Top 9 Hotels in Newquay, Cornwall

I wanted this to be a Top 10, but at the time of writing I cannot find 10 TOP hotels in Newquay so it is the Top 9. Search engines only ever show you adverts, so it can be hard to get a definitive list quickly of the Top holiday hotels. This list will give you that quick start.

Many hotels in Newquay have closed in recent years, these tended to be older ones which were in need of much refurbishment. But if you are looking for a 3-star hotel in Newquay, then your choices are given below. I've added them in my personal order of preference, bearing in mind the best location, best seaviews and hopefully the best holiday experience:

These hotels are actually IN Newquay, so I have not included any hotels that are 2-3 miles out of Newquay at all. These are all genuine Newquay hotels.

The Headland Hotel, Newquay - located at one end of Fistral Beach, and the location of The Witches film, this is probably the most well known of hotels. A magnificent building built about 1900, the Headland Hotel is perched right on the edge of the Atlantic Ocean. Set in its own grounds, alongside Fistral Beach - venue for top UK surf competitions. If you want a hotel with good access to a beach for a wheelchair or limited mobility, then the Headland Hotel is probably the one for you, although it is about 1/4 of a mile from the start of the town, the route is predominantly flat. The Headland Hotel has plenty of parking in its own grounds. Thre's a magnificent conservatory/bar along one side of the hotel where you can enjoy the view whatever the weather.

The Headland Hotel has separate, high-quality, self-catering, holiday bungalows in the grounds too. Some of these holiday bungalows have uninterrupted sea views.

This 3-star hotel is tucked away in the centre of town with great gardens, panoramic views across to the north coast and private steps directly down to the beach. You may have problems locating this hotel unless your map reading skills are good as it is tucked away at the end of a residential street. GPS might be your best friend here! Miss the turning for the hotel and you might find yourself stuck in the one way system traffic jam and depending on the time of day/day of the week it could take you half an hour to go round the block.

The Trebarwith Hotel has private steps down to the beach - but we are talking a long way up, so it might be 80-100 steps! The Trebarwith is set in its own grounds, with a good amount of parking.

This fascinating old 3-star hotel, is set on the cliffs within 17 acres of private headland, with steps directly down to the beach.

The Glendorgal Hotel overlooks Porth Beach, Newquay.In poor weather, walking into town might be a bit of a challenge as the wind whips up straight off the Atlantic. But from here you do have the option of going to Newquay beaches or Porth beach and beyond. Probably not a good choice if you have somebody with you in a wheelchair as it's quite a way to walk before you're anywhere worth being if the weather's not good and there is no convenient beach access, the closest beach is Porth Beach (which the Hotel overlooks), but getting from the Hotel to the beach might prove challenging. The Glendorgal has extensive parking in its own private headland estate.

In recent years, the Glendorgal Hotel has built some holiday homes, right on the clifftop overlooking Porth Beach.  If staying in a hotel isn't quite your thing, then check out the other holiday accommodation they have.

The Victoria  Hotel is a 3-star hotel right in town. Traffic noise will be an issue if you don't have a sea view room. Built on top of 100 foot high cliffs some rooms have far reaching sea views across Newquay Bay.

There is a private lift in the reception area cut into the rock that takes you down to the beach, where you emerge from a cave directly onto the sand. The lift is not ideal for a wheelchair, nor is the slope from the lift to the beach. As this is cut into the cliffs, it can be very changeable just how possible it is for somebody with very limited mobility to get from the lift down onto the sand.

The Esplanade hotel is a 3-star hotel overlooking Fistral Beach from the opposite end of Fistral Bay to the Headland Hotel.

Traffic and traffic noise is not an issue here. From the Hotel you will just have to cross 50-100 yards of grass to get to the beach steps. Probably not best if you are older and want to easily walk into town.

While town is only 1 mile away, the walk does start with a bit of an uphill slog. If you are of limited mobility, you may find that you can go onto the super grassy area across the road which overlooks the whole of Fistral Beach, but beach access would be difficult down the steps due to them being irregular and packed with surfers going back/forth with their boards. The steps are only wide enough for 2 people to pass if you squeeze up a bit!

