HOLIDAY COTTAGES IN MOUSEHOLE

A holiday cottage in Mousehole – pronounced “Mowzel” – is one of the most rewarding ways to experience West Cornwall. Often described as one of the prettiest villages in Cornwall, Mousehole is built tightly around a small granite harbour on the shore of Mount’s Bay, its cottages of weathered granite and slate crowding down narrow lanes and alleyways to the water.

Many of the holiday cottages in Mousehole are old fishermen’s cottages, some more than two hundred years old, with granite walls, low beams and fireplaces, while others look out over the harbour and the bay towards St Michael’s Mount and the Lizard. Staying in the village means the harbour, the beach, the pubs and the cafés are all on your doorstep – and you can leave the car behind in a place where parking is famously scarce.

Inside the harbour walls, two small sandy beaches appear at low tide, sheltered from the swell and ideal for young children. The South West Coast Path runs through the village, east to Newlyn and Penzance and west to the wooded valley and granite quay of Lamorna Cove, and the whole of the Land’s End peninsula is within easy reach.

Mousehole is a village for every season. Summer brings sunny days on the harbour sand and evenings on the quay; spring and autumn are quieter, with wild flowers on the cliffs and dramatic seas in Mount’s Bay. In December the village is world famous for its Christmas harbour lights and Tom Bawcock’s Eve, and a cottage in the village is the best way to enjoy them.

This page lists self-catering holiday cottages in Mousehole, each advertised directly by its owner, together with a guide to the village – the harbour and beach, the history of Mousehole, the Christmas lights, walks, places nearby and local events – plus practical information on parking, buses, shops and health services.

THE HARBOUR & BEACH

Mousehole’s harbour is the heart of the village. Two sturdy granite quays curve out into Mount’s Bay, leaving a narrow gap at the entrance, and part of the South Quay is thought to date from the late 14th century – possibly the oldest pier in Cornwall. It is still a working harbour, home to small fishing boats and pleasure craft.

In winter the harbour entrance is closed with heavy timber baulks to keep out the storms, and seas can break right over the harbour walls in bad weather. In summer the harbour is busy with boats, swimmers and families on the sand.

As the tide falls, two small sandy beaches appear inside the harbour, one on either side. Sheltered by the quays, the water is calm and shallow – ideal for paddling and for young children – though the sand is covered at high water, so check the tide times. There is no lifeguard cover. A rockier stretch with rock pools runs north towards Newlyn, and there is a small tidal bathing pool just outside the village.

Dogs are not allowed on the beach from 10am to 6pm between 1 July and 31 August, but are welcome around the harbour and village on a lead. The quays are cobbled and uneven, so take care, and never touch moorings or boats without permission. See our Mousehole harbour beach guide for more details.

Offshore, about 350 metres from the harbour entrance, lies St Clement’s Isle, a small rocky islet that once held a medieval chapel. It gave the village its old Cornish name, Porthenys – “the port of the island”.

THE VILLAGE

Mousehole is a maze of narrow streets, cobbled alleys and little courtyards, lined with cottages built of local granite, many of them with slate roofs and colourful doors and window boxes. Almost everything is within a few minutes’ walk of the harbour, and the best way to explore is simply to wander.

Around the harbour and in the lanes behind it you will find galleries and craft shops, gift shops, cafés, tea rooms, restaurants and harbourside pubs, including the Ship Inn on the quay. Local artists have been drawn to the village for generations, and the light over Mount’s Bay is as much an attraction now as it was for the Newlyn School painters a century ago.

At the end of the village, in Keigwin Place, stands Keigwin House, once the Keigwin Arms – the only building said to have survived when Spanish raiders burned Mousehole in 1595. A plaque marks where Squire Jenkyn Keigwin was killed defending it. It is now a private house.

Just above the village is Paul, the parish to which Mousehole historically belonged. Its church contains a memorial to Dolly Pentreath, popularly remembered as the last native speaker of the Cornish language. Nearby on the coast road towards Newlyn is the Mousehole Wild Bird Hospital, founded in 1928, which has cared for injured sea birds and wildlife for nearly a century.

The poet Dylan Thomas spent his honeymoon in Mousehole, staying at the Lobster Pot on the harbourside, and is said to have called it “the loveliest village in England” – a description many visitors still agree with.

HISTORY OF MOUSEHOLE

Mousehole has been a fishing port for more than seven hundred years. The settlement appears as Porthenys in 1267, and the name Mousehole is first recorded in 1283. Where the name came from is uncertain – one popular theory links it to a large cave in the cliffs just south of the village.

In the Middle Ages Mousehole was one of the most important fishing ports in Mount’s Bay. Pilchards were exported to France as early as 1302, and in the late 18th century the harbour had five seines and dozens of fishing boats. The pilchard trade brought prosperity, and many of the cottages that now make such charming holiday homes were built for fishing families.

On 23 July 1595, in one of the last episodes of the Anglo-Spanish War, Spanish forces under Carlos de Amesquita landed near the village and set Mousehole on fire before going on to attack Newlyn and Penzance. Squire Jenkyn Keigwin was killed defending his house, which is said to be the only building in the village to have survived.

Mousehole’s story is also bound up with the Cornish language. Dolly Pentreath, who died in 1777 and is popularly known as the last native speaker of Cornish, lived in the parish of Paul, which included Mousehole, and a memorial to her stands at Paul church.

