Porthcurno
Good to go
No current pollution alerts — always assess conditions yourself.
Checked against the Environment Agency (England) · data last changed 2 months ago.
Sea conditions
Water temperature
16.1°C
Cool — comfortable for a shorter swim
Wave height
1.7 m
Significant wave height offshore; inshore conditions vary.
Tide
Going out
- Low water around UTC
- High water around UTC
Modelled values, not measurements — coastal water often differs from the open-sea model, and tide times are approximate to within about half an hour. Use official tide tables for anything that depends on precise timing.
This spot’s record
Porthcurno is in Cornwall, about 12 km from Penzance. Porthcurno has been rated Excellent in each of the 4 bathing seasons classified by the Environment Agency (England), 2022 through 2025. Across the 12 most recent samples published by the Environment Agency (England), every E. coli count came back at 10 per 100 ml.
Recent sample results
The last 12 bacterial samples published by the Environment Agency (England), most recent on the right. Counts are per 100 ml of water.
Dashed line: 500 E. coli per 100 ml, the Bathing Water Directive guide value for coastal / transitional waters.
| Date | E. coli | Enterococci | Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 22 Sept | 10 | 10 | — |
| 18 Sept | 10 | 10 | — |
| 4 Sept | 10 | 10 | — |
| 27 Aug | 10 | 10 | — |
| 18 Aug | 10 | 10 | — |
| 2 Aug | 10 | 10 | — |
A bathing water's official classification is calculated from percentiles across four bathing seasons, not from any single sample — so one high reading doesn't mean a spot is unsafe, and one low reading doesn't mean it's clean today.
Quality over the last 4 years
- Excellent2022
- Excellent2023
- Excellent2024
- Excellent2025
This water has been rated Excellent in each of the last 4 years.
Facilities & access
- Parking
- YesCar park about 250 m away (OpenStreetMap)
- Toilets
- YesPublic toilets about 200 m away (OpenStreetMap)
Storm overflows nearby
None of the storm overflows within 5 km with an up-to-date reading are discharging. Heavy rain makes combined sewers overflow into rivers and the sea by design, so this changes with the weather.
- Not dischargingabout 0.2 km awayDischarges into ATLANTIC OCEAN, OFF PORTHCURNOLast discharge ended Reported by South West Water
- Not dischargingabout 3.6 km awayDischarges into TREVEDRAN STREAMLast discharge ended Reported by South West Water
These are the water company’s own reports of when an overflow is operating, not a measurement of the water at this spot. A discharge into a river some distance away may never reach here; a quiet list does not mean the water is clean. The swim status above comes from the bathing-water monitoring body and does not use this data.
Official water quality
Classified Excellent in 2025.
Official bathing-water profileCommon questions
- Can you swim at Porthcurno right now?
- Porthcurno is currently marked "Good to go". No current pollution alerts — always assess conditions yourself. This reflects the latest data published by the Environment Agency (England). Conditions change quickly — always assess the water yourself before entering.
- What is the water quality like at Porthcurno?
- the Environment Agency (England) classified Porthcurno as Excellent in 2025. Classifications are a rolling assessment of bacterial samples taken over four bathing seasons, measured against E. coli and intestinal enterococci limits set by the EU Bathing Water Directive.
- Is there a swimming ban or warning at Porthcurno?
- There are no active bathing restrictions published by the Environment Agency (England) for Porthcurno. That is not a guarantee of safety — assess conditions yourself.
- What facilities are there at Porthcurno?
- Porthcurno has toilets, parking. Facility information comes from OpenStreetMap contributors.
This spot is also in
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Nearby swimming spots
See all swimming spots near Penzance — about 12 km away.