So much has changed as regards food experiences since our family’s annual pilgrimage to St Davids as children. Back then, a Welsh rarebit and a pepsi-float was about as adventurous as it got. But in this post I’m going to perform a shallow dive into three trailblazing new food experiences that capture both the locality of St Davids but add a sprinkle of contemporary dining and imaginative concepts. 

First, let’s take a look at The Really Wild Emporium which is the place to go for foraged products and seriously innovative dishes. What you eat there will depend very much on what the owners are able to forage that same day so every dining experience here is totally unique and idiosyncratic. Leaning heavily on delicious local produce, eating at The Really Wild Emporium is truly an unforgettable and – not to mention – environmentally sound experience. 

Secondly, we have St Davids Gin and Kitchen. This place is an absolute Mecca for the finest gin and seafood in St Davids. We can’t recommend the seafood platters highly enough, involving produce which is primarily caught the very same day. And if that wasn’t enough to get you salivating, the choice of gin is simply breathtaking. Add to that a relaxed and friendly atmosphere and St Davids Gin and Kitchen is truly a special place to spend an evening. 

Lastly, but not leastly, we have Grain – the pizzeria with a difference. Using very local produce, the boys and girls at Grain have created distinctive and innovative pizzas with toppings that will absolutely take you by surprise. And don’t hesitate to order some of their local beers and ciders too, if you need something to wash down this heaven-sent carby goodness. 

All these amazing food experiences can be found in close proximity to Yewdale cottage, Pembrokeshire and will make your week long holiday or romantic short stay an unforgettable experience. 

One of our favourite things to do as soon as we arrive in St Davids is to book a boat trip to Ramsey Island. Especially now we all have young children, this excursion is very often the highlight of our holiday. There’s really no feeling like having the wind in your hair while scooting across the green-blue sea to a place totally uninhabited by human life.

The nature in West Wales is so incredibly diverse that there are so many amazing things you might happen to see. Seals are obviously a mainstay, using the rock to raise their young while lethargically slipping into the water when a hunt is necessary.

But we’ve often come back from our day trip with incredible pictures of dolphins, porpoises, guillemots and even a peregrine falcon. As apposed to a zoo or farm park, here you can truly see the animals exist in their natural habitats and it is a most moving and exhilarating experience. The professional guides will know exactly which spots to hit so just sit back and let them show you some of the most breathtaking nature that you will find in the British Isles.

From Yewdale Cottage, you can easily drive down to St Justinians where the boat launches from. It’ll only take you around five minutes in the car. And from there you jump on board and have a fantastic time!

Our favourite tour operator is Voyages of Discovery who offer an incredible 1 hour experience for just £35 a head. There’s absolutely no way you’ll feel short-changed as you upload all your incredible nature shots to social media.

So please, need we say more, book your holiday to St Davids, Pembrokeshire now and enjoy some seriously life affirming moments. And hey, you may just find a whole new porpoise to life!

In a world of rejuvenating spa treatments and facial injections promising everlasting youth, it’s easy to forget that natural elixirs of health and beauty do still exist. At St Non’s chapel there is a holy well which does just that. Indeed, the mystic and spiritual sensibilities of St Non’s will revitalise the weary walker and allow them to continue their trek with vim and vigour.

Although this ancient chapel is now just a skeleton of its former self, there’s so much more to explore at the site of St Non’s and it’s always a pilgrimage we, as a family, love to take while holidaying at Yewdale Cottage. “And did those feet, in ancient times…” is a phrase that springs to mind as one is invited to imagine all the many lives who have lived and worshipped at St Non’s through the decades, centuries and millennia.

As well as the afore mentioned holy well, where visitors are invited to rub the water into body parts which require healing, there are the standing stones which are believed to be a pagan (are there any other types of standing stones?) place of worship long before Pontius Pilate did a naughty in Judaea.

Also, you’ll find a modern chapel built in 1934 by Cecil Morgan-Griffiths, a solicitor from Carmarthen.

St Non’s can be found on a spectacular coastal walk that our annual family holiday always involves. Starting in St Davids city centre, you walk out to Caerfai Bay, a beautiful and secluded little beach. From there you walk around the coastline until you stumble upon the unassuming remains of St Non’s Chapel. We’ll often eat some peanuts at this point. From here you can head back inland or the hardened walker can continue on round to Whitesands bay.

If all this sounds like just what the doctor ordered, do consider a short break or long stay in Yewdale cottage, St Davids.

Pembrokeshire and St Davids are special places for all manner of extreme sports. But one clearly dominates above all. And that, of course, is surfing. Most locals will have found themselves on a board of some kind within the first few years of their lives and, from the multitude of surf shacks and board shops, it is clear that surfing is a much loved pastime in West Wales.

Everyone’s got their favourite beach to run unapologetically into the swell with a wetsuit and a surf board but for us here at Yewdale, it absolutely has to be Whitesands. One of the great things about this surf spot is that it suits all ages and skill levels and, at peak times, will always have a lifeguard presence so you can guarantee safety for you and your family.

As well as this, wetsuit and board hire can be often found on Whitesands so you don’t have to lug boards from St Davids down to the beach and can simply return them once you are done.

The waves on Whitesands vary but are often relatively tame which is absolutely perfect for surfers who are still cutting their teeth somewhat. But do watch out because it can also be an immensely rough coastline when the wind picks up and the water starts to swell.

Yewdale cottage is just a quick walk from Whitesands which, for our money, is one of the most beautiful coastlines in West Wales. From Whitesands you can explore all manner of coastal paths and it’s a mainstay for all holiday-makers. And if you do want to spice up your beach frolics, then you should absolutely grab a board and go running out into the sea.

It’s never too late to start a new hobby. And what better place to do it than on holiday?

Coasteering in St Davids is a must if you are on a family holiday with kids, or even a boozy weekend with the girls. There’s nothing quite like waking up at the crack of dawn, showering in your gorgeous holiday cottage, slipping into a wetsuit and heading down to St Davids amazing coastline for an early morning battle with the salty waves.

You truly get a different perspective of Pembrokeshire’s beautiful coastline when you are bobbing about in the – at first cold, but then deliciously warm – ocean. And the feeling of achievement at the end of it is a catharsis that all should enjoy. You never feel freer than when you are in water and coasteering offers a range of dare-devil activities to do so your experience is not just calm and placid but exhilarating and exciting.

Coasteering in West Wales is truly a Jack-of-all-trades sort of pursuit. You can be rock climbing one minute, abseiling the next, and then you’re in the salty foam and swimming from cove to cove before climbing out so you can leap into the water once more. If you’re a family on holiday with grumpy teenagers who only want to stare at their devices, we guarantee that by the end of the session you will feel just a little bit closer. Because it’s almost impossible not to have fun when you are coasteering in St Davids.

A brief walk from Yewdale Cottage, our cozy and beautiful holiday let, you will find TYF in St Davids city centre. They are very experienced and would love to take you on a summer or winter adventure in 2024. It’s something that any break in West Wales urgently demands and we cannot recommend it highly enough.

It’s things like coasteering that make St Davids, Pembrokeshire such a special place to visit.