Discover the beaches, cliffs and castles of wonderful West Wales with our 5-day Pembrokeshire road trip itinerary here.
A Pembrokeshire road trip is the best way to see this extraordinary county in the far west of Wales. It’s a rural area, and driving is the only way to get around much of the county, and off the beaten track.
The Pembrokeshire Coast National Park is the only coastal National Park in the UK, and it has everything from wide sandy beaches to secret coves, and dramatic cliffs with some of the best coastal walks in Europe.
The nearest equivalent we can think of is Cornwall, somewhere we have both loved for decades. Throw in the smallest city in the UK, one of the best cathedrals in the country and Tenby, in our view the most beautiful seaside resort in Britain.
We’ve devised this Pembrokeshire road tour to help you explore the best of the county, from the delights of Tenby to many of its hidden corners and coves. We have also suggested places to stay each night of your trip. Enjoy!
Pembrokeshire Road Trip – Why You Should Do It
The Pembrokeshire Coast is one of the most spectacular coastlines in the UK.
It has breathtaking beaches, some of the best coastal walks on the continent, and some of the most beautiful Welsh islands just offshore.
There’s a Celtic mystique about the landscape, from which the stones of Stonehenge were taken – the county is dotted with prehistoric burial chambers, hillforts and ancient churches with thousand-year-old Celtic crosses.
It’s rich in wildlife, especially in spring when tens of thousands of seabirds return annually to nest.
Pembrokeshire also has Tenby, one of the loveliest seaside resorts in the UK, and the smallest city in Britain, St David’s, which has the largest cathedral in Wales.
The county is also great for adrenalin sports, and its rugged, rocky coastline is where coasteering first began.
It’s also great for kids, with plenty of family attractions, especially around Tenby.
If you’re hoping to get off the beaten path in Pembrokeshire, you really need your own transport – the bus and train network can only take you so far.
Pembrokeshire Road Trip – A 5-Day Itinerary
Day One – Arrive Tenby
The goal for day one of your road trip in Pembrokeshire is to reach Tenby, the most beautiful of all seaside towns in Wales, and explore the town.
Your most direct route to Tenby is via the fast A477 road off the A40. Your other option is taking the much slower coast road via Laugharne and Pendine Sands, which eventually crosses into Pembrokeshire at Amroth and then passes through Saundersfoot en route to Tenby.
The best place to start exploring Tenby is the Harbour, a picture-perfect cove with pastel-painted Georgian townhouses overlooking the scene. Two of the four Tenby beaches – Harbour Beach and North Beach – run into one another at low tide.
The other two beaches in Tenby, Castle Beach and South Beach, are also linked at low tide, and they are just the other side of the Castle Hill headland.
Climb Castle Hill for extraordinary views over Tenby’s beaches and, just across the water, Caldey Island. It’s one of the most popular day trips from Tenby, reached by a 20-minute boat trip between Easter and October. It is home to a working monastery, some medieval churches and a couple of stunning beaches.
You may not have time for a trip to Caldey (which deserves at least half a day) so if you’re thinking of going there you may want to factor in an extra day for your itinerary.
Tenby is a gorgeous medieval town, with well-preserved town walls and narrow streets giving it a wonderful atmosphere, Tenby is at its best towards the end of the day, when you can take a bag of fish and chips down to the harbour or one of the beaches, and watch the sun set. Just keep an eye out for those seagulls, who will almost certainly want to help you finish it off!
See Also: The 32 Best Things To Do In Tenby
Day Two – South Pembrokeshire – From Tenby to the Castlemartin Peninsula
Day two of your Pembrokeshire road trip takes you west along the South Pembrokeshire Coast. It includes the option of some of the best beaches in Pembrokeshire and some of the most dramatic coastal scenery in Wales.
Start out on the A4139, taking the B4585 left turn to Manorbier after a few miles. Here you’ll find the 12th century Manorbier Castle, one of the oldest castles in Wales, which overlooks a great beach.
Bear in mind that high tide at Manorbier Beach means there is very little sand on the beach for a few hours. There’s also a fine 12th century church on the hill across the valley from the Castle which is usually open during the summer months.