Towering over Newquay town centre this hotel has recently been upgraded and has some fabulous new outdoor spaces, If you are standing in the town, near the harbour, or to the east of the town on the cliff edge the Atlantic Hotel is the large magnolia one on the headland. If you are at the hotel, you'll find you are shielded from the Atlantic winds by clear panels of perspex/glass, so it's a great spot to sit out in and enjoy the panoramic sea views.

With far reaching seaviews, the location of the Atlantic Hotel in Newquay means that most of the rooms are highly likely to have a seaview or at least a sea glimpse. While located handily for walking into town, the hotel is up a short but steep incline, not ideal if you are pushing somebody in a wheelchair unless you're fit and confident with the chair and they're about half your weight.

The Beatles in Newquay

The Beatles created the cover for their Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band LP at the Atlantic Hotel - there are some photos circulating where you can see them in the entrance. The Beatles spent some days in Newquay in September 1967 when they filmed their "Magical Mystery Tour" in the area.

The Beatles stayed at the Atlantic Hotel, Newquay for three nights, arriving on Tuesday 12 September 1967 and departing on the morning of Friday 15 September 1967.

The Bay hotel is a 3-star hotel positioned near the Esplanade Hotel. Traffic and traffic noise is not an issue here. From the Hotel you will just have to cross 50-100 yards of grass to get to the beach steps. Probably not best if you are older and want to easily walk into town. While town is only 1 mile away, the walk does start with a bit of an uphill slog. See the comments I made for the Esplanade with regard to beach access for those with limited mobility

If you're staying at the Bay Hotel, check out the Windswept Cafe, perched just above the beach and just half way down the steps to the beach.  They have a special Pudding Club night once a month, where they serve 4 puddings with the meal :)

The Bristol is part of the Best Western Hotel Group and it overlooks Tolcarne Beach, it's  perched at the top of 100 foot high cliffs. There might be traffic noise if you choose a sea view room as the Hotel Bristol is right on the main road into Newquay and at peak times this road is either very busy or even at a standstill.

The Bristol hotel is handy if you might need access to a pharmacy or doctor as the doctor surgery is next door. This hotel is on the flat, but if you wanted to go to the beach and have mobility problems then you will find the road outside has a zebra crossing, but to get down to the beach can be arduous, with a choice of 100 steps (it might be 130, I forget how many I counted now!) or a longer road/track down to the beach - I wouldn't want to push a wheelchair down this slope, although you can stop 1/3rd of the way down and have a great view over the bay from the cafe at the crazy golf course.

From the Hotel Bristol, if you want to stroll into town, you will find it flat all the way from there into town - and residents of this whole row of hotels will also be taking the evening air at the same time. Across the road from the hotel are some handy benches to sit and just admire the view.

If you do make it down to Tolcarne Beach, you'll find a great organic cafe called Venus and the Kahuna restaurant that opens in the evenings.  There are some super beach huts available for hire - and the Bristol Hotel  hires a handfull of these for the whole season, so it's worth checking with them if they can organise a booking for you.  The beach huts are just huts, without any running water or electricity. 

The Bristol Hotel has a swimming pool.

This 3-star hotel is closest to Great Western Beach. Within 100 yards of the hotel's front door there are some great and easy clifftop walks and seating areas so you can look out to sea.

Some rooms will have sea views, but certainly not panoramic. Not much to look at from the outside, this hotel has limited parking available. It is handy for a pharmacy and doctor if you have health issues as the doctor surgery is next door. I'd recommend this hotel more for retired couples than others.

I hope this has given you some great ideas on which hotels in Newquay, Cornwall to stay at next time you're on holiday - and don't forget, they all have a restaurant too, so you can check them out by having a meal there if you've already made a booking for this time round!

UK holidays are all the rage this year, I hope this hub has helped you to enjoy yours more.

Enjoy your holiday in Cornwall!