Nolton Haven

Nolton Haven is barely a village: a steep lane drops through a narrow valley to a small sand-and-shingle cove, a slipway, a car park, a pub and a scatter of houses. That is the whole place, and it is why people who know this stretch of St Brides Bay keep coming back to it. The beach faces due west, so it collects the evening sun and a decent swell, and at low tide the sand opens out properly; at high tide there is not much of it left.

The Coast Path north towards Newgale passes the ruins of Trefrane Cliff Colliery, whose chimney and engine house stand on the cliff edge — a reminder that this soft green coast was a coalfield within living memory of the buildings. South, the path runs above Druidston Haven and on to Broad Haven, one of the easier and prettier coastal miles in the county. Riding on the beach is a local tradition; a trekking centre has operated from the valley for decades.

Be realistic about the limitations. There is no shop, the lane in is steep and narrow, and the small car park fills on August afternoons. Everything else has to be driven to: Broad Haven and its shops are five minutes, Newgale's surf ten, Haverfordwest fifteen, St Davids twenty-five. What you get in exchange is a cove that empties out by early evening and a sunset that lands directly in front of the house.

The handful of cottages in the valley bottom put the beach and pub within a two-minute walk and are the ones worth chasing. Above the haven, in Nolton village and the farmland behind, converted barns give more space, parking and sea views across the bay — better for larger groups and dog owners who want a garden.

Signposted off the A487 Haverfordwest–St Davids road via minor lanes; the final descent is steep and single-track in places. No rail; the nearest station is Haverfordwest.