Photo: Gordon Hatton (CC BY-SA 2.0)Things to do in Pembroke
Within about 5 miles of Pembroke we list 28 places to go — 3 castles, 6 attractions, 3 museums and galleries, 2 nature reserves and viewpoints, plus 5 beaches and 7 walks.
The ones we've written up in full are Pembroke Castle, Lamphey Bishop's Palace, Carew Tidal Mill — start there if you only have a day.
For a wet day there are 3 indoor options nearby: Pembroke Museum, Pembroke Dock Heritage Centre, Carew Cheriton Control Tower. Opening hours shrink hard out of season.
Everything below is ordered by distance from Pembroke, with the places we've written about in full listed first. Nothing on this page is paid for.
Castles and ruins near Pembroke
Pembrokeshire has more castles per mile than almost anywhere in Britain, because for four hundred years it was a frontier. Some are ticketed and roofed; some are a gatehouse in a field with nobody taking money.
Photo: Gordon Hatton (CC BY-SA 2.0)1.9 miles from Pembroke
Photo: Thomas Nicholls (Public domain)Upton Castle
Castle3 miles from Pembroke
Benton Castle
Castle4 miles from Pembroke
Attractions and days out near Pembroke
The paid days out — the ones that fill a whole morning and have a car park and a café.
Photo: Monkeyrustler at English Wikipedia (Public domain)Pembroke Castle
AttractionWest Wales's mightiest fortress and birthplace of Henry VII — huge round keep, wall-walks and Wogan's Cavern beneath.
Dogs welcome
600 yards from Pembroke
Photo: Vale Holidays (CC BY 2.0)2.0 miles from Pembroke
Photo: Chris Allen (CC BY-SA 2.0)4 miles from Pembroke
Photo: Karen Sawyer (CC BY-SA 4.0)Carew Castle & Tidal Mill
AttractionNorman castle turned Elizabethan mansion on the Carew river, with Wales's only restored tidal mill and a fine circular walk.
Dogs welcome
4 miles from Pembroke
Bosherston Lily Ponds
AttractionFlooded limestone valleys of water lilies (best in June) winding down to Broad Haven South — otters at quiet hours.
Dogs welcome
4 miles from Pembroke
Photo: LinguisticDemographer at English Wikipedia (Public domain)Croes Caeriw
Attraction4 miles from Pembroke
Museums and galleries near Pembroke
Mostly indoors, which on this coast is a category of its own. Opening hours narrow sharply out of season, so ring before you drive.
300 yards from Pembroke
Photo: Jaggery (CC BY-SA 2.0)2.0 miles from Pembroke
Carew Cheriton Control Tower
Museum4 miles from Pembroke
Nature reserves and viewpoints near Pembroke
Free, open whenever you turn up, and where a lot of the best of Pembrokeshire actually is.
Stackpole National Nature Reserve
Nature reserve4 miles from Pembroke
Pwllcrochan Pond and Marshland
Nature reserve4 miles from Pembroke
Ancient and historic sites near Pembroke
Burial chambers, standing stones, holy wells and iron-age forts. Most are on open land with no gate and no charge; a few sit on working farms, so use the marked access.
King Henry VII
Historic site500 yards from Pembroke
Compass
Historic site2.0 miles from Pembroke
Isambard Kingdom Brunell
Historic site2.5 miles from Pembroke
cowshed
Historic site3 miles from Pembroke
Greenala Point Iron Age Fort
Ancient site- Website
- coflein.gov.uk
3 miles from Pembroke
Harold Stone
Ancient site4 miles from Pembroke
Lawrenny Castle
Historic site4 miles from Pembroke
Flamish Chimney
Historic site4 miles from Pembroke
Photo: ceridwen (CC BY-SA 2.0)Fort Scoveston (Disused)
Historic site4 miles from Pembroke
The Hanging Stone
Ancient site- Website
- megalithic.co.uk
4 miles from Pembroke
Activities, golf and the water near Pembroke
Coasteering, surf schools, kayaking, boat trips, and the two things everyone forgets to book until it's too late.
2.2 miles from Pembroke
Brunel Quay, Neyland, SA73 1PY
Step-free access
- Phone
- +44 1646 601601
- Website
- yachthavens.com
2.8 miles from Pembroke
Neyland Yacht Haven - Upper Basin
Marina3 miles from Pembroke
Enterprise Cycles
Activities4 miles from Pembroke
Beaches near Pembroke
Freshwater East
A sheltered, dune-backed crescent facing south — easy parking, safe paddling and far fewer people than Tenby.
Stackpole Quay
Reputedly Britain's smallest harbour, with a National Trust car park, café and toilets — and the start of the walk to Barafundle.
Dogs all yearBarafundle Bay
The golden cove with no road — half a mile's clifftop walk from Stackpole Quay, and regularly voted among Britain's best beaches.
Swanlake Bay
A sandy bay between Freshwater East and Manorbier with no road access at all — usually empty, and entirely tide-dependent.
Dogs all yearBroad Haven South
White sand, Church Rock offshore and the lily ponds behind — Bosherston's beautiful back door to the sea.
Compare every beach near Pembroke — dogs, lifeguards, parking →
Walks from Pembroke
Pembroke Castle and the Mill Pond
A short, level loop round the water beneath one of the great castles of Britain, good for an hour with a pushchair or a dog.
2 miles · 1 hour · Easy
Freshwater East to Manorbier
A short, sharp stage between two good beaches, taking in a bay you can only reach on foot and finishing under a Norman castle.
4.5 miles · 2½ hours · Moderate
Barafundle Bay and the Bosherston Lily Ponds
The best short walk in south Pembrokeshire: a cliff path to Barafundle, then inland along three flooded limestone valleys full of lilies.
5 miles · 2½–3½ hours · Moderate