Category: Team news

Arts on the beach at Watergate Bay

Head to Watergate Bay on the 9th and 10th September for a free family weekend of theatre, aerial performance, dance, music and craft workshops inspired by the ocean. Arts on the Beach 2023 is a celebration of creativity, community, imagination and ocean culture, set against the mesmerising backdrop of Watergate Bay.

Discover roaming sea giants and sailors’ love songs, mermaid’s tales and shoreside silent discos. This event, new to Watergate Bay for 2023, is brought to you by the team behind Polo on the Beach
and the Watergate Bay events calendar.

Book a retreat in Watergate Bay to experience the weekend in full.

The programme

Mirroring the many moods of the ocean, September’s line up will ebb and flow against its dramatic backdrop – from a lively programme of dance troupes, aerial performance, live music and interactive theatre, to getting hands-on with bubble bikes, lantern and willow building, sea-themed arts and crafts, and dancing workshops. Expect large-scale puppetry from Autin Dance Theatre, dance and parkour from Prodigal UPG, roaming ‘land based synchronised swimming’ from Cscape’s Bathing Belles, aerial shows, stilt walking captains and inspired choreography born from the sea. Workshop sessions will see beach-goers making a giant willow sea turtle with City of Lights, creating mermaid tails with Beach Guardian, pedal-powering bubble bikes and getting stuck into sea crafts with Blystra Arts. As the evenings draw in, the beach will light up with silent disco headphones on Saturday and the Old Time Sailors’ stirring sea shanties will echo from the cliffs on Sunday. The programme is brimming with imaginative performances and runs throughout the day from 11am on Saturday – then all over again on Sunday.

It’s set to be a lively, fun-filled and exciting weekend. Will Ashworth, Watergate Bay Hotel founder and executive director, said about the event:

“We’ve always loved creating inclusive events on the beach for our wider community, as well as visitors. Thanks to additional support from Visit Cornwall, being able to provide this exciting new event for people to come along to for free means everyone can be part of something special.”

Line up

Saturday 9 & Sunday 10 September
From 11am

Performances

• Out of the Deep Blue by Johnny Autin Dance Compan –
puppetry/dance
• On the Strandline by Prodigal UPG – dance/parkour
• Sea Dogs by Prodigal UPG emerging ensemble – dance
• Hall for Cornwall Youth Dance Company present DAWN choreography by Rob Mennear
• Bathing Belles by Cscape – dance/performance
• Tipping Point by Off the Wall – aerial show – Saturday only
• Captain O’Goldie/ Detrius of the Deep by Hotch Potch Theatre –
roaming on stilts
Participation workshops
• City of Lights – two-day build of a willow sea turtle and end
performance
• Blystra Arts – two days craft tent with four artists offering sea/
eco-friendly activities and pedal powered bubble bikes
• Beach Guardian – beach clean and mermaid tail workshops
• Watergate Bay Kids’ Zone Beach School

Music

Saturday 9 September, 5-7pm – Silent Disco
Grab an LED headset and be part of one of the UK’s largest silent
discos at this unique dancing venue right on the beach.
Sunday 10 September, 5-8pm – Old Time Sailors
A merry band of musical marauders, ready to lure audiences back
in time on an immersive journey of dance, song and 19th-century
knees-up shenanigans. 17 musicians playing over 30 songs, will be
roaming the tide line.

Find out more about the event here. We’ll see you on the beach!

Fancy a long weekend packed with oceanside entertainment and creativity? Book a self-catered retreat by the two miles of beach and enjoy two days of sea-themed, sustainably minded festivities.

Vote for Beach Retreats in the 2023 British Travel Awards

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VOTE IN THE BRITISH TRAVEL AWARDS

Time flies and it doesn’t feel like 2 minutes since we won Gold at the British Travel Awards at Battersea, London in November 2022.

We won with your help and vote for which we are so grateful. And now we want to retain the accolade in the ‘Best Company for UK Holiday Home Rentals’ category as voting opens for the 2023 awards.

Everyone who votes will be entered into a prize draw for some amazing holidays:

  • A £5,000 Greek island getaway.
  • A £4,000 European villa holiday.
  • A cruise around the fjords of Norway.
  • A European river cruise.
  • 8 days at Lake Gard in Italy.
  • and many more…

Find out more

Vote now

We love and live by the coast; beach life and creating special memories for all of our guests is our driving force.

For you time on a special beach means many different things; adrenaline pumping surf sessions, wild swimming, long walks surrounded by the senses, family time exploring rockpools, or cocktails in a beach bar as the sun sets.

And these uncertain times, downtime surrounded by rolling surf, towering cliffs, or picture postcard bays takes on extra meaning.

We will always look after you before during and after your time with us. Your support gives us the motivation and passion to keep doing what we do, providing unforgettable beach holidays and sharing our love for the sea.

Please give us a few seconds of your time and vote for Beach Retreats as Best Company for UK Holiday Home Rentals.

Find out more

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We’re proud to be sponsors of The Wave Project

We’re proud to announce that we’ve recently become a sponsor of The Wave Project, a nationally-reaching surf therapy charity which was founded in Cornwall.

Our monthly donation will support projects in the South West, and allow the team to continuously respond to situations quickly and efficiently, ensuring that young people have help and support when they need it most.

This can include anything from paying for transport to and from the sessions, funding one to one adaptive surfing lessons, and waiving the Surf Therapy referral fee for young people who might otherwise fall through the gaps. Read more about the fantastic work The Wave Project does below.

About The Wave Project

With projects across Cornwall, but also extending across the UK, The Wave Project is a lifeline to young people across the country.

Supporting children and young people who experience a range of physical and mental health issues, social deprivation, or social isolation, the Wave Project facilitates a range of activities, including year-long surf therapy courses which aim to help participants build self-esteem, develop resilience, and make friends.

A Surf Club is in place for those who have participated in the Surf Therapy courses, along with a Beach Therapy Programme which blends surf therapy and education to help pupils who have found engaging in school life a challenge to get more inspired and motivated to learn.

Firm believers that surfing is for everyone, the Wave Project has also acquired the necessary skills, training and specialist equipment to deliver safe and enjoyable surf lessons for those with physical disabilities from its Adaptive Surfing Hub in Croyde, North Devon. Later this summer, they will also start offering adaptive surf sessions from Watergate Bay in Cornwall.

The nationally award-winning surf therapy courses are free of charge for participants and their families. This means that the charity wholly relies on donations from its supporters to fund the activities, which are run by a team of dedicated volunteers.

Newquay project co-ordinator Fred Andrews said: “­­­We’re immensely grateful to supporters like Beach Retreats for their donations, which allow us to run the activities our communities across the UK have become so reliant on over the last ten years.”

Watch a video on the brilliant work The Wave Project is doing to support children and young people below.

Why we’re supporting The Wave Project

With over 240 properties on Cornwall’s coast, the beach is in our DNA, so it feels only natural that we support a longstanding Cornwall-founded charity like The Wave Project, helping them to deliver lifechanging therapy and courses to young people in need.

Andy, our MD said: “We’re proud of our coastal heritage and want to give back to the community, supporting young people’s physical and mental health, and driving awareness of water safety.

“We’re very excited to see how this partnership unfolds, and we can’t wait for our teams to get stuck into volunteering for this fantastic charity.”

For more information about the work the Wave Project is doing across Cornwall and the UK, visit their website.