Keeping teens entertained in Pembroke in August

[DrMadelineMaxwell]

We are staying in a cottage in August and will be looking for ideas for day trips in the area around Pembroke Castle.

TIA

There is loads to do!
Paddle west does surf lessons and also canoe and kayak tours around the Cleddau if they are interested in that. They also have row boats outside Pembroke mill pond which are great. Wild Lakes Wales is a great wakeboarding park.
Oakwood theme park good for roller coasters etc. Heatherton has tree tops for younger teens (go ape style course). Manor Park (Anna's welsh zoo) also a good day out with loads of animals.
Local beaches are fantastic and cinema in Carmarthen (Vue) if it is a wet day.

If you fancy particular pubs and restaurants though it is worth booking ahead as everything gets very busy in August. I'd also probably pre book some attractions if you can as Folly Farm was fully booked this half term (also a good day out but more aimed at younger children). Hope you have a wonderful holiday!

Tenby is great for teenagers

Sorry outerreef for surf lessons, paddle west for kayak!

Will you have a car? Can the teens swim?

If so, you’ve got miles and miles of beaches to explore from your location. Try stand up paddle boarding, surf lessons, there is a brilliant inflatable water park (with wakeboarding, too).

Drive a little further a field and head over to St David’s to try Coasteering, or take a boat ride out to see the wild life such as seal, porpoise and dolphins. If you’re brave, there’s Dr Benyons bug farm which serves up amazing dishes incorporating various insects 🐜.

For rainy days, head to Haverfordwest for karting and trampoline park. Or the Blue lagoon at Blue Stone for indoor swimming and water slides.

Do not go to Oakwood theme park.

Tenby for some lovely little shops, ice cream, boats and again, amazing beaches. Sadly our resident walrus has gone.

There is so much to do - climbing, cycling, water sports of every kind (and many places offering hire and lessons), great eateries etc. You just need to be prepared to drive a bit. But do visit Pembroke Castle as it is one of the best.

Folly Farm is great for all ages.
My teen loves the walk around Bosherston lily ponds ending up on the beach for a swim (great rock pools if the tide is right).
A trip to Caldy Island.
As a pp said Tenby is great for teens
DS likes Heatherington for shooting! We don't spend long there.
Battlefield is great - it's an outdoor laser things where you run around in teams - that was great fun

Mine were happy to spend hours on the beach in Pembrokeshire - some beautiful beaches.

Beaches, beaches, beaches.
You could go to a different one every day - so many lovely ones.
Definitely Tenby and a trip to Caldey Island.
We’ve done mackerel fishing from Tenby which my children really enjoyed.
Or a speedboat trip to watch dolphins and seals (though the jellyfish were by far the easiest thing to spot!)

We will have a car.
Dd can swim but is too precious about how long it takes to do her hair after that she rarely swims. But these suggestions are all great.

Thanks for the tip about booking places to eat in advance.

Ps....why not the theme park?

Folly farm is great, it's aimed at younger children but there is a vintage fairground, zoo, farm, lots of outdoor space.

Oakwood (the theme park) is old and tired but we like it, there's never queues for rides. We use our Tesco vouchers to cover the cost, I wouldn't pay full price. It can be hit and miss on which rides are open on any given day as well.

Tenby is good for beaches, cafes etc. There's an art gallery, lifeboat station, Tudor merchants house, amusement arcade so lots to explore. You can also get the boat to Caldey island from there and there are mackerel fishing trips and seal spotting trips which go out from the harbour.

Carew castle and water mill is nice for a walk around.

I don't think it's open at the moment but the Blue Lagoon at Bluestone is good if they like swimming pools - it's got flumes, a lazy river and wave machine. It's quite pricey - last time we went was 2019 and it was £12.95 for a three hour session. If you go last session of the evening you can pay half that for an hour and a half session though.

Carmarthen is about 45 mins away and is bigger, has a pizza express and more shops.

We are going to Tenby in July, I can't wait!

We had season tickets for Oakwood a few years ago. Our DC are younger and it was ok but honestly, nothing has changed since I was a child. It’s run down (think broken rides and dilapidated buildings). My main concern is safety as I personally feel that it’s an accident waiting to happen. There is no investment made to the park which is a real shame. I see no future in it unless the land gets bought and the whole place raised to the ground and something else put in its place.

We actually went a few weeks ago for a friends birthday and the queues were awful. Hardly any staff around and the few rides that are worth going on took 45mins-1 hour to get on. We didn’t go on in the end which I was secretly quite glad about given my point about safety above.