St. Austell is in a good location for people holidaying in Cornwall. Ok so it's not picturesque, olde worlde, quirky, small or anything else you might be looking for in a holiday, you could be in any town in England when you're in St. Austell. But it is very central to all the things that tourists are probably looking to visit when in Cornwall. It is 5 minutes from places like the Eden Project, Clay Museum and St. Austell Brewery. There are also some lovely walks in the area, including the interesting Clay Trails. It is around 20-30 mins from Fowey, Newquay, Padstow and such places. There are several nice beaches near to St. Austell such as Porthpean, Caerhays, Pentewan etc, but if you fancy a bit of surf you're only 20 or so minutes away from the like of Watergate Bay (where Jamie Oliver's Fifteen restaurant is), Fistral, and all the other well know touristy beaches. Then you can go a bit further afield and go down west to the quaint towns and villages of St. Ives and the like, which are all very pretty if a bit out of the way. Although there is quite a pretty little area of St. Austell called Charlestown which has a nice little harbour. There isn't really a beach to speak of but it's worth an explore if you are staying in St. Austell and don't fancy going too far one day.
St. Austell town centre is actually being regenerated at the moment, so there is not really a lot to see and do in St. Austell, but I don't think that would be a bad thing for a holiday maker as you tend to be out and about most of the time anyway. There are plenty of places to stay in St. Austell, due to it being so central. The accommodation ranges from Travelodges and Premier Inns to posh hotels such as The Carlyon Bay (actually that's another nice area of St. Austell, although the beach resort place is being re-developed which isn't pretty), to bed and breakfasts and guesthouses. There are lots of supermarkets and shops (Asda, Tesco, Co-op Iceland, Lidl, Aldi etc) so if you're self catering you don't have to go too far.
Go: - If you want to come on holiday to Cornwall and don't mind where you rest your head.
Don't go: - If you want to stay in a pretty little villagey location - St. Austell is not this. Also if you're looking for local nightlife. Beacuse of the regeneration most clubs have been shut. Newquay is obviously the place for the nightlife.
A lot of people around here slag St. Austell off. But most of these people have never actually crossed the Tamar bridge so therefore don't realise that St. Austell is actually pretty damn posh compared to a lot of other large towns in other parts of the country! It's a good place to stay if you don't want to spend too much money on your accomodation - other parts of Cornwall can be very expensive. I would say it is the best place to stay if you want to see a lot of Cornwall.
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I haven't been to St Austell but I have been to many of the places you mentioned. I love Cornwall and I thought you must have a connection when I saw your username. ~Fern xx
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Sep 26th, 2008
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