Best kept secret of the British Isles?

Sshhhh don’t tell anyone . .

Could it be that inadvertently we have discovered one of the best kept secrets of the UK. I am hesitating slightly as I ponder the wisdom in sharing this with you. 

Growing up in Southern England experiencing the Devon and Dorset coast and going to University in Brighton I’ve enjoyed the south coast on many occasion. I know all too well that some areas get so busy in the summer months the locals would rather spend their summers elsewhere, the roads are unbearable and the beaches resemble those packed out photos you see of the Costa del Sol.

Pembrokeshire on other hand, might just be one of the UK’s more undiscovered gems. 

We first discovered Pembrokeshire as Lockdown 1 eased in August 2020. We were in the market to buy a holiday cottage and multiple people suggested Tenby as a desirable destination. Having never been to Pembrokeshire before we looked on Google and set up a Rightmove search for the kind of thing we were looking for.

First time lucky?

In June 2020 Old Barn Cottage pinged into our inbox. We arranged a virtual viewing not in the slightest believing that we could be ‘first time lucky’ enough to find the right place. We liked what we saw but were unable to make an actual viewing because of local Covid restrictions. Amazingly the cottage was still on the market as restrictions eased and on 1st August 2020 we went for a viewing.

As with most other people in 2020 our previously booked holiday had been cancelled so to make a day of it we booked some Paddle board lessons for the family before our viewing. I remember arriving at Coppet Hall beach, next to Saundersfoot main beach, looking out to sea and wondering why on earth we had never been to this part of the world before.

I suddenly felt as though everyone on the beach around me must have been keeping this a secret.

That they had known about this beach forever and were somehow in on the secret.

Perhaps people love it so much they were keeping it quiet to keep the crowds away?

Dare to dream

As my family got to grips with paddle boarding I dared to dream that if this beach was so beautiful perhaps there were others in the area too. Although, to be honest, I almost didn’t care! This beach was more than enough for me to know I really wanted a slice of this idyll. That I wanted to bring our family here to make memories for many years to come. 

To my delight there was yet another inkling that day that Pembrokeshire might indeed be one of the best kept secrets of the UK. We had the pleasure of visiting the beaches in Tenby. They wowed us and seemed almost too good to be true. (Google “Tenby South Beach” and you’ll not believe your eyes). And let me tell you South Beach - even in August, provides the perfect setting for a fish and chip supper and a spot of Beach cricket.

Utterly persuaded

What we saw that first day in Pembrokeshire was more than enough to persuade us Old Barn Cottage was the one for us. 

Our offer was accepted and we spent the first few months of 2021 renovating and making it ‘guest ready’. Since our first trip we’ve visited many more beaches in South Pembrokeshire and I can reliably inform you that each beach we visit seems to be better than the one before. 

Of course we have our favourites, but we haven’t finished exploring all that’s on offer yet, so I couldn’t possibly tell you which ones they might be. What I do know is that we feel very blessed that we’re now ‘in the know’ and we have absolutely seen enough to believe that Pembrokeshire is quite possibly one of the best kept secrets of the Uk.

But please don’t tell everyone!