Great Western Coffee Shop

In answer to an enquiry elsewhere ... for rail accessible beaches in the South West or Wales.   I nominate (depending on what you're looking for) and from personal experience these places - each with a picture of the beach, the town, and a map

Hayle

Lovely Sandy Beaches start within about half a mile of the station (walk past the harbour) and stretch through various "Towans" for miles.  As well as walking the beaches, you can walk in the dunes small cliffs along in front of various forms of self catering, and eat at the Bluff Inn; there's also a chippy and a conveneince store.  The Bluff Inn is a little pricey compared to my local, as is the chippy - probably due to their short high season.

The dogs loved it, the wife was slighly concerned at the relatively poor internet access at the place we stayed.

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Barmouth

A Victorian town perched between hills and the beach.  Much more build up that Hayle - funfair and kiss me quick hats and a real High Street. Lovely Harbour.  Huge Sandy beach.   But get out of the town and it's a wonderful walk over the Barmouth (Rail) bridge to Morfa Mawddach and indeed you can carry on to Fairbourne and then the miniature railway back to Barmouth point and the ferry ober the Estuary.

Not stayed in Barmouth for a very long time indeed - but have visited several times in recent years.

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Also on the same line - Aberdovey / Penhelig.   Much less developed / Sandhills leading to a golf course but again miles of sands.   On my "to go and stay sometime" list.   And on the Cambrian line there are lots of other stations, some of which (no doubt) have great beaches.

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Weymouth

A town on the seaside with a lovely traditional beach and huge amounts to do around the town and nearby - thorougly recommended.  As also in a similar vein is Llandudno.

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Dawlish must be the most accessible beach in the South West and Wales, you could, if daring enough, jump from the platform onto it

If it's a Sunday and the beach is nominally accessible by GWR services, I'd suggest driving instead!

Ye of little faith!   I was speaking with the conductor of the 09:12 Westbury to Weymouth this morning and that was running.   Mind you, we were busy sorting out all the passengers off the cancelled 08:28 to Swindon and the 08:30 to Warminster ("overrunning engineering works in the Westbury area" with the trains sitting in the sidings fully staffed and waiting for the shunt signal to clear until it was too late to run them).

Two obvious candidates missing from the list - Exmouth and Newquay. Weymouth would get my vote though as a better all round short trip destination

...and St.Ives if you leave the town centre (and the tourists behind) :D

Wot, no entry for dear old Port Zed ? You might get half a sandcastle out of a bucket if you really REALLY try ! ;D You can reach it along rusty rails but no trains as yet !

Also missed out Severn Beach ...

Severn Beach does have its own John Betjeman....

The Severn Beach Line

How hard its band of fans have fought
To keep the line to Severn Beach
That runs from Bristol Temple Meads.
How doggedly did they beseech
The councillors and fat controllers,
The bureaucrats and city rollers

That trains should never cease to serve
The stations on this unique line
That runs through cuttings deep and long
Past houses mean and mansions fine
That soars on arches over town
And plunges dark 'neath Clifton Down

That carries hundreds ev'ry day
To work, to school, to see the sights
Young mothers with their shopping bags
Who trail their kids like satellites
Publishers and old professors
Filing clerks and men's hairdressers

Commuters on the way to Bath,
Cyclists starting their day's outing,
Texting girls and blazered pupils,
Tilers with a tub of grouting
All use this rattling diesel train
That shuttles up and down again

Through Lawrence Hill on busy lines
Then branching off on single track
Past builders' yards and junior schools
Allotments green and terrace backs
Stapleton Road, Montpelier
Redland and its station atelier

Where craftsmen work with cloth and wood
Restoring chesterfields and chairs
In the waiting room and office
Where once the porter had his lair
All station buildings have been changed
Their purposes quite rearranged

On to Clifton and the tunnel
One mile through Bristol's rock and clay
Emerging blinking by the Avon
This route now travelled ev'ry day
Close by Sea Mills it spans the stream
Once port for a Roman quinquereme

Next stop is "Shire' ", then Avonmouth
A faded, sometimes lonely place
Where the yellow smoke from smelters
No longer leaves its grimy trace
Where turbines turn slow in the breeze
And the cars unshipped are Japanese

St. Andrews Road is optional
O'er-topped by crumbling gaunt decay
Who would ask the train to stop here
Amongst this dank, concrete array?
Let's hurry to the end of the line
And the terminus, which once stood fine.

