48 hours in Aberystwyth
Sat prettily on Cardigan Bay, steeped in Georgian-era seaside charm and peppered with independent restaurants and shops, Aberystwyth is a jewel on the west coast of Wales.
Cardiff gets all the love, but for a culture-meets-coast break in Wales, Aberystwyth really nails it. Fizzing with student energy, filled with indie shops and delis, topped off by a sensational arts centre and now storming ahead with its food scene since SY23 gained a Michelin star, this town is the Welsh one to watch. Taking in the full sweep of Cardigan Bay, Aber, as locals fondly call it, has big-city sights and a small-town soul. Here’s how to spend 48 hours here.
Friday
Check-in to: Gwesty Cymru, a handsome Georgian house right on Aber’s Marine Terrace. A spiral staircase twists up to high-ceilinged rooms that are light and charming, with colour-drenched oils by local artist Bethan Clwyd and hand-crafted oak-and-slate furniture. Our absolute favourite is the Blue Room, with its bay window and bathtub offering front-row views of the pounding Irish Sea. At dusk in autumn and winter, storm clouds of starlings can be seen sweeping above the pier. It’s the best free show in town.
The bistro serves an excellent breakfast, including ‘buck rarebit’, a riff on the classic Welsh rarebit with egg and bacon. Or pop down in the evening for mussels and chips with a glass of wine.
Explore: If the Welsh weather is behaving, go for a walk along the seafront, lined with pastel townhouses evoking the glory days of the Victorian era. North Beach is a great scoop of sand and shingle. Even if the sun fails to shine, it can be bracing and spectacular in its moody palette of blues, or when the winds pick up and waves leap over the sea wall. The Royal Pier is half the size it was when it opened in 1865.
Looking at the castle, it’s hard to believe it was one of Edward I’s formidable concentric fortresses back in the 13th century. Now it has been reduced to romantic ruin in grounds that gaze out to sea. Tucked behind it on King Street is the fanciful Gothic-revival, Grade I-listed Old College and its riot of turrets and towers, built in 1795 by John Nash.
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At the end of the prom, you’ll reach the foot of Constitution Hill and its slate cliffs. Look out for the white bar that is the focus of Aberystwyth’s luck-bringing ‘Kicking the Bar’ tradition. Either hoof it up the hill or take the slow, creaky Cliff Railway, the UK’s longest electric funicular. At the top, spirit-lifting views of the town, bay and beyond to the dark peaks of Snowdonia unfold.
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Have lunch at: Ultracomida. A little bubble of Mediterranean warmth, this cool deli, wine merchant and tapas bar is a legend. Find a perch for a sharing platter of cheeses, cured meats and fish, or ingredient-driven tapas that sing of Spain, such as air-dried tuna with vine tomatoes, fresh goats' cheese, almonds, honey and aged vinegar. Pair with a vermouth flight before stocking up on fat, glossy olives and charcuterie in the shop.
Shop: The odd chain has crept in, but overall Aberystwyth’s shopping scene is fiercely independent. Spend a relaxed afternoon pottering around delis, antique shops, bookshops and boutiques. On Bridge Street, Agnelli’s is a gorgeously old-fashioned emporium of Italian goodies, from Sardinian pecorino to Sicilian pistachio cannoli. It’s close to Coastal Antiques, a rambling attic of retro and antique finds, and Ystwyth Books, packed the rafters with second-hand books.
Heading slightly east to Chalybeate Street, you’ll find coffee beans and single-estate teas weighed on antique scales at The Mecca Tea and Coffee Merchants, and upcycled lampshades, local art prints and one-of-a-kind crafts at Red Vintage Lighting which, incidentally, also arrange silk-printing and lamp-making workshops.
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Dine at: SY23, where acclaimed chef Nathan Davies walks the culinary high wire. He forages and ferments to achieve sensational, thoroughly Welsh flavours in signature dishes like turbot cooked whole over the fire with cockles and sea vegetables and lamb with black garlic.
Upbeat music plays in the Michelin-starred restaurant (also named ‘Opening of the Year’ in 2022 by the Michelin Guide), where a 10-course tasting menu is served in intimate, indigo-blue surrounds. Dinner is booked up months ahead (so reserve well ahead), but it’s easier to snag a table on the fire-warmed terrace for wine and tapas.
Grab a nightcap at: Rummers Wine Bar in a former boathouse, which rocks until midnight with live bands and DJs.
Saturday
Get a culture fix: After a quick breakfast of locally roasted coffee and crêpes at Y Caban (The Cabin), head up to Aberystwyth Arts Centre, a 20-minute walk uphill. This cultural showstopper is Wales’ biggest art centre, staging a high-calibre line-up of opera, drama, dance and concerts, as well as thought-provoking temporary art exhibitions with a Welsh slant that are free to visit.
Nearby is the hilltop National Library of Wales, a vast repository of millions of rare and precious books, maps and manuscripts, including the 13th-century Black Book of Carmarthen, the oldest existing Welsh text. As you climb the stairs to the gallery, which showcases a phenomenal collection of Welsh art, keep an eye out for the Nanteos Cup, an ancient wooden mazer bowl believed by some to be the Holy Grail.
Eat at: Jonah’s Fish Market. All the locals sing the praises of this fishmonger on Cambrian Place, which sells terrific fish and shellfish fresh off the boats. There’s also a well-edited selection of lunch specials like tandoori salmon tacos and dressed crab with citrus mayo and sourdough.
Brush up on local heritage at: the Ceredigion Museum, lodged in the Edwardian Coliseum theatre. The exhibition tells the story of regional history through artefacts, from Bronze Age burial urns to nutshells intricately carved by sailors.
Afterwards, go for a walk to Tan-Y-Bwlch beach just south of town. Often peaceful even in summer, this great arc of pebbles sits in the mysterious shadow of the Iron Age hill fort of Pen Dinas.
Book an early dinner at: Medina for an artsy, laid-back vibe and an inexpensive feast of Middle Eastern mezze. Go for the ras el hanout chicken with mint yogurt and salads like kale, butternut squash, cranberries, confit shallots and toasted almonds – all mopped up with warm pitta.
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Sip a craft beer at: Bottle and Barrel, a retro-flavoured bar and bottle shop that feels like someone’s living room, albeit with a staggering array of Welsh ciders, meads and craft beers from hazy IPAs to coffee milk stouts.
Sunday
Take a hike: Hook onto the Ceredigion Coast Path for some fresh sea air before heading home. A beautiful breezy walk winds up a gorse-clad path to Constitution Hill, then heads five miles (8km) north along the clifftops to Borth’s three-mile (4.8km) ribbon of golden sand. Look out for bottlenose dolphins splashing around offshore and, on clear days, the distant outline of Bardsey Island. At very low tide, the petrified stumps of a prehistoric forest are revealed.
For a longer hike, tag on another three miles (4.8km) to Ynyslas Dunes, an uplifting expanse of sea, sky and rippling sand that’s part of the Dyfi National Nature Reserve.
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Getting there and around
The best way to get to Aberystwyth is by rail. The Cambrian Coast railway line has an hourly service that links Aberystwyth with London, Liverpool, Manchester and other UK cities via Birmingham International and Shrewsbury.
For more information on Aberystwyth and its surroundings visit the Ceredigion tourism board.
Lead image: steved_np3/Shutterstock
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