From Manorbier you can stick to the minor roads, with two left turns taking you to Swanlake Bay. If you want a Pembrokeshire beach almost to yourself, this is a great option – there’s plenty of sand and also an abundance of rock pools at low tide.
Rejoin the A4139 at Jameston, and head left after a mile through Freshwater East, following the signs to the National Trust car park at Stackpole Quay. This is where you park up for one of the most popular Pembrokeshire walks, to Barafundle Beach.
Barafundle Bay can only be reached on foot, a 10-minute walk from Stackpole Quay. Its isolation means it doesn’t get swamped with visitors, but it’s not exactly undiscovered either – it has been voted the best beach in the UK, and I must second that. It’s a gorgeous spot.
The beach is part of the Stackpole Estate, and it’s the perfect introduction to the Pembrokeshire coast if you haven’t walked any of the Coast Path before. Within a kilometre of Barafundle you reach the windswept drama of the cliffs of Stackpole Head, with a needle-like rock stack soaring from the shore below.
Within another mile (1.6 km) you reach the wide expanse of Broad Haven South beach, one of the best beaches in Pembrokeshire. It is possible to drive to and park at Broad Haven South – in this case turn back to the car park at Barafundle. I suggest walking back to Stackpole Quay and then driving to our next destination instead.
Note that if you intend exploring the next section of the itinerary, you need to check the area is accessible on the day you intend to visit. It is part of the Ministry of Defence’s Castlemartin Firing Range, and the area including and to the west of St Govan’s Chapel is often closed.
The area is usually open on Saturdays and Sundays year- round. My advice is to check the Castlemartin web page, and also to call the number on there – 01646 662367 – after 8.15 am to double-check.
You can easily reach St Govan’s Chapel from Stackpole Quay, briefly joining the B4319 before heading down a minor road through Bosherston village and continuing to the Chapel.
It’s a remarkable sight, and one of the most fascinating places to visit in Pembrokeshire. It’s a tiny stone chapel at the foot of a cliff, in what would have been an incredibly isolated spot.
The Chapel building mostly dates from the 13th century, though its origins are probably in the 6th century. It is believed to have been the cell of the hermit monk Govan, a Celtic saint who may have come from Ireland.
The coastline either side of St Govan’s Chapel is breathtaking. The two-mile stretch to the west is one of the best walks in Wales, a series of rocky coves, crumpled cliffs and sea stacks up there with pretty much anywhere on the Wales Coast Path.
Otherwise you have the option of driving back to Bosherston village and following the signs to Stack Rocks car park. If you’re there between May and July, you’ll just need to follow the sounds to the sea, where you’re confronted by the cacophony of tens of thousands of nesting seabirds, mainly guillemots, razorbills and kittiwakes.
The birds nest on two sea stacks, also known as Elegug Stacks, and seeing the birds there is an amazing experience. From there, it’s less than five minutes’ walk to one of the most famous landmarks in Wales, the Green Bridge of Wales.
This is a magnificent sea arch with the stunning backdrop of a line of cliffs, and one of the best things to see in Pembrokeshire.
Depending on what time you have available, you can return to Tenby from here, or rejoin the B4319 and drive the short distance to Freshwater West, a spectacular beach popular with surfers. Many Harry Potter fans also make the pilgrimage there as it was the location for the Shell Cottage in one pf the Harry Potter films, and also the site of Dobby the Elf’s Grave.
Alternatively you can drive back to Tenby via either Pembroke or Carew. These are the two best Pembrokeshire castles, and if time allows I’d be inclined to visit at least one of them.
Day Three – Tenby to St David’s
Your third day involves a 45-minute drive to the wild west of Pembrokeshire, to the smallest of the seven cities in Wales and smallest city in the UK, including a short section of the A487 that is among the best drives in Wales. You can stop anywhere you wish along the way.
From Tenby, take the A478 past Folly Farm (a great place to visit if you’re visiting Pembrokeshire with kids) and join the A40, heading left to Haverfordwest. Once there, join the A487 to St David’s (Tyddewi in Welsh).
The road eventually offers glimpses of the St Bride’s Bay coastline, before reaching Newgale, where you get a full panorama of the road, beach and St David’s Peninsula coast. It then runs behind the vast bank of pebbles at the top of the beach before returning inland and continuing to the gorgeous village of Solva.
