UK Tourism: A Relaxing Welsh Road Trip
Written by Tara Bertschi, posted to Digby, United Kingdom
Last March, we swapped our usual holiday formula for something a little different: a road trip across Wales with a two-and-a-half-year-old. It may not sound like the obvious recipe for relaxation, but it turned out to be one of the most enjoyable trips we've ever taken. We started with a stay at Bluestone Resort in Pembrokeshire and built a 10-day, toddler-friendly adventure around it.
Those with young children know that sometimes the travel to the holiday can be one of the biggest hurdles. We drove from Stamford, England with our 2.5-year-old and planned our first stop at Puzzlewood, an idyllic ancient forest with winding trails that you can happily get lost in near the border of England and Wales. It was a great break in the journey, complete with a small zoo, café, and picnic area. The idea was to let her stretch her legs and burn off some energy but in true toddler fashion, she demanded to be carried the entire way and burned exactly zero energy. This may have felt like a parenting-fail if Puzzlewood wasn’t such a great experience in itself!
When we arrived at Bluestone, we unpacked, parked the car, and picked up the golf cart that became our main mode of transport for the week. Cruising around the resort was a hit with everyone, and since March in Wales brings plenty of rain, being able to zip between activities in comfort was a huge plus.
We stayed in a two-bedroom cottage overlooking a pond, with a well-equipped kitchen and a cozy living area. We generally opt for self-catering, because it makes managing our daughter’s peanut allergy easier and helps keep costs down, although there were several restaurant options on site! In many ways, Bluestone is like Center Parcs, which our family frequents, but at a fraction of the cost. And while the resort had fewer adult activities compared to Centre Parcs, I did manage to sneak away on a rainy afternoon for a spa visit; highly recommend!
While our daughter would have been satisfied with the swings and marble run for the holiday, we took a day to explore and began a drive into Tenby. The rain held off long enough for us to stroll along the beach and watch the tide roll in. After taking in the pastel-coloured harbour, we climbed up to the viewpoint overlooking the ruins of Tenby Castle before heading into town for some shopping and lunch. The town was charming, the locals were welcoming, and the scenery was absolutely stunning.
We also stopped at Church Door Cove. It was wonderfully quiet for March, with just us and another young family taking in the peaceful sea views while the kids built stone towers on the shore. It was the perfect place to sit, unwind, and enjoy the sound of the waves.
On the drive north, we stopped at Hafren Forest. If you spend any time on social media watching travel videos, you’ve probably seen it before. Parking was a bit tricky, but the walk itself was easy enough for our toddler. And while our OUTCAN posting has us miles away from Canada, something about the Hafren Forest trail felt like home; the tall pine and spruce trees lining the river could have kept me there all day.
The drive along the Welsh coast turned out to be one of the highlights of the trip. Between the ocean views, small waterfalls trickling down steep hillsides, wide-open roads where you felt completely alone, and endless sheep keeping our backseat passenger entertained; it was a fantastic route.
Further north, we spent a morning exploring Portmeirion, a unique and colourful purpose-built village that felt completely different from the rest of the trip and well worth the drive.
Our Welsh road trip is one we’ll remember for a long time. It was simple, low-stress, and struck the perfect balance: full of easy entertainment for a toddler while still giving us the chance to recharge in nature and escape the crowds. Even the more popular destinations felt peaceful compared to busier English tourist spots like the Cotswolds.
If you’re planning a trip to Wales, my best advice is not to over-plan. Pick a few places you’d like to visit, drop them onto a map, and see where the day takes you. You might end up sitting by the sea longer than expected, choosing the longer hiking trail on a whim, making thirteen separate stops so your child can "baa" at sheep, or accidentally taking a single-track road that is almost certainly not the best route to a very popular forest trail and takes twice as long as expected to reach.
Sometimes, those unplanned moments end up being the best part of the trip.
Thank you to Tara for submitting her travel story. We hope stories like these will inspire you to explore all that is at your footsteps being OUTCAN. If you are interested in sharing your travel experiences, within or outside of the UK, to inspire your community members, you can email mfse.uk@cfmws.com. Not a writer? We can write the article for you!
