This July we went back to one of our favourite places, but somewhere we haven't been for a few years - lovely Tenby!

The Clarence House Hotel is situated on the cliffs above Tenby's South Beach, and for most of the week we enjoyed stunning views across the Caldey Island, which is home to a community of monks. Unfortunately on Wednesday, our free day, Caldey Island completely disappeared from view due to all day rain and mist, which put a bit of a dampener on plans to head across by boat and explore. However for the rest of the week the weather was fairly good, with the odd shower or two!

Our first excursion was to the beautiful Aberglasney Gardens, which, 30 years ago, were abandoned and overgrown. The restoration was the subject of TV series 'A Garden Lost in Time', and today it is  a stunning place to explore. We were lucky to have a guided tour included which told us lots of information about the history and preservation of the gardens and wider estate. 

On our second day we headed to Carmarthen for some free time, where some of our party enjoyed a walk alongside the river, and others explored the town centre. Then, we made the short journey to Gwili Railway, which was a brand new visit for us. It is a lesser known heritage railway compared with some others, but runs for 4.5 miles through the Welsh countryside

Our final excursion was a scenic drive through Pembrokeshire, beginning with a visit to the famous Lovespoon Workshop just outside Tenby. This excellent visit begins with a talk about the history of lovespoon making and demonstration, as well as an explanation of the various different lovespoons the workshop has made over the year, which are displayed on the walls. 

From here we  continue to the little town of Pembroke for free time to explore. Pembroke is famous for its castle situated alongside the river, which was the birthplace of Henry Tudor who later became Henry VII of England.