Gower Peninsula - what's it like for a holiday?

[Wigeon]

Planning a week away in August, self-catering, as cheap as possible without being actively nasty. DD will be 3.2 and DC2 (currently unborn!) will be 3 months.

DH has thought of the Gower Peninsula because: 1) he saw it on TV once and it looked pretty, 2) it looks interesting on a map (ie lots of coast) and 3) it's only about 3 hours from where we live. These all seem like good reasons to me, but what's it actually like? Am worried that it might be: Tacky seaside or cheap-and-nasty seaside? Full of old people or full of (drunk) hen parties? Nightmare in August as everywhere is chockablock?

Or is it actually the perfect holiday for a young family? We would be happy with: ice-cream on the beach, walks on a beach / cliff, rock-pooling, messing about with a bucket and spade, wandering round a pretty village, visiting the odd National Trust-type place or castle or ruins, going to the odd pub for lunch.

Thanks!

we had the most lovely holiday there when our dcs were about the same age as yours, in spring.
I don't know what it's like in the summer if it gets crowded, but in terms of scale it's perfect for young children.

went there in august a few years ago and it was lovely. we did have good weather which obviously helped. 3 cliffs bay is one of the best beaches you will find anywhere. no-where was that busy - though we do live in a pretty touristy place anyway. its also near to swansea if you have bad weather. can't remember anything tacky and i'm sure i would have and no hen parties - to be honest if i moved to wales i wouldn't mind living there myself.

and we are very fussy as we live in a beautiful place near the sea

Thank you very much both, very helpful!

Evening bump for any more thoughts?

Used to live very near. It's great if you want beaches and rock pools, there isn't much else really. No large towns, just small villages with one shop a piece. But yes, Swansea v close by if you need anything

It's perfect for chilling and walking, but it does rain a lot

I think it offers everything you want except pretty villages. The beaches are beautiful. We went in October though so I'm not sure how busy it gets in high season. You should have a great time. :)

Thanks again - it's sounding like a defnite possibility! We don't want too much excitement - I think getting used to our new baby plus 3 year old, outside the house, will be exciting enough!

You certainly won't get too much excitement! It's lovely but can be a bit damp. We went during whitsun half term if I remember right, and it wasn't too crowded. There's one of those squeaky beaches at Rhossilli.

I've been there many times, its one of my favourite places in the world.

Last year, DD was 3 and we rented a big house in Rhossilli. Main activities were playing on the beach at Rhossilli (might be difficult to access with toddler and baby and beach stuff though as there are many steps) and PortEynon, Mewslade and Horton I think. We went to the Gower Heritage Centre (don't go there, waste of money), Three Cliffs Bay and did lots of stuff like flying kites and dog walking etc.

There are a few nice pubs - like one at Reynoldstone in the middle of Gower -lovely village with wild ponies munching away on the green. We ate outside a lot there, lovely atmosphere there.

Take a wetsuit for your 3 year old, windbreaks, buckets and spades and you'll have a great time.

I don't think there is any nightlife there at all really, other than the pubs. There is a bit of a surf type scene at Llangennith which you might want to avoid as I guess the campsite there isn't the most suitable for a young family.

Ooh, sounds lovely. Have been googling self-catering cottages and toddler wetsuits . Don't need any nightlife - we will be going to bed at 9pm probably!

What is a squeaky beach?

when you walk along, the sand makes a squeaky noise. It's quite strange. It's something to do with all the grains of sand being an even size.

Catherine Zeta Jones has house thee somewhere.. very big!!
We had ahorse riding holiday there and really enjoyed it- check out national trust properties there- I think Rhossili is NT.

Gower is fab - we live about an hour away and often do day trips out of season. The Mumbles has more shops/cafes/pubs restauarants - but not much in the way of beach. We stayed near Port Eynon last year but Rhosilli and 3 cliffs bay are our fave beaches for nice long walks. Oxwich is a nice flat - easy access with baby and toddler - beach, with a little cafe and a hotel with a lovely beer garden for meals. We also had a day further west - Tenby and Camarthen - and it was a really good base. Its chilled and uncommercialised - rather than tacky.

I would definitely recommend Gower for family holidays. The beaches are amazing, it's a peninsula so easy to explore. My favourite beaches are Three Cliffs and Pwll Du. Langland and Oxwich are more accessible with little kids and both have cafes and toilets. Swansea is only a 30 minute drive from the furthest point on Gower so you can visit the LC with its 4 storey soft play area, climbing wall and Wales' biggest waterpark with toddler splash areas and a jacuzzi. I live here so I might be biased but the village of Mumbles is a great base with lots of cafes, boutiques restaurants and Swansea Bay promenade and the pier and Langland and Caswell beach close by.