Where to stay in Cornwall with a large group: the best areas for 8 to 16 people

A house for eight to sixteen people is a very different thing from a cottage for four. The bedrooms matter less than the bathrooms, the view matters less than the walk to the beach when three children are carrying bodyboards, and the kitchen table matters more than anything. Cornwall has hundreds of big houses, but they’re not evenly spread: the north coast has the beach houses, the far north has the estates, and the south has the river houses and the pools. This guide walks you round the county by area and says who each one suits, with the houses we’d book in each. For the full list, see our large holiday homes and cottages for eight or more; for the practical side of organising a group, our big cottages for group holidays guide covers deposits, bedrooms and the washing-up rota.

Watergate Bay, Mawgan Porth and the north coast: for beach weeks

Two miles of sand at Watergate Bay, the surf school at the bottom of the hill, Newquay’s restaurants ten minutes away and Mawgan Porth’s quieter beach just round the headland. This is where the modern beach houses are. Watersend sleeps twelve in five ensuite bedrooms 500 metres from the beach, with a hot tub, two woodburners and sea views (from £2,285 a week at the time of writing); Rockpools next door sleeps ten with a hot tub, sauna, cinema snug and heated outdoor showers for the wetsuits (from £1,985); and The Farmhouse is the countryside option for ten, a short drive back from the bay. All three take dogs. The large homes in Mawgan Porth and our Watergate Bay page have the rest. Best for: teenagers, surf, and a group that wants the beach without needing the car.

Padstow, Rock and the Camel: for foodies and sailors

The Camel estuary has the restaurants, the ferry and the flat water, and the big houses sit back from the villages in their own gardens. Camel Quarry House near Wadebridge sleeps sixteen in a Grand Designs house with a hot tub, a log burner and dogs welcome; Peacehay Barn near Padstow sleeps twelve in a secluded garden (from £2,935); Kismet sleeps eight with a cinema room, and Treverra Cottage at Rock adds a pool and a hot tub for eight. Best for: a group that wants to eat out every night and doesn’t mind the car to do it.

Bude and the far north: for two families and the price per head

North of Padstow the coast empties out and the houses get bigger for your money. The Old Rectory Estate at Kilkhampton is three period buildings for fourteen with manicured lawns and pubs a five-minute walk away (from £1,870); Ravenscourt at Launcells is a Grade II former rectory for ten in almost an acre of garden, three miles from Bude’s beaches, with a ground-floor suite (from £2,530); Ocean House puts ten of you moments from the beaches in Bude itself (from £1,395); and Brock’s Beach House at Crackington Haven gives ten people sea views, a hot tub and a games room a ten-minute stroll from the sand (from £2,235). Best for: three generations, or two families who want separate corners and one long table. See all our Bude cottages.

St Ives, Carbis Bay and the far west: for the town on foot

St Ives has more big houses than people expect, and the beauty of them is being able to walk to everything. Treleigh sleeps ten in pure luxury with a indoor swimming pool, jacuzzi and sauna, perched above Porthmeor Beach; Salubrious House is a Regency house for nine with sea views (from £1,530); and Vitamyn Sea is a nineteenth-century sea-view cottage for eight near the harbour (from £1,435). Round the bay at Carbis Bay, Sandpiper sleeps eight with a large hot tub a short walk from the beach (from £1,575). Further west, The Captain’s House in Marazion sleeps ten looking straight out at St Michael’s Mount (from £1,530). Best for: galleries, restaurants, no driving, and the Tate on a wet day. See all our St Ives cottages.

Falmouth, the Fal and the Roseland: for the water

South Cornwall’s big houses sit on the estuaries. Creek End at Feock sleeps ten in a contemporary creek-side house with a hot tub and cinema room, less than a mile from Loe Beach (from £2,235); Waves at Swanpool sleeps nine moments from the beach and a short walk from Falmouth’s restaurants and the maritime museum (from £2,035). Best for: sailors, paddleboarders, and groups who want a town, a beach and a river all in one week. See our Falmouth and Feock cottages.

Fowey and the south coast: for pools

Private pools are a rare treat in Cornwall and the south coast has most of them. Lantic Barn above Fowey sleeps ten with its own pool and sea views (from £1,535); Daymarker next door sleeps eight with a pool and dogs welcome (from £1,435). Best for: a hot week in August with small children. See our Fowey cottages and the hot tubs and pools collection.

How to choose a house for a big group

• Count bathrooms, not bedrooms. Eight people and two bathrooms means a queue every morning; the houses above with five ensuites are the ones people come back to.
• Ask who can’t do stairs. Ravenscourt has a ground-floor suite with its own entrance; most beach houses don’t.
• Parking spaces are a number.  Treleigh’s four or five spaces in St Ives are worth more than its view. Check the count against the cars.
• Dogs need saying. Most of the houses above take them; Brock’s Beach House, The Captain’s House and Waves don’t.
• Divide by heads, not by houses. A sixteen-person house at £3,000 is £188 each for the week. It’s usually cheaper than two smaller cottages, and the kitchen table is the whole point.
• Book the wet day. A cinema room, a games room or a hot tub is what saves a week of rain with sixteen people. Our games room collection filters for exactly that.

Still undecided? Our guide to where to stay in Cornwall explains the areas for any size of group.