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 Bude -
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Bude Tourist Information
Bude could be described as a traditional seaside resort.
This is by far the largest resort covering the North East of
Cornwall. It has 3 miles of sandy beaches with scattered
rock pools and wide open to the Atlantic swell. It has
excellent facilities for those who just wish to relax on a
beach, or for
surfers or walkers. The area boast some of
the highest cliffs found anywhere in Cornwall.
Bude was first recognized as a tourist resort in Victorian
times, and after the completion of the rail link in the
1880’s holidaymakers flocked to the area in great numbers in
the fresh air and smell of the sea.
Since the 1950’s Bude was recognized as being a premier
surfing centre and during the summer months with a gentle
breeze coming off the Atlantic and the possibility of seeing
dolphins playing in the bay, there can be few better places
in Cornwall.
With the coming of the Bude to
Launceston Canal in the 1820’s Bude was a
busy North Cornwall port. The canal ran for a length of 35
miles rising to a height of 350 feet in just 6 miles. The
coming of the railway instigated the demise of the canal in
1891. Today, the canal is used for fishing, boating and
walking.
The ‘Bude Canal Trail’ follows the canal into the heart of
Cornwall. The first two miles are still
water. Close to the canal entrance stands Bude Castle, a
small fortification overlooking
Summerleaze Beach. A comprehensive history
of the town and canal can be seen in the Bude-Stratton
Museum which is located near the canal sea lock.
The town of Bude is quite compact with numerous specialty
shops, high street names, surfing and cloths shops together
with numerous cafes/restaurant/tea
rooms. During high summer it is a hive of activity but all
very civilized. It never appears to have the hustle and
bustle of resorts like
Newquay. It certainly does not have the
night life of Newquay, visitors are quite happy to wander
around, enjoy a meal or Cornish cream tea, relax on one of
the beaches, try a bit of surfing, or a nice walk along the
canal or one of the many cliff tops.
Bude Tourist Attractions:
The attractions in Bude are quite low key compared to some,
it does not have such major attractions such as:
The Eden Project, this is about a 45
minute drive
The Lost Gardens of Heligan, just over an
hours drive
The Tate Gallery and
Barbara Hepworth Museum
at St Ives, just over an hour away
The
Rick Stein Restaurant at
Padstow is quite
close, around the 45 minute mark
The
National Maritime Museum at
Falmouth, around an
hour
It does have:
The Bude Jazz Festival - one of Britains leading Jazz
Festivals.
Now coming into its 20 year it takes place for a week
between late August and early September.
Anyone wishing to enjoy this Festival which is extremely
popular should book their accommodation in Bude very early
as this is one time when the town is extremely busy
For a comprehensive list of Jazz musicians taking part and
details of tickets etc. please visit:
www.budejazzfestival.co.uk
Other attractions in Bude include:
An excellent Golf Courses overlooking one of the town’s main
beaches
An excellent swimming pool
10 pin bowling
The Brocklands Adventure Park - a place for the whole family
– www.brocklands.com
Trevigue Wildlife Conservation at Crackington Haven
Pixieland Fun Park - great for children
Killarney Springs - 66 acres of countryside with many
animal, indoor games and mobile action.
Bude Beaches:
The main town beach is:
Summerleaze Beach - within a short walk of the town centre
with a car park on the beach, the mandatory parking meters
are never far away and this is no exception. The beach is
flat with
good sand quality. Surf is excellent when
conditions permit, which in Bude is quite often. Services
include toilets/café/lifeguard services, freshwater shower.
Don’t forget – always bathe between the flags, the sea is
clean, the sand is soft but there are invisible
rip currents that life guards are
continually monitoring.
The beach has a large natural swimming pool in the rocks
with the water changing every high tide, a real favourite.
Immediately to the North of Summerleaze Beach and also an
easy walk from the town centre is:
Crooklets Beach - A nice sandy beach that
occasionally offers good surf, very popular with visitors
and locals alike. At low tide it is one long beach from
Summerleaze to Northcott Mouth with good surf along the
entire length.
Services include:
Lifeguards
Parking
Toilets
Fresh water showers
Moving out of Bude there is:
Strangle Beach - near
Crackington Haven. The beach is quiet even
in the summer, probably due to the difficult climb down to
the beach.
The beach is sand and shingle with plenty of sand at low
tide.
Parking at the cliff top
There are no facilities
Warning – swimming is unsafe and the climb down is both
difficult and slippery.
In total contrast to Strangle beach is:
Widemouth Bay Beach - about a mile long,
flat sand backed by cliffs and grassy fields. Rocky in
places it has many rock pools popular with children with
their crab/prawn nets.
The beach is popular with surfers and its coastal walks
provide excellent views.
