Beach Guide: Wales

Little Haven is a picturesque old fishing village with steep streets that descend to a stony beach. The beach itself is popular with swimmers and divers in the summer months, but not really suitable for 'forces-of-nature' sports. However, at low tide there is a pleasant walk along the beach to Broad Haven with numerous caves and rockpools to explore. Small campsites and guest houses are plentiful in this area and Little Haven itself has its own restaurant and pub serving bar meals. To find Little Haven follow the coast road south from Broad Haven.

Broad Haven is a popular seaside resort, with plenty of pubs, campsites and a wide range of accomodation. Broad Havens westerly facing sandy beach offers excellent conditions for kite-surfing, kite-buggying, windsurfing and surfing. For surfing, Broadhaven can offer some protection from SW winds and is usually about half the size and cleaner than Newgale just up the coast. Broad Haven is one of the most popular windsurfing beaches in this area and home to Haven Sports watersports shop. The best wind diretions are SW to WSW when the wave-sailing is good and NW for starboard tack sailing. Southerly winds tend to be gusty but can be OK. Offshore winds (NE-SE) can offer some good flat water sailing conditions. There is a car park at the southern end of the beach opposite Haven Sports and a larger car park a small distance from the beach at the North End of the bay.
To find Broad Haven follow the B4341 from Haverfordwest.

Druidstone Haven is a well hidden sandy beach found by following the small paths from the coastal road between Nolton Haven and Broad Haven. Access is not easy, making it unsuitable for windsurfing, but for surfers seeking some solitude this could be a good place to head as it receives some good waves. Conditions are similar to those at Newgale but the high cliffs can provide slightly more protection from the winds and the waves are generally a little smaller. There are no amenities on the beach, but camping can be found just inland in the hamlet of Druidstone and the Druidstone Hotel has a popular bar.

The sheltered shingle cove of Nolton Haven is unsuitable for 'forces-of-nature' sports, but as with all the beaches in this area offers a good starting point for some cliff top walks along parts of the Pembrokeshire coastal path. Accomodation is available in Nolton Haven itself and the Marineers Arms is a nice pub that serves meals. (Its a good pub to watch the Eurovison song contest in too!!).
Nolton Haven can be found on the coast road between Newgale and Broad Haven, or by following the signs from the A487.

The long sandy, west-facing beach of Newgale is one of the most popular for surfers in the area. It gets the most swell and is usually one of the biggest waves around, but it is badly affected by SW winds. When Newgale is blown out or too big, surfers are better off heading south to Druidstone or Broad Haven.
The beach is also one of the best around for windsurfing although on big days it is only recommended for advanced sailors. Best wind directions for windsurfing are southerly and SE which produce cross or cross-offshore winds and can be associated with big clean swells. Northerly winds can be good too with often flat water conditions although Northerlies can again coincide with big swells to produce some good wave riding conditions. Most tides are OK but big high tides result in a nasty shorebreak onto the pebble bank that will make mincemeat of you and your kit.
At low tide the wide expanse of hard packed sand provides perfect conditions for kite-buggying. (Although, I have heard reports of excessive eroison of sand from the beach recently and the subsequent exposure of pebble and rock banks which break the stretch of sand up and provide less than ideal conditions for buggying)
To find Newgale follow the A487 from Haverfordwest. There are plenty of Car Parks along the beach, the best (and free one) is to be found just off the little road that leads to Nolton Haven above the toilet block. The petrol station is home to the Newgale Surf shop and there are pubs and shops and plenty of caravan accomodation available.

Solva is a busy little village in the summer, with plenty of cafes, restaurants, pubs and gift shops. It doesn't have a particularly good beach but does have a very picturesque little harbour from where a pleasant afternoon watching the small boats coming and going can be spent.

A nice sandy beach surrounded by cliffs with a huge caravan and camping site above it. This beach can get busy in the summer due to the large caravan site and its proximity to St. Davids. The beach itself is pleasant and can very occasionally have some small surf. Its enclosed nature makes it unsuitable for kiting or windsurfing though. It is however an excellent place for coasteering with plenty of caves and rocky outcrops to explore. The cliffs around Caerfai also provide some good, popular climbing routes.
Limitied parking is available at the top of the path to the beach or within the large caravan park. To find Caerfai beach follow the signs from the National Park Visitor Centre in St. Davids.

A small cove popular with divers and kayakers with lots of climbing routes on the surrounding cliffs. Again, as with all the beaches in this area also a popular place from which to explore parts of the Pembrokeshire Coast Path. There is a car park with an ice-cream van in the summer but very few other amenities. To find Porth Clais follow the small road leading SW from the square in St. Davids.

A very popular and often extremely busy beach. It is an enclosed bay with a sandy beach that can have some really nice waves and tends to pick up quite a bit of surf. The resultant conditions are typical beach break waves which can get pretty big. When it is big there is often a useful rip along the rocks at the northern edge of the beach, when its smaller it is a perfect place for beginners. It does get crowded however and is popular with surf kayakers. Windsurfing here in SW and Southerly winds can be OK too and activities are zoned in the summer to try to avoid conflicts on such a busy beach. There is a large car park right on the beach and in the summer often a long queue to get into it. Accomodation is available in St. Davids and there is a shop, cafe and toilets in the car park.
To find Whitesands bay follow the signs (and everyone else) from St. Davids.