Solva (Solfach in Welsh) is gorgeous, a pastel-pretty village with a long harbour that is a ria, or drowned river valley. It’s one of the most beautiful villages in Wales, with art galleries, craft shops, cafes and a couple of pubs to explore.
St David’s is the spiritual centre of Wales, albeit in its furthest-flung corner. A monastery was founded here by Dewi (Anglicised to David) in the 6th century, and pilgrims have been visiting the Cathedral built there for over a thousand years. It’s one of the two most important pilgrimages in Wales along with the journey to Bardsey Island in North Wales.
The Cathedral is magnificent, the most impressive church in all of Wales. The exterior is built from stones and rocks gathered from the nearby coastline, while the interior is the most lavishly decorated in Wales. The unique wooden nave roof is one of the finest in Europe, and the central tower vault is easily the best in Wales.
See Also: 50 Amazing UK Landmarks
Just across the river from the Cathedral is St David’s Bishops Palace, which shows the vast wealth and power the church leaders would have had in the Middle Ages.
There are other things to do in St Davids, especially along the coastline. You have the option of driving to some of the following locations, or starting off at Caerfai Bay and walking all the way – around 8 miles, or 13 km – to Whitesands Bay and St David’s Head.
Caerfai Bay is a great sheltered beach about a mile south of St David’s, and from there it’s a 10-minute walk to St Non’s Bay, one of the most beautiful places in Pembrokeshire. St Non was the mother of St David, and the site of the ruined chapel is purportedly his birthplace.
St Non’s Bay is a serene place. There is also a modern chapel and a holy well, and these stand above one of the most inspiring sections of the Pembrokeshire Coast Path. It’s especially beautiful in springtime when the sea pinks are in flower.
St Justinian’s (Porth Stinian) is a house and two lifeboat stations two miles (3 km) west of St David’s, an done of these is the departure point for Ramsey Island. Some boat trips land on Ramsey, others do a circuit, taking you into the coves where you often see Atlantic grey seals basking on the shore.
Alternatively, you could walk the next two miles (3 km) or so to Whitesands Bay, or drive there via the village (sorry, city) centre, from which it’s an additional two miles. Whitesands is one of the best Pembrokeshire beaches, with a great expanse of golden sand, rockpools aplenty, good surf, a café and glorious views.
Walkers may well wish to press on to St David’s Head (Penmaen Dewi), passing the stunning sandy cove at Porthmelgan (the lead shot on our Wales Travel Guide page), eventually reaching the Neolithic Carreg Coetan Arthur burial chamber.
You could also climb up Carn Llidi, the knobbly volcanic plug above Whitesands, which commands superb views back over the beach and across to Ramsey Island.
Spend the night in St David’s, with the option of a second as you’ll be spending the next two days exploring the backroads of North Pembrokeshire. There are two pubs in St David’s – The Farmers Arms and The Bishops – both of which serve good pub meals. For something a bit more upscale, check out St Davids Gin & Kitchen on Nun Street.
See Also: Staycation Wales – 20 Best Places In Wales For A Staycation
Day Four – St Davids To Fishguard
Pembrokeshire is divided by a historic invisible border, the Landsker, which separated the Welsh-held north of the county from the Norman-held, English-speaking south. You will have crossed this on day three of your Pembrokeshire road trip without noticing. On day four the subtle differences will become a little more perceptible.
The North Pembrokeshire coast, like its southern neighbour, is a rugged delight. One of the differences is that there are less sandy beaches in the north of the county, and a lot more in the way of rocky coast, exploring bays, coves and beaches along awe-inspiring stretches of cliffs that will beckon some of you to hike along them. You’ll also see more Welsh place names as you travel around, especially in the Preseli Hills.
Head out of St Davids on the main A487 road towards Fishguard, and turn left just before you leave the city for Abereiddy, which may also be spelt Abereiddi on the signpost. Park near the sand and shingle beach and walk up to the famous Pembrokeshire Blue Lagoon.
The Blue Lagoon is an unusual phenomenon, a flooded slate mine with bluish-green water, which is a result of minerals in the exposed rocks. It’s a dramatic sight, very popular with coasteering groups and also Atlantic grey seas which come to breed each year. The Blue Lagoon was also a venue in the Red Bull Cliff Diving Series for several years, and one of the most spectacular of them all at that.
