Treyarnon Rock Pool is an absolute beauty with clear turquoise water and enough room for a proper swim. It’s also very easy to reach, so it’s no surprise that it’s a popular spot.
However, don’t let this put you off if you’re visiting in the warmer months, come early or late in the day and you can still have a quiet swim. You may even luck out and get it all to yourself.
There are also two smaller mermaid pools right beside Treyarnon, so you can take your pick between a lazy float and a long leisurely swim. Here’s everything you need to know to plan your visit.
The quickest walk to Treyarnon Rock Pool
The stats
Distance: 410m each way
Elevation gain: 10m
Difficulty: Easy, but involves a small rock scramble
Trailhead: Treyarnon Bay Car Park
A note on the tide and swell
For the easiest and safest access to the rockpool, you want to visit within a couple of hours either side of low tide and when the swell is slight.
This will allow you to walk along the sand all the way to the rocks you need to climb up to get into the pool. You could wade across a little outside of this time, but it’s certainly easiest around low tide.
A slight swell is ideal for minimising the chance of waves crashing into the pool, although you do have some shelter from the surrounding rock walls.
The walk
There’s just 410m between the car park and the rockpool, but when approaching from the beach you won’t be able to see it until you’re right on top of it.
From the car park follow the paved path downhill for 75m to the beach, Treyarnon Bay. You’ll now cross the beach, keeping to the right side.
You’ll pass some tiny little kiddy-sized caves before you reach the end of the sand. Just before you do, you’ll see a small but stunning emerald rockpool which you can walk into straight off the sand.
Despite appearances the water is deep and you can have a little swim or float here before heading onto the main rockpool, which is just 10m away.
The final 10m to the pool requires scrambling up the rocks. It’s an easy scramble, though you should take care on the damp rock - I think the photo below makes it look steeper and more challenging than it really is!
There are many wide ledges for your feet and halfway up you’ll see a tiny little mermaid pool. The water is turquoise and a small waterfall cascades into the pool, it’s utterly gorgeous.
It’s basically standing room only, but it’s a fun little plunge pool.
Heading up the final rock slab will bring you to the rocky edge of Treyarnon Pool. There’s plenty of room surrounding the pool on all sides where you can leave your things when you’re having a swim.
Swimming at Treyarnon Rock Pool
Swimming at Treyarnon Rock Pool is a dream. Whilst there are a few rocks in the pool, there’s a huge amount of unobstructed deep water to swim in and it has a spectacular turquoise hue even in the very late afternoon (which is when we visited).
I had seen photos of the pool but I was still taken aback by its size and beauty in real life, pictures really don’t do it justice!
At low tide and swell it feels very safe as you’re nicely cut off from the sea, yet you can still hear the rolling waves, which makes for the perfect soundtrack to your swim.
It’s beauty and ease of access does mean it’s a popular spot. We visited around 6pm in June and there were still a handful of people around.
However, the pool is big enough that there is plenty of room to swim when there are a few people around, though I wouldn’t visit in the middle of the day on a hot weekend when it would likely be very crowded.
Entering the water is quite easy as you can step off the rocks and there are good natural foot placements in the side of the pool allowing tiered access down into the deeper water. And once you’re away from the sides the water is very deep, well over head height, which is perfect for swimming.
As mentioned there are one or two rocky patches in the pool, so go carefully when swimming - though the clarity means you can generally spot them.
And if you thought it couldn’t sound any better, then know that the water is also relatively warm in summer, at least when compared to the sea! All in all, it’s a stunning spot for a dip and it’s hard to believe it’s so easy to access.
Keep them wild
Please remember to take all rubbish with you and keep these places wild and pristine - as with anywhere in the outdoors. It’s important to leave them exactly as you found them so they will remain beautiful for generations to come.
Litter tends to breed litter, so if you do spot any and are able to pick it up and dispose of it outside the area, it will go a long way to keeping the area clean.
Parking for the Treyarnon Rock Pool
The closest car park for the Treyarnon Rock Pool is the Treyarnon Bay Car Park, close to Padstow, postcode PL28 8JR, you can find it here on Google maps. It’s beside the YHA. The current charges for the car park between March and October are:
1 hour - £1
2 hours - £2.50
3 hours - £3.50
All day - £5
After 6pm - £1
November to February - £1 all day
There are toilets a minute’s walk away, though they looked to be coin operated and were closed on our visit.
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