Shae, Truffles and I just spent a few days in Pembroke, a town in southwest Wales near the coast. Despite it being a fairly small town (its population is ~7,500), there’s a lot to see and do in the area.
With a castle, palace, gardens, beautiful beaches, an unusual church in a stunning cliffside setting and more, we had a wonderful time. Even better was the fact that nearly everything we did was extremely dog-friendly, so Truffles was able to join us on most of our adventures.
Here’s everything that we got up to in Pembroke.
Where We Stayed In Pembroke
Pembroke didn’t have any good hotel options that we could book with points, so we booked this Airbnb instead. It’s a one bedroom cottage in the heart of Pembroke, only a few minutes walk from Pembroke Castle.
It’s a cozy little property with a small living room, kitchen and bathroom downstairs…
…and a mezzanine-style bedroom upstairs.
Even though it was cozy, it was just what we were looking for as it was within walking distance of the castle, restaurants, grocery store, etc. There was a paid parking lot straight out front, or a free parking lot just a two minute walk away.
It was a great little space to stay, so we’d be happy to stay there again if it’s just the two of us (and Truffles) staying there. We’ve already told our friends who we often travel with that we’d love to go to Wales with them as we enjoyed it so much and they’ve never been. The house only accommodates two people though, so we’d have to find somewhere else to stay if we return with them.
For what it’s worth, we paid $140.09 per night for our stay which was in the middle of summer. We paid with Airbnb gift cards we’d bought at a 15%-20% discount, so our net cost ended up being lower.
Things To Do In & Around Pembroke
Stackpole Walled Gardens
We’d driven most of the way from our new home in County Durham to Pembroke the day before, staying overnight just outside of Cardiff. That way we’d be able to arrive in Pembroke at a reasonable time, rather than late in the day as it would’ve been a 6.5-7 hour drive, not including stops along the way.
We had a bit of time to kill before we could check in to our Airbnb, so we stopped in at Stackpole Walled Gardens. The gardens are part of the Stackpole Estate which is run by the National Trust. Whereas the main estate and house has an entrance fee (unless you’re a National Trust member), the gardens are free to visit, simply asking for donations instead.
It wasn’t as extensive as some botanical gardens we’ve been to, but we had a lovely time wandering around on a beautiful, sunny day.
We particularly appreciated that the gardens were pet-friendly, so Truffles got to have a good wander around too, just what she needed after spending much of the previous day in the car on the drive down.
We also had a lovely lunch there too; more about that in the food and drink section later on.
Pembroke Castle
When visiting Pembroke, it’s hard to miss its castle set atop a rocky hilltop, overlooking Mill Pond.
Dating back to the 1100s, the castle is still in great condition considering it’s approaching 1,000 years old. The castle has played its part in British history, such as being the birthplace of King Henry VII who was the first monarch of the House of Tudor and the father of King Henry VIII.
The castle offers free guided tours starting at the top of the hour from 11am to 3pm. We arrived shortly after a tour had just started, so we decided to just take a self-guided tour around the castle.
The castle was much larger than we anticipated, so there’s a lot to see there. We spent a couple of hours exploring and it felt like there was a lot more that we could’ve seen, so be sure to allocate enough time to do it justice.
We’d recommend climbing the 100 steps of the Great Keep…
…and descending the 56 steps into Wogan Cavern.
Stone tools from cave dwellers in the Stone Age have been found in the cavern, as have Roman coins. It’s also been used to store supplies, boats and more over the course of its long history.
Pembroke Castle is another attraction that’s exceedingly dog-friendly. Pups are allowed everywhere in the castle; the only exception being the gift shop. For Truffles’ safety though (and ours), we tended to carry her up and down most of the spiral staircases as they were often narrow and steep.
Freshwater West Beach
The next day was Shae’s birthday and so we headed out to several different places. We started things off at Freshwater West, a beautiful, long stretch of beach.
The beach is dog-friendly, but they’re supposed to remain leashed, especially from April to August due to ground-nesting birds. We kept Truffles on a short leash as we walked through the dunes to the beach, then put her on a longer leash so that she could run around when in an isolated part of the beach. Despite it being the middle of summer and quite a few people being at the beach, it still felt very quiet and so she could chase after her ball without disturbing anyone, nor be anywhere near any birds.
Truffles doesn’t enjoy going in the sea/ocean as she gets really nervous of the sound of crashing waves, even if they’re not big. Back in the first year of our 7 year, 50 state road trip around the US, we discovered in Galveston, TX that she doesn’t mind playing in water pools on the beach provided they’re back from the shoreline. Freshwater West had several sections of shallow water on the beach, far back from the actual sea, so she had a great time splashing through those while playing.
We had a wonderful morning walking up and down the beach, but we were actually there primarily for something else.