A strange, fairly desolate black sand beach that faces west but is more protected than nearby Whitesands. There is an area to park just above the beach and in contrast to Whitesands the beach is usually uncrowded. The surf here can be good with some especially good lefthand waves breaking over a rocky reef at low tide at the southern edge of the beach.

An impressive sandy beach surrounded by equally impressive cliffs and headlands. When rough, there can be some pretty nasty rips at this beach making it unsuitable for swimming. Part of the beach can get cut off at high tide too, so watch out. To find it, turn off from the Croesgoch-Porthgain road signposted Ynys Barry. Drive through Barry Island Farm, then follow the track to a large car park above the beach. The road through the farm and the track are private property and there may be a charge for using them during the summer. If possible check with the farmer before using the road. (Apparently, my latest information is that the car park and the private track are closed to vehicles at the moment). Steep metal steps lead down to beach. Alternatively, you can park at Abereiddy and take the 1 km walk along the coast path to Traeth Llyfn.

A picturesque cove and fishing village, with a sand and shingle beach. The beach faces North west so is sheltered from south westerly gales. Its primary use is as a harbour for local fishermen. There is a slipway for boats, and Abercastle is particularly popular with divers. Swimming, kayaking and angling are also popular here, but the cove is too small for 'forces-of-nature' sports.
Abercastle is reached from the A487 via Trefin or Mathry. There is very limited parking above the beach.

A little known, but large and impressive bay with a large pebble bank created by a huge storm in 1859. At low tide the beach is sandy and offers good conditions for kiting. Surfing here can also be good and is never crowded, but the strong currents can be hazardous. I have never windsurfed here nor know of people doing so, but I see no reson why it shouldn't be good. Facing west, southerly and northerly winds will be cross-shore and the headlands aren't too high so they shouldn't be too gusty.
The beach of Abermawr is well signposted from the crossroads on the A487 about a mile north east of Mathry. The road is narrow, and parking very limited. There is a short path to the beach from the roadside.

Although the large sheltered harbour of Goodwick looks like an ideal flat water windsurfing location, the high cliffs surrounding it makes it a gusty venue in all but NE winds and not really suited to any kind of 'forces-of-nature' sport.

A small sandy beach with cliffs on either side mean that the west facing Pwllgwaelod is unsuitable for most 'forces-of-nature' sports. The beach does however offer good views across Fishguard Bay to Fishguard Harbour. and a short walk of a kilometre or so takes you across the southern end of Dinas Island to the beach at Cwm-yr-Eglwys. Dinas Island, owned by the National Trust., has a nice circular walk of around 3 miles. The path to Dinas Island is particularly easy and is suitable for wheelchairs.
To find Pwllgwaelod follow the narrow, twisty road from the centre of Dinas Cross on the A487 to Pwllgwaelod. There are two car parks at the beach, one either side of the road.
Toilets and a restaurant can be found just above the beach.

Cwm-yr-Eglwys is a tiny village with a shingle and pebble beach. The cove itself is north-east facing and not really suitable for 'forces-of'nature' sports although complete beginner windsurfers may enjoy its protected nature. Swimming, kayaking and diving are popular pursuits at this beach though.
To find Cwm-yr-Eglwys follow the narrow, twisting road off the A487 just to the east of Dinas Cross. There is a limited parking in a private car park.

This large, picturesque horseshoe shaped bay is generally well protected from the winds and waves that pound much of the Pembrokeshire coastline and is therefore a suitable place for beginners. The waves here are generally small and it is therefore not really a suitable beach for surfing. Windsurfers can however sail at high tide from Parrog beach but the currents from the river can be strong. It can be a good location for more advanced flat-water speed specialists too and for kitesurfers as there is a large amount of flat, shallow water. To find the beach follow the signs from Newport and the A487. Free parking is available close to the beach and the usual seaside town amenities are also available.

A large expanse of golden sand backed by sand dunes and a golf course make this a popular beach. Windsurfing, kitesurfing and surfing are all possible in the waters here but care should be taken of the currents around the mouth of the River Nevern, especially after heavy rains. The NW-facing beach is quite exposed making for ideal windsurfing conditions.
Access is via well signposted minor roads from the A487 to the east of the centre of Newport. There is a large National Park car park above the beach and limited parking on the sand (there is a charge for parking in the summer months). There are toilets, a lifeguard station with inshore rescue boats, manned in summer months and basic lifesaving equipment above the beach at other times of year.

A wide sandy beach at the estuary of the River Teifi. It can get crowded here at times but the windsurfing can be good in NW winds or in Northerly through to SE winds. As with most estuarine locations currents can get strong at mid tide. A good beach for kitesurfing from too. Parking is available next to the beach in the dunes and accomodation is available in Cardigan.
To find it, follow the B4546 from south of the River Teifi in Cardigan. It is also possible to launch from the boat yard in Gwbert on the northern side of the estuary.