Places to Stay by the Beach in Pembrokeshire

What the 98 beach-access stays actually cover

There are 98 places to stay with beach access published on BritStays across Pembrokeshire, and they split fairly evenly between three quite different kinds of holiday: 36 caravanning options, 36 hotels and 26 campsites. That balance matters when you're planning. If you want a room, a lift and a bar downstairs, you're looking at roughly a third of the list. If you want a pitch or a static within walking distance of sand, you're looking at the other two-thirds — and those book differently, as we'll come to.

Geographically, the set is weighted heavily towards two places. Tenby accounts for 53 of the 98, St Davids for 20, with 11 listed simply under Pembrokeshire and smaller numbers at Haverfordwest (4), Poppit (2), and single entries at Gwbert on Sea, St Nicholas, and Ferwig, Cardigan.

Tenby for a town-and-beach trip

With more than half the region's beach-access stays, Tenby is the obvious choice if you want to walk from your bed to the sand and then to somewhere for dinner. The hotels here dominate the examples — Tenby House Hotel, The Royal Lion Hotel, Atlantic Hotel, The Gower Hotel and St Brides Spa Hotel all sit in the Tenby group — which tells you that adult trips, short breaks and off-season weekends are well served. Bonville's Court is the one to look at if you're arriving without a car or in an EV: it lists Near a Bus Stop, Near a Train Station and EV Charging Nearby together, which is unusual across the set.

St Davids and the quieter corners

St Davids has 20 beach-access stays and a different feel — smaller, more spread out, more weather-dependent. Caerfai Bay is a useful example of what's available there, listing Toilets, a Playground and Pet Friendly, which is close to the full set of things families and dog owners tend to ask about. Ynys Barry Holiday Cottage is also in the St Davids group if you'd rather have your own front door.

Beyond the two main areas, the stays listed under Pembrokeshire itself are largely rural and agricultural in character — Tycanol Farm (with EV Charging Nearby), Castle Farm Camping, Sandy Haven Campsite (Toilets) and Morawelon Camping and Caravanning, which lists a Restaurant, Cafe and Takeaway Food on site. That last one is worth noting if you're camping with children and don't fancy cooking every night. Further round the coast, Gwbert Hotel and The Cliff Hotel & Spa at Gwbert give you a hotel option away from the Tenby crowds, the latter listing WiFi.

Checking facilities before you commit

Across all 98, the most commonly listed facilities are:

• EV Charging Nearby — 43
• Near a Bus Stop — 23
• WiFi — 19
• Near a Train Station — 16
• Toilets — 14
• Sea Views — 12
• Gift Shop — 11
• Parking — 10

Two honest points. First, only 12 of the 98 list Sea Views — beach access and a sea view are not the same thing, so if the view matters, filter for it rather than assuming. Second, only 10 list Parking. In a busy coastal town in August that's a real planning question, not a detail, so confirm directly with the property before you drive down.

What to do once you're there

Tenby has the densest cluster of things to do nearby: Tudor Merchant's House, the Wilson Museum, Carew Cheriton Control Tower, the Cardi Bach Heritage Centre and the Blue Lagoon are all listed under it. St Davids has the Treasury of the Cathedral. For wet days and long drives, there's the Welsh spitfire museum in the wider Pembrokeshire area.

For days out that don't depend on sunshine, the region's castles and gardens are the obvious fallback — Upton Castle, Newport Castle, Cardigan Castle, Castell Cilgerran / Cilgeran Castle, Castell Llanhuadain and Colby Woodland Garden. Freshwater West is a National Trust spot worth building a day around if you're happy with a windier, wilder beach than the town ones.

When to book

Camping and caravanning make up 62 of the 98 stays, and those are the ones that fill first for school holidays — pitches at places like Castle Farm Camping and Sandy Haven Campsite are finite in a way hotel rooms aren't. If you need a specific date in July or August, book several months ahead and ring to check pitch size and dog policy at the same time.

Hotels in Tenby give you more late flexibility, particularly outside the summer weeks. If you're travelling by train or bus, sort the stay before the travel, since only 16 of the 98 list Near a Train Station and 23 list Near a Bus Stop. And if you're charging an EV, check the charger's actual location when you book — "nearby" covers a lot of ground.