If you love holidaying in Cornwall and you also love a bit of celeb spotting, then Mawgan Porth should definitely be the next destination on your list of must-visit places. It's becoming increasingly popular among Hollywood royalty, while also being an idyllic holiday destination that's only a few hours' drive from Bristol.
As Cornwall Live describes, the Cornish village boasts an open bay with caves and rock pools, a consistent Atlantic swell, tall picturesque cliffs and a wooded valley for long coastal walks. What's more, it's only four miles north of Newquay and a mile or so down the road from Cornwall Airport Newquay.
According to locals, though, there is a downside to being in such a beautiful destination - many can't afford housing in the area due to the rising prices that often come hand-in-hand with rising popularity. However, there's still a fairly undeveloped feel to Mawgan Porth, which could be the draw for a number of Hollywood celebrities and award-winning musicians searching for what has been dubbed an 'unspoilt paradise'.
Read more: 'Chocolate-box' West Country village among UK's best that you've probably never heard of
Oscar-winning Australian actress Cate Blanchett was the first celeb to buy a property in Mawgan Porth. She has since been followed by action movie actor Jason Statham, while actress Imogen Stubbs, Fifty Shades of Grey actor Jamie Dornan, Coldplay frontman Chris Martin and Hollywood actor and foodie Stanley Tucci are also reported to have bought properties in the village. Locals say that the housing crisis is making it significantly harder for younger generations to stay there, though, which is the case for a number of other Cornish holiday destinations, too.
The landlord of the Merrymoor Inn for the past 18 years has been Nick Bennett, whose family has ran the pub that overlooks the beach for some 62 years. He described his hometown as being "a lovely place", telling Cornwall Live: "I wouldn't want to live anywhere else.
"I have lived in other places but it's where I have gravitated back to. It is a nice, safe and peaceful place with very little crime. I love what I do and we employ 25 permanent all year staff for we are open every day of the year except on Christmas Day.
"We couldn't do that without the support of the locals and I thank them for that."
Over the years Nick says that It is not just the village that has changed, but the holidaymakers themselves, with many of the traditional homes on the hill being snapped up by wealthy buyers who tend to demolish them and build huge glass and steel mansions that take up a lot of space. And this means Nick finds himself in two minds about second homes - he estimates that 90 per cent of the properties not lived in all year round are in fact holiday lets.
He says that, on one hand, they bring custom to the shops, deli, eateries and pub in the village and have larger budgets which likely means they'll spend more. However, on the other hand, he believes it kills off the village once the tourist season is over, making it harder to trade.
"People can live where they want," he said. "But the trend right now is to buy a house and garden and stick a massive house on the whole footprint. My own parents used to have neighbours they knew on either side of them.
"Now they have holiday homes on either side. Some of the locals feel they are being priced out and pushed out of the village."
Ebrel Poole, 23, manages the Beach Box Cafe and returned to her home village after studying at Bristol University. "It is a nice area here with a nice community and a great beach.
"I live in St Columb though because I can't afford to live here. It does get very busy in summer but like others we're open in winter too.
"Housing is definitely an issue here. It's becoming like St Ives and Padstow and I know the community is trying to fight against too many second homes to help protect the area."
Among the holidaymakers enjoying the beach were Mark and Louise Kerley, with sons Jack, 13 and Ollie, nine, and another family of friends from Nottinghamshire where they are from. "We've been holidaying in Cornwall for 10 years, including nine in Mawgan Porth," Mark said.
"Of all the places we have been to, it's our favourite. The beach is dog friendly and everyone has been so welcoming.
"We love the fact it's not too commercialised like some of the places we have been to up North. We come here to escape the commercial seaside towns.
"But it's becoming overpriced. We paid £1,200 for a week in a house with our friends but the same house would have cost us £4,000 in August. We can't afford that, so we took the fine for taking the boys out of school."
Read the full feature on Cornwall Live for more about life in Mawgan Porth
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