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Verified Slow Way

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One of my favourite walks along the coast taking in my favourite beaches, parts of which follow the South West Coast Path.
The footpaths can get very narrow, and some of the hills are a bit strenuous. Most of the path is well signposted, but it gets a bit difficult around Holywell in the dunes, but all roads to lead to the beach!, so you should be fine, even if you get a little lost temporarily. Lots of cafes and places to stop both in summer and out of season.
You can stay on the South West Coast Path between the Gannals and Holywell beach rather than head inland if you wanted more sea views, or on a return if you wanted a circular walk.

Very much agree with the review from 7 May 2021. Definitely a lovely walk. I went with a friend and we started from Newquay and were glad that it was low tide so we could use the Gunnel Estuary Crossing.
It was useful to have the route downloaded on my phone as there are one or two places where the route was not clear.
Particularly liked the Jam Jar Cafe in Crantock and there were other places to stop for toilets and refreshments.

My daughter and I walked this route on a sunny Saturday from Newquay to Perranporth. I checked out the route through Newquay town from the train station in the morning and then we set off from the Pentire peninsula in the afternoon to join the route near the Gannel Estuary crossing. This bridge is only accessible at certain points of the tide as it is covered as the tide comes in and the estuary floods. We crossed easily 3 hours after high tide but would certainly be something to consider if walking from Perranporth as high tide would require a 4.5km detour inland along the official South West Coast Path. We climbed up into Crantock village where there are lots of lovely tea rooms and then out onto Cubert Common which is beautiful and wild. The route then descends into Holywell Bay through the massive dunes. The exact path can be hard to find through the dunes but it is pretty easy to see the general direction you need to head in. There are more cafes in Holywell Bay before heading up onto the cliffs again. With Penhale Camp inland the path is now very easy to follow along the cliffs. It becomes quite narrow and with steep drops along the last section before you descend onto Perranporth beach for the final 3km. The official route climbs back up onto the cliffs and then down to the beach again at Perranporth itself but when the tide is out there is no need to do this. We enjoyed a cream tea on the sea wall whilst waiting for our ride back to Newquay.

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