By rail
St Austell station: beaches and places nearby
Photograph to come St Austell station.
St Austell station (SAU) is on the Cornish Main Line. This page lists the beaches and National Trust and English Heritage places nearest the station, with straight-line distances, council dog rules and water quality, so you can plan a day out without a car.
- Station code
- SAU
- Line
- Cornish Main Line
- Times, tickets and facilities
- National Rail page for St Austell
- Nearest beach in our guide
- Duporth (2.4 km (1.5 miles))
- Town guide
- St Austell (440 m (0.3 miles))
Before you travel
Timetables, step-free access, ticket machines and parking at the station change, and some small stations are request stops. We do not copy them here: check the National Rail page for St Austell or the National Rail journey planner before you go.
Beaches near St Austell station
Beaches in our guide within 5 km of the station, nearest first. Straight-line distance, our own calculation from OpenStreetMap station locations (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL). It is not a walking or road route.
| Beach | Distance (straight line) | Council dog rule | Water quality 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duporth | 2.4 km (1.5 miles) | Not on the council restriction list | Excellent |
| Porthpean | 2.4 km (1.5 miles) | No dogs 10am–6pm, 1 July – 31 August | Excellent |
| Charlestown | 2.6 km (1.6 miles) | Not on the council restriction list | Excellent |
| Crinnis Beach | 4.0 km (2.5 miles) | Not on the council restriction list | Excellent |
| Shorthorn Beach | 4.7 km (2.9 miles) | Not on the council restriction list | Excellent |
Nearest National Trust and English Heritage places
None of the places in our guide are within 10 km. These are the nearest.
- St Catherine’s Castle (English Heritage): 10.4 km (6.4 miles)
- Restormel Castle (English Heritage): 12.4 km (7.7 miles)
Council car parks near the station
Cornwall Council car parks within 1 km (straight line). Station car parks run by the rail operator are not included: see the National Rail page for St Austell.
| Council car park | Postcode | Distance (straight line) | Spaces | Open | Council page updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North Street, St Austell | PL25 5QD | 250 m (0.2 miles) | 40 | 24 hours | 22 July 2026 |
| Polkyth, St Austell | PL25 4DB | 390 m (0.2 miles) | 241 | 24 hours | 22 July 2026 |
On the line
Cornish Main Line
The main line runs from Penzance across Cornwall and over the Tamar into Devon at Plymouth. Stations in Cornwall, in order:
- Saltash
- St Germans
- Menheniot
- Liskeard
- Bodmin Parkway
- Lostwithiel
- Par
- St Austell (this station)
- Truro
- Redruth
- Camborne
- Hayle
- St Erth
- Penzance
For beaches, parking and events around St Austell, see our town guide.
Map
See all railway stations in Cornwall or Cornwall month by month for daylight and school holidays.
Sources and checks
- OpenStreetMap: St Austell station – ODbL; location and station code
- Wikipedia: Cornish Main Line – CC BY-SA; stations on the line, checked 1 November 2026
- National Rail: St Austell – linked for times and facilities
- Cornwall Council: dogs on beaches – last updated 23 October 2026
- Environment Agency bathing water data – Open Government Licence v3.0
- Cornwall Council car parks – pages checked 1 November 2026
Last checked: . Published by Oaknest Media. How we check: editorial policy.