Dobby’s Grave
That something else was Dobby’s Grave. Shae’s favorite character in the Harry Potter books is Dobby. In the movie, the scene where he dies and is buried was filmed at Freshwater Beach. There’s now a grave on the beach set up by fans of the books and movies to honor the character.
Many people have decorated stones and left them on the memorial. We’ve written this separate post about how to find Dobby’s grave, so be sure to check that out if you plan on visiting yourself.
St Govan’s Chapel
Our next stop was an unusual church. St Govan’s Chapel is found along the Pembrokeshire Coast Path built into a limestone cliff. When you arrive at the parking lot, the chapel is nowhere to be seen. That’s because you have to descend 50+ steps to get to it.
The chapel dates back to the 1100s and is named, as you might expect, after St Govan. St Govan was traveling in the area in the 6th century when he’s said to have been chased by pirates. A cleft opened up in the rock for him; when hiding in there, the rock closed up around him until it was safe to leave. Following that experience, he stayed there to teach and worship until he died in 586.
It’s free to visit the chapel and the site is dog-friendly. There’s only one room, but at the far side of the chapel there’s a doorway through to the cleft in the rock where St Govan is thought to have hidden.
On the opposite side of the chapel there’s a door leading out to the cliffside.
I mentioned that the chapel was built into the side of a limestone cliff. That means it has stunning views of the water; it’s not hard to see why St Govan might’ve wanted to stay here to teach and worship.
It was so beautiful that we decided to stop there ourselves to have our picnic lunch.
Barafundle Bay Beach
When I was initially researching accommodation options, one of the Airbnbs I’d looked at had highlighted Barafundle Bay Beach as being nearby. The photo they included on the listing made it look like a must-visit, so that’s where we drove to later that same afternoon.
Be aware that it’s a bit of a walk though. From the main parking lot, it’s a ~20 minute walk which includes a couple of fairly steep sections; one up and one down in each direction. We were fortunate that we visited later in the day, as a parking space opened up as a couple were leaving just as we arrived. If you can’t find any spaces, you’ll likely have to park your car quite a long walk up the road. You’ll walk downhill to get to the main parking lot, but that means at the end of the day you’ll have a long walk uphill to your car which isn’t ideal.
Much of the trail is absent of any shade, so it’s worth wearing a hat and having plenty of water with you. It’s absolutely worth the effort though (at least when walking from the parking lot anyway), as this is the view that greets you once you reach the bay.
There’s a long path down to the beach. Although you have to walk back up it later on when heading back, each step is quite long and so it doesn’t feel quite as steep as it could do.
It was a warm day when we visited, so we were quite toasty by the time we reached the beach. Shae, Truffles and I therefore headed to the far side of the beach where there was some shade.
Similar to Freshwater West beach earlier that day, there were quite a few people at the beach, but it didn’t feel at all crowded.
Shae and I ended up going for a quick dip in the water. Although Truffles doesn’t like waves, we brought her in with us to let her have a quick swim too before she enjoyed having a little dig in the sand.
We spent about an hour at the beach and could’ve happily stayed there even longer. However, it was approaching 5pm and we still had somewhere we wanted to visit on the way back to our Airbnb, plus we planned to go out to dinner that night.
Lamphey Bishops Palace
Our final stop that day was Lamphey Bishops Palace, another attraction that’s dog-friendly provided your pup remains on leash.
The palace mostly dates back to the 1300s and was used by clergy of a high rank. Guests were entertained there, plus it was used to provide income for the bishops’ lifestyles.
It’s free to visit and explore Lamphey Bishops Palace; you can just let yourself in through the gates when you arrive. It’s a really interesting site; although it’s in ruins, what remains does still give you a sense of the palace in its prime.
Where We Ate & Drank In & Around Pembroke
Stackpole Walled Gardens
After wandering around Stackpole Walled Gardens, we stopped at their tea shop for some lunch. We each got an incredible fruit scone with jam and clotted cream; it appeared to be homemade and was one of the best scones I’ve ever had.
I got a pot of tea to go with that, while Shae also got a chicken and cheese panini and a glass of prosecco.
A certain someone was also incredibly keen on having a chicken and cheese panini.
Rowlies Fish & Chips
After visiting Pembroke Castle, we went back to our Airbnb for a couple of hours so that I could get some more work done, then we headed out for dinner at Rowlies Fish & Chips.
Rowlies is just a short walk from the castle which meant it was only a ~10 minute walk from where we were staying. It had good reviews on Google and I can see why. The staff were very friendly and our meal was very good. We both got cod and chips, while I also added a small battered sausage.
The Stackpole Inn
In between our visits to St Govan’s Chapel and Barafundle Bay, we stopped for a quick drink at the cute Stackpole Inn. Dogs are allowed both inside and outside, but seeing as it was such a beautiful day we stayed outside.
