Little Haven

Little Haven is what people picture when they say "Pembrokeshire fishing village": a tight cluster of painted cottages tipping down a steep hill to a slipway and a small sandy cove between headlands. The catch is the tide. At high water there's essentially no beach at all — the sea comes up to the sea wall — so check the tide table before you drive down, because a mistimed visit means a pretty village and nowhere to sit.

On a falling tide it's a different place. The sand opens out, the rocks on either side turn into rockpools, and at very low water you can walk round the base of the cliffs to Broad Haven, though only with a proper look at the times first — people get cut off here. It's a sheltered spot for a swim compared with the open bay, and the anchorage draws small boats and kayaks in summer. Coasteering groups use the headland rocks.

Parking is the other honest warning: the village car park is small and the lanes are narrow and steep, so in July and August it's often easier to leave the car at Broad Haven and walk the fifteen minutes over the hill on the Coast Path. That walk, with the bay opening up below you, is worth doing in its own right. There are pubs and places to eat within a few steps of the slipway, which makes Little Haven a better evening destination than a full-day beach.