Porthleven Beach

Porthleven Beach is three glorious miles of golden sand and steeply shelving shingle running east from the historic harbour.

A rough and dangerous stretch of sea, it’s reportedly the reason why the harbour, the most southerly port in the UK, was built in the early 1800s. A refuge on the wild Cornish coast and an area once notorious for shipwrecks. It’s not recommended to swim along this beach, but when the tide is out, you can walk along the vast shoreline to Loe Bar, Cornwall’s largest freshwater lake.

RNLI Lifeguards patrol the beach during the summer months.