The Wales Coastal Path – Rhossili Bay and Burry Holms

Spectacular views out to the Atlantic, huge sandy beaches and an island that you may get marooned on! What's not to love?

This walk an unusual one, as it’s important to get the timing right to make the most of it. Yes, a nice day, yes, summer may bring better weather than winter – but more than that, you need to get the time of day right – and that time changes day by day.

Why is that? Well, this walk along part of the stunning Wales Coastal Path, on the Gower Peninsula, allows you to see Burry Holms – which will let you see some of the greatest views on this walk. Time it right – and the views are yours. Time it wrong and, well, you’ll be able to enjoy them for hours, as the tiny island will be cut off from the mainland until the tide subsides once more.

You can get tide times for each day from various websites such as tidetimes.org.uk, and you can usually get to and from the island for a couple of hours each side of low tide.

Don't miss

Views of the Gower Peninsula when looking back from Burry Holms, and the chance to see seals in the sea around here.

Good to know

Start and end point

Hill End Car Park.
What3Words: ///recovery.crew.sensibly
Lat/Long: 51°35’40.0″N 4°17’28.7″W

Distance

Approximately 4½ miles (7¼ km)

Difficulty

This is a relatively easy walk with few significant climbs – but you will be walking on sand for much of the time, which can be hard work.

Directions

Park in the Hillend car park, and then find one of the paths to the beach. There’s one at about 11 o’clock and one at about 7 o’clock – either will take you along a sandy path to the beach. When you get to the beach, turn north

Be aware that tides can come in quickly, and that some of the small inlet streams may become harder to pass at some times. You’ll need to cross one shown on the OS map as Diles Lake – but don’t panic – it is a stream, not an actual lake!

Keep along the beach pathway, heading north along Rhossili Bay, and after around a half-hour’s walk, you’ll come to Burry Holms, and, if you’ve timed it right, you’ll be able to cross over to the island. For a very small island, there’s a lot going on – it has, at various points, been home to stone age hunters and to monks, and archeologists have found renmants of quarries, a church, stoneage tools and roman pottery.

Take your time to enjoy the island – there are various rabbit paths (and holes – beware!) but do keep an eye on the tide for returning to the mainland.

Once you’ve climbed back over the rocks where Burry Holms and the mainlaid meet, keep following the path along the cost to the north and around to the east as you head toward Broughton Bay. The path climbs a little as you head over Spaniard Rocks and along the coast toward Bluepool corner – but do take the time to turn back and enjoy the views back toward Burry Holms, as well as forward as the path drops down to Foxhole Point and the expanse of sand which is Broughton Bay.

The path remains easy to see, skirting along the inland edge of the bay, and eventually coming to a gate in front of the Broughton Farm Caravan Park. Go through the gate, bearing right and keep the caravan park on your left. At first, there’s a fence to separate the path from the caravan park, but this ends and you will find yourself walking through the edge of the caravan park, with one row of caravans on your right and the main park to the left. Keep going and you’ll come to a car park at the southern edge of the caravan park.

As you leave the caravan park and car park (there’s a sign for people entering the caravan park) the road curves around to the right, but you need to take the path which curves around to the left, keeping to the left of the wire fence.

8. Follow this path and you’ll climb a little as you skirt around Morris Hill, and as you descend the other side, keep following the path as it bears around to the right slightly, around the edge of a reed bed and through a kissing gate.

The path then begins to follow the edge of the Diles Lake stream which you saw in step 2 – you’ll now follow this stream back to the beach.

When you reach the beach, turn left, and follow the path back – after a couple of hundred metres you’ll return to the paths leading into Hillend car park

The Wales Coastal Path – Rhossili Bay and Burry Holms

Don't miss

Good to know

Directions

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