Camping & Caravanning

in

Central and South Wales

Click on a county to view campsites in the area.

Carmarthenshire

Ceredigion

Glamorgan

Monmouthshire

Pembrokeshire

Powys


Other regions in Britain


Covering two-thirds of the principality, Central and South Wales is made up of a great variety of unspoiled scenery.

Along the border with England is a moorland plateau drained by the beautiful Lake Vyrnwy and trout-rich rivers flowing through deep valleys, the most attractive of which is the Dovey. The area is crossed in an east-west direction by only two roads but many routes for walkers. In the centre is a district of hills and high moors dotted with isolated lime-washed farmhouses, cloaked on the east near New Radnor by a shady forest and occupied by four towns, none industrial: Presteigne, the once fashionable spas of Llandrindod and Bulith Wells and Rhayader, gateway to the scenic Elan Valley and its series of reservoirs. Offa’s Dyke Path passes near Knighton and Kington on a line which links the Severn and the Dee. In the south is the wild Brecon Beacons National Park encircling the Black Mountains, with the Usk and its tributaries cutting through its wooded gorges. The south-eastern ramparts of Wales, the Black Mountains march east to the Wye, south to Crickhowell and northeast as far as Talgarth. Hay on Wye, half in England, is one gateway to the park, Abergavenny another.

An uninteresting coastline on the Severn Estuary is backed by lofty hills mined by coal in the northwest and a pastoral landscape near the English border in the east – at its most inviting in the Wye Valley above Chepstow. A waymarked scenic drive through the Ebbw Forest starts at Cwmcarn near Newport.

West is mountainous coalmining country in the north, pastoral and picturesque in the south. Popular seaside resorts like Porthcawl and Penarth alternate with industrial towns like Barry and Bridgend. West of Swansea is the wholly unspoiled Gower Peninsula ending in limestone cliffs.

The extreme west of Wales is noted for the sandy beaches of Cardigan, Aberporth and New Quay and the high cliffs between Aberystwyth and Aberaeron backed by bare moorland dotted with Iron Age hill forts, rough uplands and steepsided valleys. Local fishermen still use coracles of ancient design on the main waterway, the Teifi. A narrow-gauge railway operates between Aberystwyth and Devil’s Bridge, a popular beauty spot.

The remote and thinly populated southwest corner of Wales has a romantic coastline of wild cliffs and windswept headlands, a mountainous north and a fertile and sunlit south. The Pembrokeshire Coast Path starts at St Dogmaels near Cardigan and follows the bay and inlets round to Amroth near Saundersfoot.

Campsites are well distributed along the south and west coasts, with the greatest concentrations around Saundersfoot, Laugharne, St David’s and Pembroke in the south and Aberporth, Aberystwyth and Fishguard in the west. Inland campsites are most numerous around Narberth in the south, though there are two or more at each of the main centres in Powys. Coastal campsites are usually the best equipped.

For full details of all parks listed on our website, see the latest edition of Camping Caravanning Britain. Priced at £8.50, the book is available from WHSmith, Waterstone's, Blackwell's and other bookshops; alternatively, to order a copy directly click here.

While every effort has been made to ensure that the information on this website is accurate and up-to-date, the publishers can accept no responsibility for errors or omissions. Always phone a park before visiting to check facilities and prices.