Secret Escapes in Cornwall - Looe

8 Jan 2014
Published in General
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Where will you find the hidden undiscovered areas that locals want to keep to themselves? Read our article on Cornwall’s hidden gems to find out what they’re not telling you!

Discover Looe

Looe is a happy little thriving seaside town in close proximity to Plymouth that's hidden along the coast in South East Cornwall. Surprisingly, it's an area largely left alone by tourists who come in their thousands to visit Cornwall's more well known areas such as Newquay and St Ives.

This place has everything you would want to find in a little seaside town and so much more. There's something for everyone in Looe and is a personal favourite of mine, whenever I'm down this is the first place I go!

Looe has a stunning beach and great views but I'll get to that bit later as there is so much else to see and do. It's a treasure trove of unusual and wonderful shops, the whole place is an Aladdin's cave waiting to be explored.

A wonderful array of shops

I could spend all day talking about Looe but as we all have lives to live I've compiled a list. Here are my recommendations:

  • Ginger – full of beautiful ethnic gifts that have been sourced from India and are all fairtrade, includes beautiful scarves, bags, clothing, and other little nik naks that make excellent gifts. There's also a wide variety of high quality and unusual crystals, there's plenty more sparkle with intricate jewellery on offer.
  • The old joke shop – A lovely cluttered shop that's a firm favourites for all kids, whether young or old. Full of fancy dress and funny items to keep your little ones amused and entertained. Cornwall has a very proud tradition of celebrating the new year in ridiculous outlandish dress outfits and lots of scrumpy and cider which leads me on to the next recommendation…
  • Purely Cornish - My favourite shop in Cornwall which has an amazing selection of high quality alcohol, the fruit wines are heavenly, there are ciders and beers galore which are all brewed in Cornwall hence the name of the shop! My other half's favourite is the "Hung Drawn and Slaughtered" ale which is a whopping 10%, not for the faint hearted. As well as alcohol the shop offers other high quality fresh food products, confectionary and condiments.
  • In Looe you can also find plenty of toy shops. There's a beautiful workshop situated near the arcade that sells wonderful items such as clocks, furniture and homeware.

Also to be found are cake shops, pasty shops and many high quality fish and chip shops. There's even art galleries that specialise in Cornish art.

But what about the beach?

Of course, the beach!

Personally I think it's just the right size if you have kids, the beach is contained and it has all the facilities you'll need with a young family such as free public toilets, cafes and shops selling all the important beach equipment that you'll need such as buckets and spades! There's a plethora of rock pools for your little ones to explore, but be aware there are no life guards patroling this beach. It's a great size as if you have children they can go off and explore all within sight. If you want long stretches of sand and sea you should head to Whitsand Bay nearby.

What else can I do there?

For those of you who want to explore Cornwall's wildside, these Kilminorth Woods are located adjacent to Looe car park which has ample parking.

These woods are a local nature reserve of anciet oak woodland full of wildlife such as Roe Deer, foxes, badgers as well as many bird species such as curlew, renshanks and kingfishers. These woods offer fantastic views of West Looe Valley, more info can be found at www.friendsofkilminorthwoods.co.uk

And in the evening?

Looe offers many old pubs and fantastic seafood restaurants, the locals are more than friendly and you're guaranteed to have a great time. If you're popping down during the festive season it's a great place to celebrate New Year's Eve.

Thanks for reading our article, we hope it was helpful with finding a holiday spot! Have a look at the findahood.com stats on Looe here: Key info on West Looe and Lansallos.

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