That said, it was also extremely warm, so we wanted to find a table with some shade. All of the good spots were taken, but we noticed a little alcove off to the side. It was very cozy; basically just enough room for the two of us to sit down at, but it did the trick to help us stay cool. I got a pint of The Rev James Original which is a Welsh brewery, while Shae had a glass of prosecco.
Old Kings Arms Hotel & Bar
I’d researched good dining options in Pembroke for Shae’s birthday, but it seemed like all the fancy places had extremely long waiting lists, to the extent that a couple didn’t have tables available for the next 4-8 weeks.
We’d spent so much time walking around that day that Shae didn’t want to go too far, but did want a hearty meal. One of the restaurants I’d come across in my research was the Old Kings Arms Hotel & Bar which had very good reviews online. That was a relatively short walk from our Airbnb (it’s pretty much opposite Rowlies Fish & Chips), so after dropping Truffles off at the cottage, we went out to dinner. n.b. The Old Kings Arms is dog-friendly in case you want to take your pup along, but after such a long day we figured it’d be better to let her rest.
It ended up being a great choice for several reasons. One is that the property itself has an interesting history. The building’s deeds date back to 1522 which means the hotel/bar is in its 503rd year of serving guests.
The part of the restaurant that we dined in is their Welsh kitchen style restaurant. This officially dates back to 1522, so it might be the oldest place we’ve ever eaten. We’ve had a drink at Sean’s Bar in Athlone, Ireland which dates back to ~900 A.D., but we didn’t actually eat there.
Another reason we enjoyed the meal was the quality of the food. We started with freshly baked bread with their own homemade sea salted butter. The butter did indeed have a distinctive salty taste and was delicious; it was some of the tastiest butter I’ve ever had. Shae also got their olives which came with olive oil, balsamic vinegar and more warm bread.
The restaurant had a ton of delicious-looking options. Seeing as we were in Wales though, I wanted to go for something Welsh-themed and so I ordered their steak and Welsh ale pie which came with a side of chips (fries). I was initially a little surprised that the pie slice seemed fairly small, but it ended up being more than enough food and was very tasty.
Shae meanwhile ordered their 10oz sirloin steak which came with tomatoes and mushrooms which she also enjoyed.
Shae’s meal normally came with regular chips, but she upgraded to their chips with mature cheddar and truffle oil and also got a side of tenderstem broccoli with Heb Enw goat’s cheese and toasted almonds.
My meal came with seasonal vegetables which consisted of cabbage and carrots. The carrots were fantastic; I’m not entirely sure how they were cooked, but they were glazed with something that greatly enhanced the flavor and they were cooked perfectly.
We were both very full by the end of all that, but the food had been so good that we couldn’t resist their desserts. Shae prefers chocolate options, so she ordered their chocolate and hazelnut espresso brownie with Ferrero Rocher ice cream.
I’d wanted something a little lighter, so I ordered their rhubarb and custard crème brûlée which was served with shortbread crumb and stem ginger ice cream. I’d ordered this as I thought it would be a little lighter, but the crème brûlée dish was deeper than I’d anticipated. I’d never had a rhubarb crème brûlée before, but it was very good.
When ordering it, I’d missed that it came with ginger ice cream, so I was a little surprised at the flavor when first taking a bite! The ginger flavor wasn’t overwhelming though, so it was nicer than I was expecting.
Another reason we enjoyed the meal so much was the service. Our servers were very nice and attentive, without hovering over us.
The Pembrokeshire Cider Company
When arriving in Pembroke, we’d seen a sign for The Pembrokeshire Cider Company and so figured that we’d go there for a drink at some point. As it turns out, they’re a microbrewery that doesn’t offer tastings or have a bar.
Instead, they have a storefront selling their ciders. It’s a bit of a quirky store as the front half sells their cider, while the back half seems to be a hardware store or something along those lines.
Either way, we wanted to check out their drinks. At the time of our visit in August 2025, The Pembrokeshire Cider Company had four types of cider:
- William Marshal medium cider
- Cromwell 1648 dry cider
- Henry VII medium dry cider
- Refreshingly crisp mixed berry apple cider
They had a deal when buying three bottles of cider, so we bought one each of the historical figure-related ciders, along with three of the mixed berry ciders. We also bought a bottle of Sovereign apple spiced rum as that sounded delicious too. We’ve not had a chance to try any of them yet, so hopefully they taste as good as they look!
Final Thoughts
Shae, Truffles and I loved our three nights in Pembroke, so we’d recommend it if you’d like a getaway in Wales, especially if you’d like some beach time in the summer.
Thanks for the great information. I’m adding Pembroke to my mental list of places to visit when we’re in the UK.
Great! Hope you enjoy it as much as we did 🙂