Public toilets in the Cornwall National Landscape

Cornwall's protected coast — from the cliffs of the Lizard round to the coves of the north shore, with Bodmin Moor inland — is honeypot country, and the toilets follow the beach car parks and harbour towns. The twist is who runs them: Cornwall Council has handed nearly all of its public toilets to town and parish councils, so provision (and pricing) changes from one harbour to the next.

St Ives runs nine blocks in summer, dropping to four in winter, with a 40p card-only charge at the busiest two; Padstow's town council keeps its three free; Newquay charges 50p at most sites but keeps the Esplanade and Porth Beach free. The National Trust covers some of the famous coves, like Kynance on the Lizard. Penzance runs a community toilet scheme, with cafés, pubs and galleries opening their loos to everyone. Out on the coast path between settlements, and up on Bodmin Moor, expect long stretches with nothing at all.

Check the map for your stretch of coast before you commit to it — the next cove's facilities may be seasonal, and the moor is the biggest gap in the county.

Accessibility

Changing Places facilities have been spreading through the devolution programme — Porthminster in St Ives, Boscawen Park and Green Street in Truro, Grove Place in Falmouth, Jubilee Park in Wadebridge and Seaton Countryside Park — plus one at Killacourt in Newquay. RADAR policy varies by town: Newquay notably doesn't use the scheme (its accessible toilets are ordinary pay toilets), so check the listing for the town you're visiting.

Seasonal

Seasonal swings are real here: St Ives more than halves its open blocks in winter, Newquay resets its hours each season, and car-park toilets at remoter coves often shut entirely off-season.

Where the gaps are

The remote coast-path sections between honeypot coves, and Bodmin Moor — where a car-park block at Golitha Falls and pub toilets are about all there is.