Newquay

Situated on the north Cornish coast, Newquay's popularity has risen in recent years. The town offers something for everyone. Newquay has more than ten beaches! Young people flock here for the surfing championships which are attended by competitors from around the world and are held at Fistral Beach. Here there is a surf school and a hire shop. It is THE place for anyone who knows anything about surfing. The sea can truly produce some spectacular waves on these beaches!

The breathtaking coastal scenery, the surfing and the nightlife have made Newquay Cornwall's premier resort. Regular flights from London have made the town very accessible. Newquay is a resort with vibrant night life. Pubs, clubs and bars offer entertainment long into the small hours. Streets throng with people after dark. This is certainly the place to have fun! The atmosphere can be electric on a warm summer's night.

On a gentler note, comedy plays are presented throughout the summer in the Lane Theatre which has recently been refurbished with Lottery funding through the Arts Council. The area offers coastal walks with some of the best scenery in Great Britain. The landscape of the area is both gentle and rugged. The visitor will find an abundance of accommodation. As well as hotels, there are campsites, holiday cottages and lodges in which to stay. There is holiday accommodation for everyone whether single or a large family. Many people love the area so much that they choose to buy a holiday home that they c

an visit at weekends.

Newquay's history is, naturally, linked to the sea. Fishing, particularly for pilchards, was the lifeblood of the town. The quay was also used for importing coal and exporting mined tin ore when Cornwall had many working tin mines. Cornwall still has its own language: the Cornish language has close ties with Welsh but today is really only heard in Bardic revivals of plays in open air theatres .

Tourism is now Newquay's main currency earner. Families will find plenty to do in Newquay. Newquay Zoo, which is visited by more than a quarter of a million visitors annually, is set in over 10 acres of subtropical gardens set around a lake. Many endangered species can be seen here including black apes and red pandas.

Newquay is the perfect base from which to explore the area of north Cornwall. Tintagel lies to the north east. This is where the magician Merlin wove his spells. This is the land of King Arthur and the Round Table. To the south is the lovely Fowey Valley with its little estuaries and coves. Smuggling was rife here in the 17th and 18th centuries. But a more sinister and grisly 'occupation' was also prevalent – that of wrecking. Daphne du Maurier's book Jamaica Inn tells of how wreckers swarmed from the villages when a ship was in trouble and lured it on to the rocks at Bedruthan steps! Fortunately times have changed and now Newquay presents itself as a modern, exciting tourist resort with beaches which many would say rival those of Australia.