre, and you’ll be rewarded with gorgeous views over the River Gannel and Crantock Beach.

The best districts

• Newquay town centre: Beaches aside, Newquay doesn’t really have any notable districts, but the centre of town, just above the harbour, is where you’ll find the main shops, cafés and restaurants.

Parks and gardens

• Trenance Gardens: A sub-tropical oasis with boating lakes, a miniature railway and lovely floral displays – there’s a good day’s entertainment right here.

• The Japanese Garden: Diminutive it may be, but this tranquil spot in St Mawgan not only showcases an authentic layout of a traditional Japanese garden but marries nature and art to beautiful effect.

Historical monuments

• Huer’s Hut: This whitewashed hut is a reminder of the town’s former fishing role, when a “huer” would be stationed as a lookout for pilchard shoals; on sighting a shoal he would send the fleet docked in the port into action by his cry of “heva!” (“found!”), bellowed through a 1-metre-long horn.

• Trerice: A beautifully preserved Elizabethan manor house just outside Newquay, Trerice offers a welcome escape from the seaside madness; visitors can even try their hand at “kayling” or “slapcock” – a version of badminton – on the bowling green.

Day trips in the area

• Padstow: As well as some first-class beaches, this comely fishing village has in recent years acquired a reputation for its gourmet restaurants, most famously those run by superstar chef Rick Stein. Find the best hotels in Padstow.

• The Eden Project: The hype, for once, is justified – Eden is everything it’s cracked up to be, and well worth a visit. Just be sure to come early to avoid the crowds.

• St Ives: Honeypot town that’s an essential stop for art lovers and anyone else intrigued by the various art colonies established in this seaside town in the last century. Visit St Ives without breaking the bank with our selection of cheap hotels in St Ives.

Activities for families in Newquay

Newquay is just the ticket for families looking for a good mix of beach fun, educational experiences and outdoor adventures.

• Aquariums and zoos: Animal gawping aside, Newquay Zoo provides a useful opportunity to learn about the zoo’s conservation and breeding programmes, while a guaranteed wet-weather attraction is the Blue Reef Aquarium, which cleverly reinterprets the Cornish coastline.

• Beaches: With no less than 11 beaches over an 11km expanse, you're really spoilt for choice. Fistral Beach is best for surfing but the main family beach is Towan, beside the harbour. Parents will also be comforted to learn that all the main beaches are lifeguarded in season.

• Road train: Yeh, so it may be tacky, but the kiddie-sized hop-on, hop-off Surf Rider road train which circulates around Newquay’s main attractions – including the aquarium and zoo – is a hoot.

• Beachcombing: A day spent beachcombing or rock pooling at low tide at any of Newquay's beaches is a fantastic way for kids and adults alike to learn about marine biology and the local ecosystem.

Free things to do in Newquay

While the beach is the most obvious source of free entertainment on Newquay holidays, there are plenty more things to do that won’t break the bank.

• Beaches: Newquay has no less than 11 beaches to choose from, so whether it’s a swim, watching the pros ride the waves, or just kicking back in a deck chair with a book and a beer, it’ll cost nothing.

• Free events: Newquay hosts numerous free events throughout the year, the most traditional (and fun) being the gig races, thrilling harbour races by pilot gigs (six-oared rowing boats). The boats are relics of the days when trading schooners and ketches needed to be guided into harbour, hiring the first gig to reach them.

• Public parks: Free to explore, Trenance Gardens are home to some beautiful foliage and a boating lake, while there’s acres of space to spread out a picnic.

Nature and outdoor activities in Newquay

For those who thrive in the great outdoors, Newquay has it all. Surfing aside, there’s the promise of all kinds of other water-based sports, as well as some of the finest walking in the southwest.

• Surfing: Newquay’s surfing buzz is infectious enough to tempt scores of both pros and non-surfheads to try their hand every summer. Fistral Beach is the go-to but there are many more.

• Water sports: For high-octane thrills such as kitesurfing, land-yachting, wave-skiing, surf canoeing, paragliding, coasteering and zip-wiring, try Lusty Glaze Adventure Centre on Lusty Glaze Beach.

• Coastal walks: Popular routes hereabouts include the trek to Watergate Bay or along the Gannel Estuary, where you can observe diverse fauna and flora. But if you want to go big, step up for a section of the South West Coast Path.

Local dishes in Newquay

There’s more to Cornwall than pasties, and one of the highlights of holidays to Newquay is the opportunity to savour the local produce – especially seafood – that Cornwall is justly renowned for.

Some typical dishes

• Cornish Pasty: Cornwall’s greatest export, these delicious morsels are neatly crimped on the rounded edge and filled with gravy-soaked steak, turnip and potato.

• Cornish Clotted Cream: An integral component of afternoon tea, fluffy scones thickly spread with strawberry jam and this rich, calorific cream – you must surrender to the temptation at least once.

Fish and seafood dishes

• Crab Sandwiches: Nothing beats a sandwich stuffed full of fresh Cornish crab, typically served with a squeeze of lemon and some salad on the side.

• Stargazy Pie: A fish pie with the heads and tails of the fish – traditionally pilchards or mackerel – sticking out of the pastry. Tradition has it that it originated after a local fisherman returned from a fierce storm with seven types of fish, which were then cooked in a pie with their heads sticking out for easy identification.

Street food

• Fish and Chips: No holiday to Newquay is complete without this seaside staple: fresh cod or haddock fried in a crispy batter, served with thick-cut chips, and with a generous sprinkling of salt and vinegar.

Sweets and desserts

Made with local clotted cream, Cornish ice cream is creamier and more indulgent (and fattening) than your average ice cream, and there’s also Cornish saffron cake, a heavy loaf baked with currants and saffron.

Local drinks

• Cornish Ale: Local breweries like Sharp’s and Skinner’s offer a variety of ales, from pale ales to richer, darker stouts and porters.

• Cornish Cider: Among local ciders, Cornish Rattler from Healey’s Cyder Farm outside Newquay has achieved nationwide fame, but you’re all but guaranteed to see other local ciders and perries (pear ciders) in pubs and farm shops.