Is this the PERFECT location for a seaside getaway? Probably... (2024)

Being in the village of Mousehole is like being inside a postcard.

And being inside Beach Retreats’ 'Chy Lowen' rental cottage there is like being in a glossy interiors magazine.

It's superb – the building has a plain exterior, butwhen my family and our travelling companions venture inside there are clusters of ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’.

Delightful though it is, a proper exploration is delayed, as Mousehole’s picture-perfect harbour beckons.

This historic fishing village lies three miles west of Penzance.

We arrive via the wonderful GWR Night Riviera service from London, 300 miles away.

I’d travel quadruple the distance for a stay in Mousehole (pronounced, incidentally, 'Mow-zuhl'), surely one of the cutest villages in the West Country.

Said harbour dominates the scene, with a chunky wall thick enough to stop a runaway cargo ship and within, two winsome sandy beaches on opposite sides.

‘Idyllic’ only just covers it.

We procure a trio of artisanal ales from a harbourside grocery store and sip them on the beach as the kids search for crabs in waters turquoise enough to pass for exotic in the UK.

The sun lowers itself over the rooftops, so we head back to our rental (a mere two-minute walk from the waterfront – I time it) and embark upon a more thorough inspection of the property.

A good first impression, I note, is guaranteed, thanks to a front garden so verdant and richly populated with flowers and plants it could qualify as a Chelsea Flower Show entry.

Inside, meanwhile, the vibe is country chic and there is plenty of space for groups to spread out in.

On the ground floor is an inviting farmhouse-esque kitchen complete with a huge island and an Everhot oven, a spacious adjacent dining area and, through wooden doors you can throw wide open, a living room with a wood-burning stove and a brace of plush sofas.

There’s also an extremely handy downstairs rainfall shower and laundry area, with direct access to the front of the property, which means that sandy, damp beachgoers can freshen up and change without sullying those Instagram-baiting interiors.

Upstairs, meanwhile, are three bedrooms decked out with luxurious beds, and a lovely bathroom with a sea view.

We spend most of our time in the house hanging out in the enormous kitchen, sipping wine and cremant and, confession, trying to work out how to use the Everhot. We love how fabulously farmhouse this ‘always hot’ stove is, but its apparent lack of temperature control baffles us.

Aside from that, the house wins us over completely.

As does Mousehole, which is so pristinely unspoiled it has a time-capsule feel.

The following day we wander hither and thither around its little lanes, browse for souvenirs in chocolate-box shops and the girls pick up the hunt for crabs as brave, older children jump off the quayside into that almost-exotic water.

For lunch we summon top-tier seafood at the Crab Shack, an outdoor extension of The Old Coastguard restaurant with shoreline garden seating and a sensational sea view.

We drink it all in as we plunder plates piled high with crab claws, fries and thick wedges of bread, with the fodder washed down with premium French and Italian rose.

The kids can bear to stay at the table mere minutes, as below are a multitude of rock pools to explore.

In the evening, we dine at the village’s hot-ticket restaurant – 2 Fore Street, which is excellent.

The fish stew here is absolutely divine.

In the morning, we pack with heavy hearts, hearts that have been stolen by a wonderful retreat in an impossibly picturesque location.