The fishing industry declined through the 20th century, and today only a few boats still work from the harbour, alongside pleasure craft. Tourism has become the village’s mainstay, but Mousehole remains a close-knit community with a strong sense of its own history.

CHRISTMAS LIGHTS & TOM BAWCOCK’S EVE

Every December Mousehole becomes one of the most magical places in Cornwall. The Mousehole harbour lights began in 1963, when local artist Joan Gillchrest strung coloured lights along the quays, and they have grown into a spectacular display of illuminated boats, sea creatures and festive scenes reflected in the harbour, created and maintained by volunteers.

The lights are switched on in December and usually stay on into early January, drawing visitors from far and wide. On the evening of 19 December they are turned off for a time in memory of the crew of the Penlee lifeboat, lost in 1981 – a quiet, deeply felt tradition.

On 23 December the village celebrates Tom Bawcock’s Eve, recalling the legendary fisherman who braved a terrible storm to bring home a catch that saved Mousehole from famine. The night is marked with stargazy pie – a pie of fish, egg and potato with the fish heads poking up through the pastry – and the story inspired the much-loved children’s book The Mousehole Cat by Antonia Barber, illustrated by Nicola Bayley.

Parking in Mousehole is very limited at Christmas, and the narrow streets become extremely busy, so staying in a holiday cottage in the village – or arriving by bus from Penzance – is by far the easiest way to enjoy the lights. December dates are popular, so book early.

THE PENLEE LIFEBOAT

On the night of 19 December 1981, the Penlee lifeboat Solomon Browne was launched in hurricane-force winds to help the coaster Union Star, which had lost power and was being driven towards the cliffs near Lamorna. All eight of the lifeboat crew, all from Mousehole, were lost, together with everyone on board the Union Star.

The disaster is one of the most tragic in the history of the RNLI, and it is remembered every year in the village. The old Penlee lifeboat station at Penlee Point, on the road between Mousehole and Newlyn, is preserved as a memorial, with a memorial garden beside it.

Today the Penlee lifeboat is based at Newlyn harbour, and the crews continue the proud tradition of the Mousehole men who served before them.

THINGS TO DO IN MOUSEHOLE

Mousehole is a place to slow down. A morning on the harbour beach, an afternoon wandering the lanes and an evening on the quay is a perfect holiday day here – but the far west of Cornwall has plenty more to discover.

Here are some of the best things to do in and around Mousehole:

1. Spend a day on the harbour beach – sheltered sand inside the quays at low tide.
2. Explore the lanes – galleries, craft shops and old fishermen’s cottages.
3. Walk the coast path to Lamorna – about 2½ miles to the granite quay and cove.
4. See the Christmas lights – the famous harbour display in December.
5. Visit Paul church – and the memorial to Dolly Pentreath.
6. Remember the Penlee crew – at the old lifeboat station and memorial garden.
7. Walk to Newlyn – Cornwall’s biggest fishing port and its art galleries.
8. Explore Penzance – the promenade, Jubilee Pool and Penlee House Gallery & Museum.
9. Visit St Michael’s Mount – the island castle across Mount’s Bay at Marazion.
10. Head for Land’s End – with the Minack Theatre and Porthcurno on the way.

WALKS FROM MOUSEHOLE

The South West Coast Path runs right through Mousehole. Heading west, it climbs out of the village past Spaniard’s Point, where the raiders landed in 1595, and continues through the Kemyel Crease nature reserve, with its old flower gardens sheltered by pines, to Lamorna Cove – a beautiful but rocky walk of about 2½ miles.

Heading north, an easy, level walk along the coast road and promenade leads past the old Penlee lifeboat station to Newlyn and on to Penzance, with views across Mount’s Bay to St Michael’s Mount all the way. The bus makes it easy to walk one way and ride back.

Inland, field paths and lanes climb to the village of Paul and the hamlets of Raginnis and Kemyel, with wide views over the bay. Wear good boots – the coast path west of Mousehole is rough, with boulders and steep ups and downs, and the fields can be very muddy in winter.

AROUND MOUSEHOLE

• Newlyn – Cornwall’s largest fishing port, with the Newlyn Art Gallery, about a mile north.
• Penzance – shops, the promenade, the Jubilee Pool and Penlee House Gallery & Museum, about 2½ miles.
• Lamorna Cove – a granite quarrying cove loved by the Newlyn School artists, along the coast path.
• St Michael’s Mount – the National Trust island castle at Marazion, across Mount’s Bay.
• Porthcurno & the Minack Theatre – white sand and the famous open-air cliff theatre.
• Land’s End & Sennen Cove – the far west, with surf beaches and dramatic cliffs.

LOCAL EVENTS

Mousehole’s calendar is at its busiest in December, but there is plenty going on in the village and nearby Penzance through the year.

• Mousehole harbour lights (December to early January) – the famous Christmas illuminations around the harbour.
• Penlee lifeboat remembrance (19 December) – the lights are turned off for a time in memory of the Solomon Browne crew.
• Tom Bawcock’s Eve (23 December) – stargazy pie and celebrations in the village.
• Golowan Festival (late June) – Penzance’s midsummer festival, culminating in Mazey Day.
• Royal Cornwall Show (June) – three days at the Royal Cornwall Showground near Wadebridge.

Dates change from year to year, so check before you travel.