A Quiet Beach in Cornwall

Looking for a quiet beach in Cornwall? Or even something rarer, a quiet beach in Cornwall during the school holidays? This year the West Country will most likely be the most popular tourist destination of the UK. Since the green list is still so uncertain and many people do not want to worry about additional requirements of tests and quarantine. However, if you are planning on travelling to Cornwall in 2021. Are you concerned about just how busy Cornwall beaches are going to be?  As many people are looking for the best beaches in Cornwall, personally I would prefer a quiet one! But the good news is that no only is this beach beautiful when we visited during the May half-term (2021) it was also very quiet! And for this reason, we think it is the best quiet beach in Cornwall. 

Cornwall’s Best Quiet Family Friendly Beach

Rock beach has long been a favourite of ours. Having visited several times over the years. Each time we have been lucky and it has been quiet. Now don’t get me wrong I am sure there are times when it is busy but there are a few things going for this beach which will always reduce the number of people. Plus it is so expansive when the tide is out that it could still have lots of people on it. Yet still, feel relatively empty. But there are a few things you should know to make the most of your visit. 

How to find a quiet beach in Cornwall

We stumbled upon Rock Beach quite by accident. I had taken the boys to Padstow with the sole purpose of finding a beach. Not realising that there isn’t much of one there. At least not that we could find. We parked down by the harbour and not to be deterred we noticed on the other side of the inlet a big expanse of yellow sand. Rock beach. A quick check of google maps gave me an idea of how to reach it and off we went.

How to get to Rock Beach from Padstow

As I mentioned we drove round to Rock beach from Padstow which took about thirty minutes. Although it is actually possible to reach Rock beach from Padstow as there is a ferry which goes across on a regular basis. You can find out more about the ferry on the Cornwall tourist board website here.  It goes every twenty minutes and takes about five minutes to cross and costs £3 each way per person. Apparently, it is possible to walk when low tide. However, the tide has never been low enough when we have visited to do this. 

I found it very easy for us to find by car. And subsequent trips back I have always driven and the beach has given us the same great day out.  For example, below you will see a picture of Looe Beach and an approximately an hour later a picture of Rock Beach. Taken on the same day during May half term. I know where I would rather be. 

A quiet beach in Cornwall during the school holidays

The reason I think for the fact that Rock Beach (as we call it) or Brea Beach as it is sometimes called is quiet is due to the tides. Travelling with a young family we can not make it to some of the more secluded beaches in Cornwall. Not only is Harry not old enough to balance on cliff paths but we are still very much at the stage where we take a lot of stuff to the beach!  We want a trip to be easy and Rock Beach is.  However, the below will come in handy

Tips for visiting Brea Beach

• Access from the carpark is very straightforward with steps that are not too steep and there is only a little bit of a dune right at the bottom. Just be careful as the path can get slightly overgrown and I noticed quite a few stinging nettles last time we visited. 
• Check the tide times, which you can do here.  We have been fortunate that most of our trips have been when the tide is out. The beach significantly reduces when the tides are in. But when out there is even a sandbar which you can swim out to.  Plus as the tide goes out it leaves a natural shallow pool for the kids to play in.
• Parking – coming back to my point about beach trips with kids. There is a carpark and it is on one of the mobile apps or you can pay by change. There is no facility for card payments. It is a busy carpark and so if you are planning a trip then I would either go early or towards the end of the day to guarantee a space. We tend to visit after 3.30 pm and have not had issues. There is no parking on the approach to the carpark as the road is narrow and residential. If you use the postcode PL27 6LD to locate 
• There are toilets in the car park
• There are also a couple of bars/restaurants on the same road as the carpark such as the Rock Inn and the Blue Tomato Cafe.  They always look busy when we visit so make sure you book in advance.
• Out of season dogs are allowed on Rock Beach

We love our trips to Rock Beach, a firm favourite that we will return to again and again. Have you visited? Which is your favourite beach in Cornwall. 

Other places we have visited in Cornwall you may like:

Where to catch the most crabs in Cornwall

16 Things to do in Fowey

The Complete Guide to Camel Creek Adventure Park Cornwall

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