Penwick Cottage

A renovated three-bedroom cottage in Bude sleeping six, set 0.8 miles from Summerleaze Beach and its tidal sea pool. The bedroom mix - one king, one double, and a bunk room that works for adults - covers a small family, two couples, or three friends.

Inside, an open-plan kitchen and dining area seats six, and the lounge has a gas-fired stove for off-season stays. One bathroom serves the cottage. The practical features earn this place its repeat bookings: an outdoor shower at the back for sandy returns, an enclosed rear garden with a BBQ, and a two-car driveway - all things in short supply in central Bude. Two dogs welcome.

Bude is a working surf town with three beaches walkable from the centre. Summerleaze (family beach with the sea pool carved into the rocks) is a 15-minute walk; Crooklets (the surf beach) is 1.2 miles; Northcott Mouth, where the rusted ribs of the SS Belem appear at low tide, is 1.9 miles. The 19th-century Bude Canal runs inland from the harbour for flat-water kayaking, and the town has a 9-hole golf course plus the Castle Heritage Centre. Stratton, the older market town adjoining Bude, is a 10-minute walk for the 16th-century Tree Inn.

Best for dog-owning families and groups who want a base they can walk from to the beach and the pub. Less good for couples after a quiet retreat - this is a workaday family cottage in a residential street, not a romantic one.