Services: Parking/café/toilets/shops/Lifeguard/freshwater
shower
Dangers: At high tide there are rocks in the centre which
sometimes create rip currents. Please bathe between the
lifeguard flags at all times.
Widemouth Bay is a small resort in its own right. Although
many of the visitors to the beach come from the
accommodation in Bude there is a certain
amount of accommodation in Widemouth Bay.
This includes:
Widemouth Bay self catering units
Widemouth Bay bed and breakfast and a few
Widemouth Bay hotels.
Moving to the north of Bude we arrive at:
Sandymouth Beach: A lovely spot managed by
the National Trust.
There is a National trust car park at the heat of the beach
which is a 5 minute walk down a rocky path. Quite small it
is usually a nice place to get away from the crowds. There
is also a National Trust café in the car park is is highly
recommended for snacks/cream teas etc. Toilets in the car
park
The walks here are really exceptional over grassy unspoilt
headlands.
Directions: A39 from Bude towards Bideford - turn off and
follow the signs for Stibb and Sandy Bay. The beach is about
3 miles off the main road.
Duckpool Beach:
A small sheltered pebble beach with a large expanse of sand
at low water.
Parking is limited
Toilet facilities
Northcott Mouth:
A large pebble beach with sand at low tide
Plenty of rock pools to explore
Facilities – car park but no toilet
Crackington Haven beach - see
Crackington Haven
Touring:
Bude is situated in the far north east corner of Cornwall.
An excellent base from which to explore little popular
resorts such as Boscastle, Tintagel, Crackington Haven,
Widemouth Bay, Morwenstow, and just a little further afield
the major resort of Padstow. Of course the Bodmin Moor is
close at hand if you enjoy walking over rough terrain.
For those wishing to visit major attractions such as the The
Eden Project, The Lost Gardens of Heligan at St Austell, the
Tate Gallery and Barbera Hepworth Museum at St Ives and the
National Maritime Museum at Falmouth, allow an hour to one
and a half hours depending on traffic.
The Rick Stein Restaurant at Padstow is very popular but
booking is essential. As it is for the Jamie Oliver 15
Restaurant at Watergate Bay.
Bude Accommodation:
The accommodation in Bude is quite spread out as the town
itself is quite small.
In the town centre there are primarily:
Bude guesthouses - these are often large
houses converted into guesthouses.
Bude self catering - these are split into
two categories:
Bude apartments
Cottages in Bude, these are quite
numerous, many are basically second homes being let out when
not in use by the owners. Unfortunately, like most popular
places in Cornwall this tends to increase the cost of
property putting it out of reach of the local population.
The
hotels in Bude are not numerous
considering the town’s popularity but they tend to be of
excellent quality.
Many of the hotels in Bude are to be found on the approach
roads or near the beaches.
The
Bude camp sites and caravan parks are all
on the outskirts in the surrounding countryside. The size
and geography of Bude does not lend itself to this type of
accommodation.
For further information on Bude or any other area in
Cornwall.
Full details can be obtained from the Cornwall Tourist
Information office Tel. 0345 484950.
Getting to Bude
Bude is somewhat off the beaten track, most visitors to the
town arrive by private car. The road is mainly dual
carriageway, but after
Launceston the road deteriorates into
single carriageway.
By Coach
By Air - to Newquay airport - hire cars available
For for further information about Bude:
Bude Tourist Information centre is near the centre of the
town.
For additional information for the whole of the country, the
Cornwall Tourist Board will be able to assist.
Bude News:
N Devon run into ex-Zimbabwe test starNorth Devon Gazette & Advertiser, UK - Apr 23, 2008North Devon III won well on Saturday against Bude but lost heavily the following day to Bideford. Ricky Kelly, Matt Dart and Colin Payne bagged two wickets ... |
Telegraph.co.uk |
Some enchanted eveningTelegraph.co.uk, United Kingdom - Apr 27, 2008So tonight the couple, from Morwenstow, near Bude, will watch a performance of Sleeping Beauty in a private box at the Royal Opera House, before enjoying a ... |
Richton eliminates Wesson 2 straightBrookhaven Daily Leader, United states - May 6, 2008Sumrall (28-6) had lost the best-of-three series opener 3-0 to the Bulldogs at Bude before winning 2 straight at Sumrall. In MPSA action, Central Private ... |
Bude Surf Classic Christian Surfers UKGlobal Surf News - Apr 18, 2008Surfersvillage Global Surf News, 18 April, 2008 : - - The highly successful Bude Surf Classic, run by Christian Surfers UK, in conjunction with ‘Surfspot’ ... |
Antenna use may cause some to lose MPB accessJackson Clarion Ledger, MS - Apr 28, 2008The others are in Bude, Greenwood and Meridian. Power reductions for Bude and Greenwood should occur by mid-August. There's no date for Meridian yet. ... |
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