Being in the village of Mousehole is like being inside a postcard.
And being inside Beach Retreats’ ‘Chy Lowen’ rental cottage is like being in a glossy interiors magazine.
It’s gorgeous, the building has a simple exterior, but when my family and our travel companions venture inside, there are lots of “oohs” and “aahs.”
As charming as it is, proper exploration is delayed because the perfect harbour of Mousehole beckons.
This historic fishing village lies three miles west of Penzance.
Ted Thornhill checks into Beach Retreats’ ‘Chy Lowen’ self catering cottage in the beautiful fishing area of Mousehole, Cornwall (above)
‘Being inside Chy Lowen is like being in a luxury interiors magazine,’ writes Ted
The rental features a huge kitchen, with an overall “country chic” feel.
We arrived via the wonderful GWR Night Riviera service from London, 300 miles away.
I would travel four times the distance to stay in Mousehole (pronounced ‘Mow-zuhl’, by the way), surely one of the prettiest villages in the West Country.
The harbour dominates the scene, with a massive wall thick enough to stop a runaway freighter and, inside, two attractive sandy beaches on opposite sides.
“Idyllic” only roughly describes it.
We buy a trio of craft beers from a harbourside grocery store and drink them on the beach while the kids hunt for crabs in waters turquoise enough to pass for exotic in the UK.
There is “plenty of room” in the rental for groups to spread out, Ted notes.
The sun is setting behind the rooftops, so we head back to our accommodation (just a two-minute walk from the coast, I time it) and undertake a more thorough inspection of the property.
I would like to point out that a good first impression is guaranteed thanks to a front garden so green and full of flowers and plants that it could be described as an entrance to the Chelsea Flower Show.
Meanwhile, inside, the atmosphere is country-chic and there’s plenty of room for groups to spread out.
The rental includes an Everhot stove, which leaves Ted and his companions a little baffled.
There are three bedrooms equipped with ‘luxury beds’.
Ted says that the rental completely convinces his group
On the ground floor there is a cosy country-style kitchen, complete with a huge island and Everhot oven, a spacious adjacent dining area and, through wooden doors that can be swung wide open, a sitting room with a wood-burning stove and a pair of plush sofas.
There’s also an extremely handy ground floor rainfall shower and laundry area, with direct access to the front of the property, meaning sandy and wet bathers can freshen up and change without dirtying those Instagram-attracting interiors.
Meanwhile, on the upper floor there are three bedrooms equipped with luxurious beds and a beautiful bathroom with sea views.
Ocean views in the rental are available from an upstairs bedroom and bathroom.
Pictured is the property’s bathroom, which Ted describes as “lovely”.
We spend most of our time in the house, in the huge kitchen, drinking wine and cremant and, I confess, trying to figure out how to use the Everhot. We love how fabulously rustic this “always hot” stove is, but its apparent lack of temperature control baffles us.
Apart from that, the house completely won us over.
Like Mousehole, which is so immaculately intact that it feels like you’re in a time capsule.
The next day we strolled up and down its alleys, looking for souvenirs in candy shops, and the girls hunted for crabs while older, braver children jumped from the dock into those almost exotic waters.
For lunch, we ordered premium seafood at Crab Shack, an open-air extension of The Old Coastguard Restaurant with garden seating facing the sea and a sensational sea view.
We drink it all down while devouring heaping plates of crab claws, fries and thick slices of bread, all washed down with top-shelf French and Italian rosé.
Chy Lowen is located just two minutes walk from Mousehole Harbour. Upstairs is the property’s rear garden.
The property has a garden “so green and rich in flowers and plants that it might be described as an entrance to the Chelsea Flower Show”.
Ted writes: ‘Mousehole is so pristinely intact that it feels like being in a time capsule’
Seafood Feast at Ted’s Crab Shack
Kids can stay at the table for a few minutes, as there are a multitude of rock pools below to explore.
In the evening, we had dinner at the most popular restaurant in town. Fore Street 2which is excellent.
The fish stew here is absolutely divine.
In the morning, we prepared ourselves with heavy hearts, our hearts stolen by a wonderful retreat in an incredibly picturesque place.