The next village along the coast, Porthgain, is a 2-mile (3 km) walk from the Blue Lagoon. It’s tiny, a cluster of houses around a village green with the remains of a brickworks and quarry overlooking the harbour.
Porthgain has long been popular for two of the best places to eat in Pembrokeshire. The Shed is a great seafood bistro on the harbour, and they also offer excellent takeaway fish and chips, and The Sloop is one of the best pubs in Pembrokeshire, and has been there since 1743.
After refreshments, return to Llanrhian and continue through Trefin, taking the left turn to Abercastell, sometimes spelt Abercastle. Park near the picturesque harbour and walk up the hill on your left – after about ten minutes you’ll reach Carreg Samson, a highly impressive 5,000-year-old burial chamber.
After Abercastell you have the option of a detour to Abermawr beach, a superb wide beach with scarcely a soul in sight. It’s also worth a brief detour to the village of Mathry, where you’ll find The General Stores, a long-closed time-capsule of a shop with a classic red telephone box outside. Then you enter the tangle of lanes and backroads that lead – eventually – to the lighthouse at Strumble Head.
One of the first places you’ll find is Melin Tregwynt, a small mill specializing in blankets and furniture covers with an excellent shop.
Continue past the turn-off for St Nicholas and go straight through at the crossroads at Trefasser, and take the second left up the steep hill. Stop at the car park on your left, follow the path for around 5 minutes until you reach the summit of Garn Fawr, an Iron Age hillfort and one of the best viewpoints in Pembrokeshire.
It’s an awesome location, with a wonderful view north over a classic patchwork of fields to Strumble Head lighthouse, two miles distant. To your left there’s another great view of Pwllderi, an inlet with almost sheer cliffs and a youth hostel with staggering views down the Pembrokeshire coast.
After savouring the views for a while, you can head down the hill to Strumble Head and walk along the Coast Path a mile to the east to Carreg Wastad Point. This is the site of the most recent attempted land invasion of Great Britain, in 1797.
If you don’t know of it, it’s because it not go terribly well for the French invaders. Around half the force of 1,400 were convicts, and while looting local properties they came upon a consignment of Portuguese wine washed ashore in a recent shipwreck. After consuming much of it, the force surrendered within two days.
This two-day invasion is known as the Battle of Fishguard, which is the nearby port with ferries to Rosslare in Ireland. You can either stay in Fishguard at one of the places suggested below, or return the 20 miles down the A487 for a second night in St David’s.
Day Five – North Pembrokeshire and the Preseli Hills
The fifth day of your Pembrokeshire road trip explores the far north of the county, and you can also venture inland to the Preseli Hills, which are part of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park.
I’d be inclined to go to the furthest point north of your drive, then drive into the Preselis before returning to the coast for the walk I suggest in the afternoon.
Begin by driving along the A487 past Newport, which many call Newport Pembs (Trefdraeth in Welsh) to differentiate it from the city of Newport in South East Wales. Around a mile east of the town, take the left-hand turn to Nevern (Nanhyfer in Welsh).
Nevern is home to St Brynach’s church, a simple medieval church originally founded in the 6th century by Brynach, a possible associate of St David. It’s best-known for the 10th century Celtic cross near the main doorway, which is one of the best examples anywhere in the Celtic fringes of Europe. The cross stands close to a ‘bleeding’ yew tree which slowly oozes a red paste-like substance from its bark.
Leave Nevern, returning to the A487, but rather than turning onto it go straight ahead at the junction, following the brown tourist signs to Pentre Ifan Burial Chamber. This Neolithic tomb is around 5,000 years old, and its stones were sourced from the Preseli Hills nearby. It’s one of the most impressive ancient sites in Wales, well worth going out of your way to see.
We have stayed away from the coast so far on your fifth day – this is because there is only one access road to it in ten miles. Ceibwr Bay is the one place where road meets sea between Newport Pembs and Cemaes Head, and you can reach it via a minor road through Moylegrove, which runs off the A487.
This stretch of North Pembrokeshire coast is one of the most dramatic on the entire Welsh coastline, and indeed probably the UK. It certainly offers the most challenging coastal walking, with multiple steep thigh-building cliff-edge climbs and descents. I’ve only done the Newport to St Dogmaels hike once, but rt’s one of the most exhilarating – and exhausting – walks I’ve done in my life.
