Charlestown Harbour

Charlestown (Cornish: Porth Meur, great cove) is a coastal village directly south-east of St Austell in Cornwall. The village is notable for its use as a filming location for the TV show Poldark.

Understand

Charlestown is built around its beautiful grade II-listed walled harbour with cliffs and pebble beaches that offer many photo opportunities.

Get in

St Austell railway station is the nearest train station and is on the London Paddington to Penzance line.

See

• 1 Charlestown Shipwreck & Heritage Centre, Quay Rd, PL25 3NJ. The main attraction is the village's shipwreck museum which starts with a cool interactive remote-controlled boat game (1 turn: 50p; 3 turns: £1) that allows you to drive a boat through a diorama of Charlestown Harbour. The museum then goes through a clay tunnel and offers a view of the harbour from the village's east side; a historic boat with a pirate flag is anchored there. The rest of the museum is mostly items salvaged from shipwrecks such as the RMS Titanic and The Mary Rose including chinaware, cutlery, coins, boat equipment, etc. (updated Jun 2018)
• 2 St Paul's Church, Church Rd, PL25 3NS, ☏ +44 1726 67544. (updated Jun 2018)

Buy

Charlestown Harbour has a small unstaffed stall that sells souvenirs such as seashells and recovered tin that has been smelted around pre-decimal coins.

Eat

• 1 Short & Strong Cafe and Deli, Charlestown Rd, PL25 3NL, ☏ +44 1726 68598. 9AM-4PM. (updated Jun 2018)
• Loveday's, Quay Rd, PL25 3NX (above the Charlestown Shipwreck & Heritage Centre), ☏ +44 1726 67618. (updated Jun 2018)

Drink

• 1 Rashleigh Arms, Charlestown Rd, PL25 3NJ, ☏ +44 1726 73635. 10AM-11PM. (updated Jun 2018)

Sleep

• 1 Pier House Hotel, Charlestown Rd, PL25 3NJ, ☏ +44 1726 67955. (updated Jun 2018)

Go next

St Austell