We revisited the beautiful area around Stackpole in summer 2026, walking a five miles circular route, starting and finishing at Stackpole Quay.

The first 2 miles of this walk are on a wonderful section of the Pembrokeshire Coast Path, passing a couple of the finest beaches to be found along the path, Barafundle and Broad Haven South.

To reach Barafundle Bay from Stackpole Quay, follow the way marked path from the National Trust buildings, first on a rising path then a flight of steps. The path then crosses a field on a well worn track to reach a headland overlooking Barafundle Bay.

Barafundle Bay is beautifully scenic and has received acclaim as one of the most idyllic beaches in the world, though the publicity has resulted in it becoming busy with more tourists in recent years. We certainly noticed this on our most recent visit.

The path leads to a stone archway and a ledge nearby offers a birds-eye view across the bay, so you can fully appreciate the ‘picture postcard’ scenery.

A flight of stone steps lead down onto the pristine sands of the beach.

The beach is backed by dunes with sandy paths leading into countryside. The coast path crosses the beach then meanders uphill through a lovely shaded ancient woodland.

Through the trees are wonderful views across the bay, before the path emerges onto open clifftops.

It’s worthwhile taking a look back, to enjoy fine views of the dramatic coastline including the rock formation with huge arches, known as ‘Lattice Windows’.

Continuing westwards on grassy clifftop tracks there are more superb views of the dramatic scenery with rugged cliffs, huge sea caves, and secluded coves.

Broad Haven South

This beach is notable not just for the wide swathe of golden sands but also the ‘Church Rock’ which sits just offshore. The name derives from its distinctive profile which resembles a church steeple.

The place name of Stackpole also originates from this rock feature, as in medieval times the rock was ‘the stack’ and the sea ‘the pool’, so the ‘Stack pool’ eventually became Stackpole!

We walked down across the hillside and crossed a small wood footbridge over a babbling stream to have a wander on the wide sands of the beach.

To continue on the circular route, we retraced our steps back to the footbridge and followed the paths inland around the scenic Bosherston Lily Ponds.

Stackpole Estate and The Lily Ponds

Stackpole Estate is a beautiful area of woodland, lakes and country parkland. The area was first landscaped during the 18th and 19th Centuries as a country estate of the Cawdor family.

Originally a series of creeks from natural springs in nearby valleys, a visitor noted how high spring tides formed a series of temporary picturesque pools. This inspired an idea to dam the creeks permanently to create an amazing scenic landscape we see today..

During early summer months the ponds are filled with spectacular flowering water lilies.

A trail leads around the banks of the ponds, which are flanked by richly wooded hillsides. A network of paths and footbridges link both sides of the ponds so you can fully explore the wonderful landscape and enjoy birdwatching, nature and wildlife.

To head back towards Stackpole Quay, we crossed the impressive Eight Arch Bridge. Constructed in the 1790’s when Stackpole was developing as a grand country estate, it’s a wonderful scenic link with the woodland and rolling countryside on the opposite bank.

From the bridge, there’s a gentle climb uphill before descending to the car park at Stackpole Quay.

An alternative path is way marked from the hill towards Barafundle Bay. This path leads through Shippingback Wood and into a gated paddock, where to the right is an ancient landmark. a ‘Devil’s Quoit’ standing stone. There’s a mystical presence to such stones so it’s worthwhile to seek one out if nearby on a walk.

See the map below for the alternative path route and location of the standing stone.

At Stackpole Quay we made our way to the Boathouse Tearoom to end this scenic walk in a pleasant setting.

More information on access, parking and facilities can be found at this link Stackpole Quay.

This post updated September 2026.

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/wales/stackpole-quay