Harry Pope South Wales tour: photographer road trip

We’re big fans of getting everyone out on the road! Go capital to coast with this Wales road trip itinerary by photographer Harry Pope and discover why Wales is a classic summer road trip that belongs on your travel bucket list.

Over to Harry to tell us about his South Wales adventure!

The van we hired

Our van of choice? Meet Chino, a 4-berth 50-year-old fully refurbished campervan with a brand new interior, double gas hob, fridge, two double beds and much more. We chose Chino because we wanted a retro feel but with modern fittings, and this van certainly fit the bill. Chino comes with both gas and electric heating, ensuite, a shower and toilet, outdoor furniture, a microwave, a TV, wifi, Bluetooth and even a hoover! It was just the two of us on this trip, but Chino is pet-friendly and family-friendly too.

Jedina and I picked up Chinofrom Watford, getting a simple but thorough handover from owner Michael, who told us all we needed to know about the van. Then it was time to hit the road, off to Wales to explore Cardiff and the South Wales coast.

Setting off on our trip

We had already decided on a South Wales trip, mostly along the coast to see seaside towns like Tenby as well as the coastline of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. We wanted to fit in some city sightseeing too, so drove Chino from Watford to Cardiff (153 miles) for the first day of our trip. The four-hour journey time gave us plenty of time to get used to the van.

From Cardiff, we drove west along the coast to the Gower Peninsula to stop at The Mumbles and Rhossili Bay, then further west to the Pembrokeshire coast. From there, we explored the Pembrokeshire coastline and its seaside towns. Finally, we drove a short distance north towards Cardigan Bay, then back to Cardiff.

The complete trip including the drive from and back to Watford was about 560 miles. We took a full week for it - next time, we might hire a van in Cardiff and start another Wales road trip from there. Here’s our road trip on Google Maps.

On the road

We quickly found out that Chino’s speedy engine makes it a fabulous drive. It also didn’t take much time for Chino to be noticed on the roads: we had loads of attention from other travellers and drivers throughout the trip, especially people who remember Kombis when new.

A van this old does require a little extra care from its drivers and some patience, as owner Michael pointed out on pick-up. But Chino turned out to be an amazing van, easily the best we’ve ever had for a trip. As well as driving like a dream, the inside was spacious and comfortable too.

Our trip highlights

Our trip through the south of Wales in the summer took us through many beautiful locations. We began our journey from Cardiff just cruising along past wide-open green countryside that rolled into a beautiful coastline. We had so many fabulous stops, but here are our absolute top six.

The Mumbles

The Mumbles is a headland on the western edge of Swansea Bay on the southern coast of Wales. It’s so beautiful we ended up spending the entire day here, eating ice cream in the sun and patting the many friendly dogs on Mumbles Pier.

We were already in full-blown holiday mode at this point, meaning indulging in good local food, walking anywhere that looked pretty, and staying up late on our campsites talking to other campervanners over tea and biscuits.

Tenby

The next favourite highlight was Tenby, a seaside and harbour town in southwest Wales, known for its 13th-century town walls and its sandy beaches. We spent most of a full day here, but want to go back at some point in the near future to spend a bit more time, maybe taking a boat cruise around the harbour or trying out stand-up paddle boarding or surfing.

Pembroke Castle

Another place you absolutely won’t want to miss if you’re in the area is Pembroke Castle - a medieval castle surrounded by a moat in the centre of Pembroke, not far from Tenby. We went to visit and to explore the castle, spending a few hours there, then had a snack and coffee in the outdoor seating around the café.

St Davids

We’d heard a lot about St Davids before our trip, so it was always going to be on our bucket list. This is the smallest city in Britain, known for its 12th-century cathedral and as a famous place of pilgrimage in Wales. We visited the cathedral and the Bishop’s Palace opposite, then went to the Oriel y Parc Gallery in the National Park Information Centre. As with Tenby, we intend to go back to St David's to spend more time there, maybe taking a boat trip out to Skomer Island.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/uNsK0eDx7dQ

Fishguard

As a photographer, Fishguard was a must-see. We got there early to walk up to the fort overlooking the town and harbour (about a mile’s walk) - there are still cannons here from World War 2. After that, we bought coffee and sandwiches for a picnic lunch by the harbour, soaking up the sights. We were tempted to take the shuttle bus out to the Strumble Head lighthouse as it’s said to be one of the best spots in Wales to spot dolphins and porpoises, but decided to leave that for next time, as we’ll definitely be back!

Cardigan Bay

We went a little way into West Wales for the last day of our trip as we wanted to see the largest bay in Wales, Cardigan Bay. We drove from Fishguard up to one of the Cardigan Bay towns, New Quay, which is on the Ceredigion Coast Path. Again we spent a full day here, sunbathing on the beach then taking the Cei Bach circular walk around town and back by the beach. We finished our day with a trip to New Quay Honey Farm, the biggest bee farm in Wales, where we bought jars of honey to take home.

Our favourite campsites in Wales

There’s an abundance of campsites all over Wales, but these were our two favourites, taking into account cost, cleanliness and facilities:

Ty Coch Campsite, Newport - an adults-only campsite in a green oasis 15 minutes’ drive from Cardiff and Newport. We chose a grass pitch which was £22 for the night for us both, plus £4 for electric hook-up.

Address: B4239 Saint Brides, Newport NP10 8SR

Phone : 07983 615984

Wood Office Caravan & Tent Park, Narberth, Pembrokeshire - on 10 acres of parkland close to Narberth town. The £xx pitches were roomy and had electric hook-up. There’s a shop and off-licence on site.

Address : Wood Office, Narberth SA67 8RR

Phone : 01834 860565

The campsites we saw along our route varied in how busy they were - some very busy, others mostly empty. The average price is around £20-30 for a pitch with an electric hook-up.

Ready to explore more

Overall we absolutely loved our first-time road-tripping Wales in our little Chino. It truly felt like a renaissance of the classic, beautiful UK summer trip and we will be going back to explore much more of Wales as soon as we can - hopefully in the same van if it’s available.

Exploring the countryside in an old VW Kombi has been a bucket list trip for us for a very long time and now we can finally tick that off, add our polaroid photos to our travel scrapbook and tell stories of our latest epic adventure to others.

Thanks again, Camplify!

Camplify says…

We know this beautiful region well and are delighted that Harry and Jedina loved their trip! If you’d like to explore this beautiful part of the world, check out our best road trip in South Wales so you can set off armed with all the info on the best spots.

We also have guides for a North Wales road trip, our best road trip around Wales and places to visit on a west coast of Wales road trip, as well as info on the best campervan spots in Wales and advice on wild camping in Wales for campervans and motorhomes.

And of course you’ll need a van! Our campervan hire in London, campervan hire in Wales and campervan hire in the UK listings are packed with vans to rent for your trip. Happy travels!

There's always time to put your feet up...

Harry Pope is an incredible photographer and videographer who comes from the UK but takes photos all over the world. You can see more of Harry and why we wanted to work with him on Instagram, or check out his website_!_