Monkstone Beach

Monkstone Point is the wooded headland that separates Tenby from Saundersfoot, and the beach on its northern side is the closest thing this busy stretch of coast has to a private one. There's no road. You come down either from the Coast Path or, more commonly, through the farm and campsite at Trevayne, and the last part is a steep descent through trees with steps and roots. Coming back up in the heat is the price of admission.

The reward is a decent run of clean sand with rocks at either end, cliffs and woodland behind, and typically a handful of people even in August. It's a good swimming beach on a calm day — sheltered from westerlies, shelving reasonably — but it is completely unguarded and there is nothing here: no toilets, no water, no signal to speak of. Bring what you need.

Tide matters. The sand is generous from mid tide down and much reduced at high water, and you should not plan on walking round the Point at the bottom of the tide unless you know exactly what the sea is doing — the rocks below Monkstone Point catch people out. The easiest sensible plan is to walk the Coast Path from Saundersfoot (about 40 minutes) or from Tenby North Beach (about an hour), drop down for a few hours on the ebb, and walk back. Take the litter with you; there are no bins.