This small seaside town has had to install a park and ride due to the sheer number of visitors, and its narrow, winding streets are a difficult place to find a parking spot in the summer holidays
Tourists flock to this seaside town year round but the school holidays see it packed(Image: Getty Images)
If you’ve ever taken the kids to a seaside town or popular attraction during the six week summer holidays, you’ll know the pain of driving around in circles looking for a spot.
A lot of tourist hotspots, such as beach towns, have old, narrow roads, and often, car parking is expensive and a long walk away from any attractions. It’s one of the most annoying things about trying to enjoy a day out in the summer.
A new study, which looked at parking across the UK’s seaside towns and tourist hotspots during the summer break claims it has found the worst place to find a parking space during this time.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the worst place to park is in Cornwall, which, as a county, welcomes around four million overnight visitors and 14 million day trippers a year. The pretty fishing town of St Ives took the top spot, with a huge number of visitors heading to its beach or art galleries finding it tough to grab a parking spot.
The study, carried out by Indigo Car Hire, looked at average parking costs, the number of parking spots per 1,000 visitors, and the number of car parks within a mile of the town centre. It also looked at the number of Google reviews that mentioned tourists facing parking problems.
These factors were then scored out of 100, with St Ives easily topping the list with 92 out of 100. A recent TripAdvisor review said: “Felt we should visit as we’re in Cornwall for a week, but having failed to find any parking anywhere we were glad to get out.”
Another claimed: “We had to re-attempt visiting St Ives due to a lack of parking. In order to park we had to come between 8am-9am, just FYI. Locals are very friendly and try to help.” While one said it was a “Very nice place with lots of restaurants and shops, but totally crowded with tourists in July. You can hardly find a parking space which are very expensive!”
But the small town is tackling its parking issues. Visit St Ives has tips on where to park when visiting, and recommends either using a park and ride car park just outside the town, or parking at nearby St Erth station and taking the St Ives Bay Line, a 15-minute train ride that gives you incredible coastal views as you arrive at the town.
St Ives wasn’t the only Cornish spot to make the list. Padstow came in fourth, while Newquay came in tenth. In second place the seaside town of Whitby in North Yorkshire scored 89 out of 100 for poor parking, with some visitors parking at the neighbouring village of Sandsend and braving the 45-minute walk into town.
A recent review said: “We saw car parks, but they were totally full no matter what time of day it was, same with the on-street parking near the front.” While another claimed there was “plenty of parking. However very expensive. £2.60 for an hour.”
Cherie Carter, managing director at Indigo Car Hire, said: “According to an RAC survey earlier this year, a third of drivers struggle with parking anxiety. The aim from this study is not to discourage drivers from visiting hotspots like St Ives or Whitby, but to help travellers enjoy their summer break with fewer unexpected frustrations when they arrive.”
Top 10 worst places for parking in the six-week holidays
- St Ives, Cornwall – 92/100
- Whitby, North Yorkshire – 89/100
- Tenby, Wales – 87/100
- Padstow, Cornwall – 85/100
- Salcombe, Devon – 82/100
- Southwold, Suffolk – 80/100
- Bournemouth, Dorset – 79/100
- Brighton, East Sussex – 77/100
- Robin Hood’s Bay, North Yorkshire – 76/100
- Newquay, Cornwall – 75/100
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