Newquay Town Centre Tourist Information
If you're looking for a fun filled holiday packed with family friendly activities you won't find anything better than Newquay, and if you stay in Newquay Town Centre you're just a stone's throw away from loads of exciting things to do. One of the best things to do in Newquay is to take a trip to Newquay Zoo, which has over 130 different animal species and all kinds of child friendly exhibits and animal talks.
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If you're interested in learning about our oceans why not visit the Blue Reef Aquarium on the Promenade? This aquarium is one of the best in the UK and has both tropical and local Cornish species. Of course, if you'd rather go and soak up the sun you can always take a trip to one of the beaches in Newquay, many of which are right by the town centre. The beaches in Cornwall are famous for being great surfing spots, making them even more popular.
Newquay Zoo
While you're staying in Newquay Town Centre you'd be crazy not to visit Newquay Zoo, located just a mile outside of the town centre. They have over 300 animals, including many that are endangered. The zoo is split up into many different areas, each with natural habitats for the animals to live in.
You'll find everything from guinea pigs to lemurs at Newquay Zoo, and if you want to learn about the animals there are information boards outside all of their exhibits. To make your day at the zoo even more exciting you can watch the animals being fed, or you can visit one of the animal talks.
If you're visiting with children you needn't be worried about your kids getting bored throughout the day. Apart from visiting all of the animal exhibits kids can also play in the Dragon Maze or try out the Tarzan Trail and, during summer, you'll even find face painting.
You can bring your own packed lunch and enjoy it at one of the many picnic tables around the zoo, or you can stop for lunch at Caf Lemur, which serves a range of delicious hot and cold meals. For snacks try Tippy's Snack Bar or, for a treat, buy an ice cream from one of the ice cream vans. You can buy gifts and souvenirs of your visit at the Gift Shop, including soft toys, clothing, jewellery and more.
The Blue Reef Aquarium
Touted as the 'undersea safari', the Blue Reef Aquarium, makes for a super day out. There are over 40 habitats and literally hundreds of species at the aquarium, including some of the most dangerous aquatic animals like sharks and jellyfish.
The best attraction at Newquay's Blue Reef Aquarium is definitely the underwater tunnel, which allows you to see the animals from all angles. The tunnel goes straight through the giant ocean tank where you'll find formidable reef sharks, huge humphead wrasse and gigantic shoals of coral reef fish.
The Blue Reef Aquarium is famous for breeding endangered species, especially sea turtles and seahorses. You can learn all about the work that goes into these projects by talking to any of the aquarists working at the exhibits.
There are loads of talks held throughout the day at the Blue Reef Aquarium, so you can find out about the animals from the experts. If you visit during feeding time you can watch the various aquatic animals enjoying their meals.
Beaches near Newquay Town Centre
The most well known of Newquay's beaches is Fistral Beach, a hugely popular surfing spot less than a mile from Newquay Town Centre. This 750 metre long beach is suitable for families as well as surfers and you can have loads of fun relaxing in the sun, building sandcastles with your kids and swimming in the sea. Fistral Beach has hosted quite a few surfing competitions throughout the years and draws thousands of tourists all summer long.
Other beaches on the Newquay Coast include Towan Beach, Great Western Beach, Tolcarne Beach and Lusty Glaze, all of which are located on the same stretch of coastline. Thanks to the west-facing location of these beaches they experience some amazing swells that surfers love.
If you want to learn how to surf there are a number of surfing schools for you to choose from in Newquay. For example, The Rip Curl ESF Surf School has lessons in surfing, bodyboarding and coasteering for beginners and those that just need a quick refresher course. Their prices are very competitive, and they pride themselves on their great success rate.
