The Cove Cafe (Cornwall)

Black Cliff beach is a sandy beach stretching between Hayle Towans and Mexico Towans. Hayle beach is a large beach backed by dunes and Black Cliff beach gives some protection from the wind by being sheltered by cliffs. The beach gets its name from the dark cliffs that line the back of the beach. You often get some large areas of shallow water near the cliffs when the tide is out that provide great safe play for small children. Facilities at the beach include a small beach cafe and toilets at the top of steps, and if the steps are too much then Hayle Towans beach has a sloped beach access and can be used to get onto this beach.

Hayle Towans beach sits alongside Hayle estuary. Good sandy beach although we would recommend moving along the beach away from the estuary for safer swimming, check out the lifeguard swimming flags that normally sit in front of Black Cliff beach. Whilst the north end of St Ives Bay has good surfing beaches, Hayle Towans is the spot for kitesurfing and canoeing. Towans means sand dunes. Facilities include lifeguards in the summer, toilets, pub and cafe. Hard path slope down to the beach from the RNLI hut makes it easier to access than the steps at Black Cliff beach.

Mexico Towans is near the middle of the long Hayle Towans beach that looks over St Ives Bay. A sandy beach with high dunes and good for swimming and surfing/bodyboarding. This is a great family beach that has room for everyone even on the hottest and busiest summer days. Lifeguards in summer. Access is down the dunes themselves and so some may find the friendlier access at Black Cliff or Hayle Towans a better choice.

Porthkidney is a sheltered beach with about 600m of golden sand and sand dunes, the dunes are also known as Lelant Towans. The beach is separated from Hayle beach by a narrow strip of water. Excellent beach for swimming and becomes a surfers beach in the winter as its sheltered location helps to keep the surf up when other more exposed beaches loose wave height. Bathing anywhere near the river estuary is very dangerous as the currents can be extremely strong, safe swimming area is marked. Seasonal lifeguard and close to all the facilities in St Ives itself. We have no dog information for Porthkidney Sands beach.  

The Towans refers to a 4 mile stretch of beach and each individual area of the dunes behind the beach have their own identities. The individual areas include: Hayle Towans, Black Cliff, Riviere Towans, Mexico Towans, Common Towans, Phillack Towans, Upton Towans and Gwithian Towans. The Towans mix of sand, sand dune and grassland has a wide variety of wildlife and plants and is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). Some dunes rise to more than 50 metres (160 ft) above sea level. A wide section of places to park along this Hayle stretch of St. Ives bay. Dog restrictions: this is one long beach but each section has different dog rules, please check the signs at the point you enter.

St Ives Bay has two main areas. The town beaches on the St Ives side of the estuary and then the long beach on the Hayle side of the estuary. The Hayle side has 3 miles of sandy beach backed by sand dunes (“Towans”) and cliffs. The beach stretches from St Ives estuary up to Godrevy beach, just off the point you will see the Godrevy lighthouse built in 1859. This whole bay provides a wide range of activities including relaxing on a quite stretch, rock pools, canoeing, fishing, surfing and kitesurfing. As the beach area is so large plenty of room for everyone. When you have finished on the beach move up to St Ives town and browse around the Tate gallery. This is really an ideal spot to base a Cornish seaside holiday!

Upton Towans beach is a large and popular beach halfway along The Towans and is safe for swimming, surfing and windsurfing. At its northern end is Peter’s Point, which is less popular as it is difficult to access but often gives a better surf.

Carbis Bay is a sandy beach about a mile east of St Ives and a resort in its own right. Very safe bathing due to sheltered aspect and calm sea. Also ideal for windsurfing and water-skiing. All facilities close to the beach, although a small car park and lifeguards during the summer.