Severn Beach, Bristol's own Blackpool,
That's what they said in days gone by,
When the trippers came from Birmingham
To the Blue Lagoon 'neath open sky
Where bathing beauties smiled and twirled
In a golden age and a different world

written by David C Johnson © November 2009

I do admire the rhyming of 'atelier' with 'Montpelier' Almost as good as Adge Cutlers rhyming of 'surprises' with 'Devizes'  ;D

A couple of these have been suggested as I was preparing this post

Teignmouth

A couple of beaches either side of the pier - both a short walk through the town from the railway station.  One beach is open to dogs all year round.   There is also the famous walk along the seawall.  Slightly further on foot in the opposite direction is the "back beach" and the passenger ferry to Shaldon.

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Dawlish

Just along the coast from Teignmouth.  The station is, famously, built over the beach.   As well as the seafront there is also a pleasant walk to be had along the two main streets with the river and black swans to be enjoyed.

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Newquay

Although known for its surfers and nightlife, Newquay has something to offer for all ages.  Again a number of the beaches are a short walk from the railway station - including Tolcarne beach seen here.

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St Ives

I have to agree St Ives can be a little crowded in high summer.   It can be busy at other times too - the photograph below is from February this year.  However there is plenty of beach and a wide range of eating establishments around the harbour.  Just a word of warning if you like to pay for things in cash.  Following a number of bank closures there are fewer cash machines and on busy weekends those that remain tend to run out!

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(With thanks to Graham for the maps)

Already mapped. Fistral and Towan beaches, Newquay. Both dog friendly year round.

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Tenby -  South Beach

Tenby - North Beach (tide out!)

Llantwit Major, West of Cardiff. Beach is about a mile walk from the station but I remember it as being well worth the legwork. Planning on a day trip by train there again soon so hope my memories won't be dashed.

Minehead might be worth considering ?
Although not on the national rail network, the beach is adjacent to the terminus of the West Somerset Railway.

Certainly well worth considering when a through train is run from the national network and onto the WSR.

Some would consider Minehead to be a bit of a "tourist trap" it contains many attractions for the young, the Butlins holiday camp offers day passes which children enjoy.

Indeed - as seen a week ago today.

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Although not strictly allowed in this thread, in the absence of trains on the West Somerset there is the 28 bus from Taunton which departs a few steps away from the main westbound platform and has a stop by the beach in Minehead.

Hi,

Barry Island, made famous recently with some TV shows.

https://goo.gl/images/4bZNi9

Basset

To context of the original enquiry (but I may not have conveyed it too well) was for somewhere that's reachable on more or less any day / date by train all the way ... not looking for special days only, nor for trips that involve a middle section of the journey on a bus.

But I agree that Minehead is a nice destination and you can arrive in the town on a train most days - just not off the national network!

It is often not know to people in the Bristol area, especially the younger ones, that Severn Beach was once a thriving, purpose built holiday destination. It's heydays were in the first half of the 20th century with the town offering open air lido, fun fair, parks, promenades and all the other aspects of an aspiring coastal resort. It's decline really commenced in the 1950 through to 1960s but some aspects of it's former self struggled through to the early 1970s. Indeed, a former girlfriend of mine remembered the Blue Lagoon lido from her childhood in the 1960s and only a few years back we took the train to The Beach to try and work out where everything was.
For anyone thinking I've confused today with April 1st, there are pictures of old Severn Beach viewable online.
That all said, while recommending SB these days for an interesting afternoon excursion, I would not suggest you pack a bucket and spade.

Edit: Found a pic online, see below.

With an easterly wind, the beach is perfectly capable of jumping onto the platform, so no need for you to jump!  ;D