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Expertly reviewed by Easy Life on 30th Aug 2006. |
| Date of Holiday: Aug 2006 |
Overall Score: 5/5
 
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Review: We enjoyed a lovely family holiday staying at an old fishermans cottage in Mousehole, Cornwall. Mousehole itself (pronounced Mowzel) is a charming fishing village with narrow streets and a picturesque little harbour which still sees a mix of pleasure craft and fishing boats.
The village boasts a post office, a family friendly pub (The Ship Inn) and a small selection of shops and a friendly, Cornish welcome.
In the evening, fairy lights light up the harbour wall and a lit Celtic cross on the rocks opposite the harbour mouth makes the night time harbour view truly beautiful.
Car Parking.
Unlike many Cornish villages there is reasonably good parking in the village at the reasonable rate of ?2 per day. If you?re staying in the village, a weekly ticket can be purchased for ?12 (although this doesn?t guarantee a space, we didn?t have any problems finding a space)
Things to do in Mousehole
Mousehole has a small selection of shops and galleries, If you fancy a short walk there is a nice path to the ?Mousehole? which is just outside the village. There is a small beach in the harbour (no dogs) and lots of rocks either side of the harbour for exploring and generally having a nice time.
Things to do near Mousehole
Penzance is 15 minutes drive from Mousehole. Largest town in the area, from there you can go on fishing trips (Mermaid boats - ?20 for 4 hours), see the shops and enjoy the old street of Chapel Street. The church at the end of Chapel street has a great selection of palms and provides some lovely views over the sea.
Newlyn is the largest working fishing port left in the UK and is worth a visit. Each year they have a Fish Festival on the last Bank Holiday Monday in August which celebrates the villages heritage and dependence on this industry. Most of the restaurants in the area roundabout offer Newlyn crab on the menu and if you visit during the week, you can buy crab or pretty much any fish or shellfish direct from the fish wholesalers premises.
The outdoor, Cliffside Theatre at Minack is a lovely experience. Book ahead of your stay if possible as it is very popular. If you?re unable to book ahead, it is possible to call the booking office at 9.30am on the day of the performance for any last minute cancellations (which we did manage to get - so this is possible). Most seats are unreserved so go early (we got there at 6.30pm for an 8pm start ? you?re admitted early and most people take a small picnic type tea (bear in mind that they pack everyone in a bit so best not to take big picnic baskets/cool boxes etc)
The Scilly Isles are located 28 miles South West of Lands End and are well worth a visit. Beautiful, white sand and crystal clear waters, matched with a temperate climate make this a lovely place (when the weather is fine). You can take a 160 minute ferry, a 20 minute helicopter service from Penzance or even a plane (from near St Just). When you arrive, there are plenty of trips around the main island of St Marys or boats onto the other Islands if preferred. We found a lovely little courtyard caf? (Blues Restaurant close to where the ship docked) and then just got a very reasonable taxi over to ?Telegraph? from where there there is a lovely walk past some ancient burial mounds which takes in a glorious little beach.
A word of warning ? the ferry is a flat bottomed boat which is prone to moving about quite a bit on the waves and the journey (especially outbound) can become a bit of an ordeal. However it is worth toughing it out and the return journey is usually much better because the boat is travelling with the waves. We were given a handy natural sea sickness remedy by a Scilly Isles resident
Other places to visit
Lamorna Pottery does a nice range of locally made pottery and there?s a nice little tea rooms and garden restaurant
Beaches
Sennen Cove has a beautiful beach of white sand and has a great surf school for learning to surf. The beach is not dog friendly, but a 15 minute walk from the car park takes you to the next cove which is dog friendly and has good waves and is patrolled. The beach is narrower and shelves quite steeply so perhaps not so good for very young children in the sea.
Lamorna cove has no beach at high tide but has some great rocks for scrambling over and is good for snorkelling. There is also a lovely walk along the coast to the point at Carn-du. It also has a fabulous looking pub (Lamorna Wink) and a newly relaunched restaurant (The Cove), both of which looked worth a visit.
Places to eat
The Ship Inn, Mousehole
This is a very welcoming, traditional Cornish pub right on the harbour in Mousehole. The standard menu is the traditional pub favourites (steak and ale pie, lasagne etc) and they have a selection of 3 specials each night. All of the food we had was really nice ? both from the Specials or the standard menu. Prices are also reasonable ? main courses from the standard menu are from ?6.95 and the specials from about ?9.50.
There is a restaurant type room (which can be booked in advance and was usually booked up ) oryou can take a chance and just wait for a table to come up in the bar. We tended to opt for the latter approach and never had any problems.
The Old Coastguard Hotel, Mousehole
For a special meal, the Old Coastguard Hotel is very good. We just had lunch there (which was also lovely), so I can?t speak from first hand experience, but if the lunches are anything to go by, then the evening menu is well worth a look. The conservatory enjoys nice views over the sea so booking a table with a view is well worth the extra planning.
We found the hotel very welcoming to families ? service was excellent and staff couldn?t do enough. You can also call and just enjoy a nice drink in the bar
Kings Head Pub, Paul
Paul is a little village a short walk up a (steep) hill from Mousehole. The pub is right opposite the church and if you?re lucky, you?ll be treated to the sound of the local bell ringers putting the bells through their paces. The food is very nice and prices very reasonable ? similar to the Ship Inn.
Jessies is a nice little caf? in Mousehole with a small garden that does lovely ice creams and sandwiches.
The Harbour Caf? in Mousehole is licensed and does nice pizzas (eat in or take away) plus a selection of other dishes.
There?s also a very nice little chip shop which does a nice fish and chips for under a fiver.
Pets.
Mousehole is a very pet friendly village ? there are loads of cat and dogs around. The harbour beach is pet free but there are plenty of places to walk dogs on the rocks either side of the harbour and bins for getting rid of any poop are obvious and well serviced. Overall, though, many of the coves and beaches near Mousehole are not pet friendly ? sadly notices at some of the coves explained that the National Trust had had to make the decision to ban dogs due to the failure of owners to clean up after their pets. There is a leaflet which lists the beaches on which dogs are welcome, and also, those on which dog bans appear. My feeling was that (sadly), there were fewer dog friendly beaches close to Mousehole than perhaps in other area sof Cornwall that I?ve been to. |
Ratings
| Value For Money: |
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4 |
| Review Score: |
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5 |
| Booked Independently Through | |
www.mouseholeholidays.co.uk |
| Length of holiday | |
1 week |
| Number of Adults | |
3 |
| Number of children | |
1 |
| Type of Holiday | |
Bespoke |
| Accommodation Features: | |
Summer Sun, Cultural/Historic, By The Sea, Beach, Diving, Fishing, Sailing, Good Amenities (restaurants etc), Quiet, Tranquil, Relaxing, |
| Recommended for: | |
Families (Young Children), Singles, Couples, Families (Older Children), |
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England
