Newquay or Perranporth
 

I've searched the forums and there are small threads on both of these airports, however slightly outdated.

I'd like to fly down to Newquay at some point during July or August, just to spend a day on the beach with the family. Does anyone have any recent GA experience at either Newquay or Perranporth?

I've only heard good comments about how accommodating Perranporth is, and a few negatives about the state of GA at Newquay. Do you still need handling there?

I don't require any hangarage or overnight parking, just a reasonable landing fee, and close access (taxi trip) to a beach! (PA28 by the way).

Cheers

There is no contest, go to Perranporth.

I've been to Perranporth and there are beaches within walking distance of the airfield, if your kids aren't too little you can walk along the coast to the town and beach.

If you need transport I suspect the taxi fare from Perranporth will balance out the landing fees at Newquay.

If it's a beach day you won't be needing the ILS ;-)

I was in the same predicament as you deciding between Newquay or Perranporth.

With Newquay boasting about its "GA" apron and the fact its opening weekend the landing fee was £15 with two hours parking i was optimistic, but rang to get a price and its was £35 ish. If you wanted fuel you had to pay an extra handling fee.

So went to Perranporth nice airfield, AG service was great £15 landing fee for a SR20 and got a taxi to St Agnes for some lunch what more could you want? :ok:

newquay about 6 weeks ago - very easy - park north side, mandatory handling but thats easy - they come and meet you - taxi to jamie olivers "15" at watergate bay (?) about £4 - loads of beach, bit of a dated hotel, C182 - paid parking /landing fee on return for the day about £20 all in
edited to say - dont forget your high vis

I flew to Newquay a couple of weeks ago.

Landing fee was £19 for a PA28, although this may have been cheaper than normal as it was their 'GA Weekend'. Handling is no longer mandatory below 3 tonnes MTOW as per their AIP entry. Nonetheless, the handling agents who took our landing fee were very helpful, offered us a (free) cream tea, and were more than happy for us to use their briefing facilities.

We hired a car from Hertz onsite which cost £40 for the day (prebooked) and allowed us to get around Newquay, Padstow and the area without needing multiple taxis.

All in all we were made to feel very welcome.

Perranporth
 

I learned to fly at Perranporth and live 2 miles from Newquay.

I'd choose Perranporth for most VFR light GA trips in daylight.

Newquay for IFR.

I went to both about a month ago, Newquay were very good and let me fly a couple of practice ILSs, they even switched the runway so I could fly one on both.

Perranporth is also excellent, I parked up there overnight, don't recall the exact price but was very reasonable. The town itself is very pleasant and the beach is great, you can walk into town or get a taxi if you have luggage.

Out of the two I’d opt for Perranporth but had a very good experience at both.

If you have the time a trip over to the Scilly Isles is also well worth it.

Newquay Landing fee for PA28 was forty-odd quid early June. Declined fuel uplift because I understood that would trigger a handling charge. Weston FBO very friendly but IMHO Perranporth better placed and better value for a seaside family leisure trip, with nice cliff-top walks.

All the above, but for anyone going to Padstein (I know you are not, but others thread readers might) there is not much in it if you pay for a taxi for the longer drive from Perranporth. Also for longer stays (or even a day) car rental is very easy from Newquay, although I guess they might be persuaded to bring a car over to Perranporth - never tried.

Fuji, if going to 'Padstein' VFR, another - and much closer - option is Roserrow for those that can cope with 600m of grass. The landing fee is a fairly steep £20, for what it is, though.

A very good thought - Roserrow does indeed look really nice.

Unfortunately it is a little short for my mode of transport these days (which is also not that keen on grass) but it is indeed a very good suggestion.

Newquay or Perranporth
 

Exeter based, my travels ofetn take me down into Cornwall. Off the two i much prefer to go into Perranporth, it's low key, friendly and offers cheap landing fees. En-route radar service from Newquay is always very professional, friendly and PPL helpful but landing fees etc considerably higher than Perranporth.

Cheers for all the great answers folks. Much appreciated. I'll probably end up going into Perranporth, and take a nice cliff walk.

Thanks Again

The Coastal Path to Perranporth town from the airfield is lovely - stunning views. Be aware though, that the chaps in the Tower will suggest that it is "about a forty minute walk". Given that my pedometer made it 4.1 miles from the Tower to the centre of Perranporth, you'd need to be walking at some pace to manage that in forty minutes! It is definitely worth the effort and you can get a taxi back to the airfield from the rank in the centre of town if you are tight for time or have had enough exercise.

http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n...orth150510.jpg

Perranporth - very scenic on a sunny day

Photos: - Aircraft Pictures | Airliners.net

It's 1.8 mi along the B3285, according to Google Maps. It shouldn't be that longer along the coastal path (shame that Google does not consider it a walkable way).

In good weather, Perranporth is likely to win on a day trip in good weather, because Newquay is hard to get in or out of in less than about an hour, due to formalities.

The latter has an ILS etc but you won't be on the beach if you needed an ILS to get there :)

Watch out for fog, which can form unexpectedly.

To be fair it has all changed now.

There is a dedicated GA parking area - a couple of hundred metres to the south of the main apron. There is a dedicated GA executive terminal - a portacabin (or is it two) but with a rather nice interior and there is even a dedicated GA bus.

10 minutes last time from arrival to taxi, so things have changed. Fuel is still a little slow as they use a bowser, but then that always slows things down where ever you are.

I think it is called the cornish wash. Arrived there once with the drizzle on the deck (was it 200 feet, hmm not a lot more), an hour later the sun was out and the sky blue.

Perranporth has a smashing little campsite right on the perimeter fence, if that is of interest. The cliff walk into town for a day out is recommended and, after a hearty dinner - possibly involving beer if you're camping - a taxy back isn't too painful.

Jim