Our Story

The name Pentewan is from the Cornish language, PEN meaning a headland and TEWAN (or Towan) meaning a sand-hill, hillocks or dunes.

Our beach and local village sits alongside a circular hill known as 'The Round', which dates back to the Iron Age! Traces of a settlement have been found here over the years.

Pentewan Harbour was built in1744 by the Hawkins family, who lived at Trewithen, Probus. In 1818, Sir Christopher Hawkins partnered with John Stanley from London, and a group of other business people, to develop the harbour. In February 1826, the harbour re-opened, and trading in china clay, coal, limestone and timber begun!

A 500 feet long pier was then constructed, with ships entering and leaving through a channel, and in 1831 a new pier head was built.

In 1829, a horse drawn tramway was opened up through Pentewan Valley to the town of St. Austell, making it easier to transport clay and other supplies from the quarries and mines around Cornwall. In 1873 the tramway was converted into a railway - and you can still see remains of the tracks today at low tide!

The first steam locomotive was built for the railway by Manning Wardle, who named it ‘Pentewan’, which worked along the line until 1886 when a similar engine arrived named ‘Trewithen’, likely after the place where the Hawkins family originated from.

During this time, workers also moved sand off the beach via train to create sand bricks. Our workshops in the harbour are made of the original sand bricks, and stand as strong today as they did when they were built!

This trad route continued for many years, until the GWR moved into the China Clay area, and the ports of Fowey and Par were developed. Use of the Pentewan railway diminished, and the last load of clay was brought down the railway on 29th January 1918.

At it’s peak, Pentewan shipped a third of Cornwall’s China Clay from local quarries in St Austell, a thriving industry that the area is famous for.

The old trade route has now been re-formed into The Pentewan Valley Trail (popular with cyclists and hikers) and runs along the bed of the old narrow gauge railway.

1920s – 1930s

The Winnick, as it was originally called, was a working farm with cattle on it in the winter months and campers in the summer months. We honour the work of local people pre-war by sourcing all of our produce from local farmers and fisherfolk to stock our restaurants.

1940s

In the Second World War, the land was used to house American Troops and their families when they came to visit. The surrounding areas were used for training and socializing during family time, which lead to the idea of a Holiday Park.

When the war came to an end and the troops departed, several of the wooden cabins used to house them were converted into holiday lodges in an area now known as The Willows.

1945

Pentewan Sands Holiday Park opens!

The park was the brainchild of Air Marshal Sir John Tremayne, his WW1 Air Force Observer, Sir Victor Sasson, and Submariner Cecil Malleson VC.

In the aftermath of two world wars, they felt compelled to fill the shores of the South Coast of Cornwall with laughter and joy once again - and they certainly did!

1960s – 1980s

The park continued to grow and develop, with the addition of touring pitches, more holiday lodges, an outdoor swimming pool and entertainment.

1990s

1990 saw the introduction of the first static home to Pentewan Sands. Prior to that, we had 39 chalets. We now have 132 holiday homes and 417 touring pitches!

In 1991, there was a terrible storm that destroyed the beach.

This was a very difficult time for the family that owned the park, and resulted in a restoration project with storm defenses to prevent further sand movement. To this day, the continuation of this project protects the park and local village of Pentewan.

Cornwall is by far one of the most beautiful places in the world, and we're making sure it stays that way. Alongside this restoration we are committed to encouraging our guests to look after their surroundings, regular beach cleans, rewilding efforts, and ocean education, so we can all look after our environment and enjoy it for years to come.

In 1997, there was a massive flood in the local village of Pentewan, and our holiday park housed the residents while their homes were repaired.

2000s

The Retreat (our flagship holiday home) was converted in 2005 from 2 pine lodges that were built in the mid-80s.

After many renovations, this modern four bedroom bungalow is popular with our guests and is often fully booked all year around!

In 2006, the beach was used for Marine Training, which continued for a few years and still occurs now and again!

In 2007, The Lookout came to life!

This holiday home was built on top of an old lime Kiln, giving the home elevated views across the park and the bay of Mevagissey. With it’s own private driveaway and modern amenities, this too is very popular with our guests.

2010s

We continued working on developing our facilities to provide two indoor swimming pools with fun flumes, new restaurants and takeaways, an amusement arcade and children’s entertainment in peak holidays!

In 2015, Hub Box opened a branch on the beach of Pentewan Sands. This popular burger and fries chain is a hit with visitors to the park and the coast.

In 2016, we featured in the local papers for raising money for Children’s Hospice South West.

Giving back to our community is really important to our family, and we do what we can to support these local causes, through raffle prizes, promotion, and donations of holidays to those that deserve it most.

In 2017, we hosted CMC Riviera Run for the first time ever – and it quickly became an annual event every May Bank Holiday!

Attracting minis and other classic cars from across the UK and overseas, there are car shows, entertainment, live music, stalls and a fun fair for the kids. Popular with car enthusiasts, it’s one of our favorite times of the year!

This was the year we entered the Cornwall Tourism Awards and won three awards for our 5 star facilities and experience!

In 2019, we added our Beach Houses.

These 4 holiday homes are a step up from the caravan and camping experience, sleeping up to 6 people across a raised sleeping area (accessible by a step ladder, which children love!) and two convertible beds in the dining and living areas. Only a couple of steps from the beach, these homes are popular for that relaxed holiday experience.

2020s and Beyond

With the outbreak of Covid-19, we were forced to close our park.

This was a very upsetting time for us and our guests, many of whom visit us every year and feel more like our own family! We missed the laughter along the coast, and seeing families enjoying themselves on the beach.

Thankfully, our park survived the closure, and when we were able to open again, it was an uplifting time for all of our staff to see those families return to us and start making happy memories again after such a difficult period for the world.

2025

This year, we’re proud to celebrate the 80th anniversary of our family owned business.

It’s been eight decades since we welcomed our very first guests to our park - even though it still feels like yesterday! Over the years, we’ve welcomed generations of families and loved ones to our park - as guests and as members of our team - and we’re honoured to have been a part of their treasured experiences and memories.

To mark this special year, we opened a brand new Asian Fusion Restaurant on the park – Stingi’s – which sources seafood caught by local people in the bay of Mevagissey, and vegetables from local farmers. We’re also running competitions and giveaways all year for our guests, from family passes to local attractions to vouchers in our restaurants!

Times have certainly changed since that first day - but one thing that remains is our passion for providing memorable holidays for you and your loved ones.

We hope to welcome you to our park one day for a holiday on the beautiful Pentewan Sands beach!