Ceibwr Bay is a rocky cove, and behind it you’ll see a buckled mass of 60-metre-high rock strata stretching miles north-eastwards. Even in spring and summer you won’t see many other people here. I’d mark this as an absolutely imperative stop on your Pembrokeshire road trip.
We then follow the minor road south towards Newport, turning right near Moylegrove to stay close to the coast, and here views of the nearby Preseli Hills are soon revealed. Turn right when you reach the A487 at Newport, and then follow the minor road left to Cwm Gwaun after just over a mile (2 km).
Cwm Gwaun is one of the most curious corners of Wales. This quiet rural area still follows the Julian calendar (as opposed to the Gregorian calendar everyone else does!), so celebrates New Year’s Day on January 13th each year.
Cwm Gwaun is home to one of the best traditional pubs in Wales, the Dyffryn Arms, also known as Bessie’s. It’s a wonderful time-warp of a place, like stepping into someone’s living room where there happens to be a bar.
There’s another legendary Pembrokeshire pub a few miles away in Rosebush. Tafarn Sinc – which means ‘Zinc Pub’ – is a pub built from galvanised iron which serves great pub food.
The Preseli Hills are best-known as the source for the stones of Stonehenge. Recent research has established that a stone circle of exactly the same size and alignment was built in the Preseli Hills around 5,000 years ago before being transported – nobody knows quite how – to the site of Stonehenge, one of the most famous landmarks in England, on Salisbury Plain.
As you’re passing through the Preselis fairly quickly the easiest walk is the 10-minute stroll up to the summit of Foel Eryr – the Hill Of Eagles – which is just off the B4329, around 2 km north of Rosebush.
We then return to the coast for one of the best walks in Pembrokeshire, the 3-mile (5 km) circuit of Dinas Head between Newport and Fishguard. As well as the outstanding scenery, you also get to discover two of the lesser-known Cardigan Bay beaches along the way.
I suggest parking at Pwllgwaelod, and following the steep path up onto the headland. The views back to the coastline are stunning, particularly in springtime when the gorse and sea pinks are in bloom. The path continues around the headland until you are greeted by more amazing views, this time of the craggy coastline towards Newport.
You eventually reach the sheltered beach at Cwm-yr-Eglwys, which is next to the ruins of a church destroyed in a severe storm in 1859. From there it’s a little over a mile back to Pwllgwaelod, where the Sailor’s return beckons for one for the road.
How To Get To Pembrokeshire
Driving to Pembrokeshire is fairly easy, as the roads are dual carriageway for most, if not all of the way. The M4 takes you into Carmarthenshire, then the A40 takes you past the town of Carmarthen to Haverfordwest, and then on to Fishguard.
We regularly travelled from Cardiff to Pembrokeshire when we lived in Wales, and usually counted on less than two hours to Tenby, a little over two hours to St David’s and two-and-a-half hours to Fishguard, in the north of the county.
If you’re driving from London to Pembrokeshire, count on a good 5-hour journey. From Bristol to Penbrokeshire takes around 3 hours.
If you’re travelling from the English Midlands, the road connections are slower, but the journey is a lot more scenic and enjoyable. I suggest the route via Leominster and Hay-on-Wye, joining the A40 at Brecon, which you then stay on all the way to Pembrokeshire, via Carmarthen. You’re looking at 3 to 4 hours to Pembrokeshire from the Birmingham area.
Check out more of our Wales articles beyond Pembrokeshire:
20 Things To Do In New Quay Wales – gorgeous Cardigan Bay seaside resort with resident dolphins nearby
Cambrian Mountains – 28 wonderful places to visit in the wild heart of Mid Wales
Brecon Beacons Waterfalls – 15 falls in Beacons Waterfall Country and beyond
35 Best Castles In South Wales – medieval marvels from the Wye Valley to Pembrokeshire
19 Amazing Gower Beaches – Rhossili, Three Cliffs Bay and much more
Welsh Food – 18 Traditional Dishes to Try In Wales
Snowdonia Road Trip – 4 Great Snowdonia Itineraries By Car
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