Gateway to the Lizard
Living in Helston
A market town inland from the Lizard. Flora Day once a year, and the coast a few miles out in every direction that matters.
Inner harbour at Porthleven, Cornwall - geograph.org.uk - 4988729.jpg. Derek Voller. CC BY-SA 2.0. Wikimedia Commons
Helston is not a harbour. Loe Pool and Porthleven are the water, a short way off, and the Lizard runs south into coves and a famous lighthouse. The town itself has a coinagehall street, a secondary school, and Flora Day, when the dancing is the point of the calendar.
As a place to live it is a market town that still has that job. You can buy a pint of milk without joining a harbour queue. The trade-off is that the view you moved to Cornwall for is a drive, and the winter entertainment is local rather than metropolitan.
It is a strong base for the peninsula and a weak choice if you wanted to step out onto sand. Pair it with the Penzance and Falmouth guides if you are still deciding how far west, and how close to the water, you need to be.
Who it suits. People who want the Lizard peninsula without paying harbour-town prices for a cottage on the water.
The catch. You will drive to the sea. The town is small, and the famous day is one day.
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