Plan your dog-friendly holiday in West Wales with this four day itinerary

I’d never visited this part of Wales before so I was thrilled to have the opportunity to spend a long weekend exploring Carmarthenshire with my partner – and dedicated dog dad – Josh, our toddler, and our two vizslas, Vinnie and Vesper. Together, we set out to uncover what makes this area ideal for a family holiday for those with pups as passengers: from the superb dog-friendly accommodation to the abundance of outdoor activities on offer.

Here’s everything we got up to on our four days of dog-friendly fun in Carmarthenshire, including going walkies around weathered strongholds and 'rolling over' the Welsh countryside on a restored steam train.

With Carmarthenshire known as the 'Garden of Wales', it only felt fitting to begin our trip at what has to be the most impressive one in the country, the National Botanical Gardens of Wales, the grounds of which are open to dogs on Mondays, Fridays, and the first weekend of each month.

The 500-acre garden’s centerpiece is the teardrop-shaped 'great glasshouse', the largest single-span glasshouse in the world (consisting of 785 panes of glass!). Beneath this glistening shell are some of the rarest plants in the world. Unfortunately, this area is a no-go zone for dogs, but there are plenty of lovely trails that wind around lakes and rock sculptures, including a Gruffalo-themed walk our little one loved.

Having walked up an appetite, we headed for lunch at Wright’s Food Emporium, located in the village of Llanarthney, just a 10-minute drive from the botanical gardens. This cosy canine-welcoming cafe offers a new menu every Monday, utilising locally-sourced ingredients to create an array of curries, stews and goulashes – even baking their own bread for their range of delicious sandwiches.

From here, it was only a short drive to our base for the weekend, the Landal GreenParks Dylan Coastal Resort. We checked into our amazing dog-friendly lodge, which was super spacious and boasted an enclosed decking area overlooking the Taf Estuary – complete with a private hot tub (more on that later!). An open plan living space like this really works for the dogs when we go away as they can always see us. We quickly settled in for the night, and Dog Dad whipped up a lovely evening meal for us all.

One of the benefits of travelling with a small human who likes to make sure we all start our day at the crack of dawn is that we get to see some beautiful sunrises when we travel, and the one that greeted us on our Saturday morning in Wales was particularly stunning.

Once the sun had fully stretched above the horizon, Vinnie and Vesper were keen to get out exploring, so we made a beeline for Pendine Sands, a beach just a 10-minute drive along the coast, which has dog-friendly sections all year round. This huge flat curtain of golden sand is a dog’s delight for zoomies, which feels apt, given five land speed records were set here in the early 1900s (the Museum of Land Speed, dedicated to these great speed feats is located close to the shoreline).

Having felt the revitalising Welsh sea breeze in our hair and/or ears, it was time to warm up with a puppuccino! We’d heard that Baileys Dog Cafe in the nearby town of Carmarthen served a particularly good one, and it’s safe to say Vinnie and Vesper were thoroughly satisfied, even having their names written on their mugs. The pup-themed cafe, located a catapult throw from the Norman-built Carmarthen Castle, also offers an enticing ‘Hooman Menu’ stocking a selection of sandwiches including, fittingly, The Vegan Vizsla (that’s vegan cheese, onion chutney and rocket, in case you were wondering).

With our appetites alleviated and the dogs delighted, we took a quick stroll through the streets of Carmarthen, a magical little town with genuine wizarding connections – the magician Merlin was said to have been born in a cave on the settlement’s outskirts. Though we were thoroughly entranced, we couldn’t dally too long, as we had a train to catch. 

It feels like all toddlers have a fascination with trains, and our small one was thrilled to take a ride on the Gwili Steam Railway: a preserved steam train that slowly puffs through the picturesque Welsh countryside, tracing the banks of the Gwili River. Vesper did great on her first steam train ride, though Vinnie seemed more interested in sniffing beneath the beautiful vintage tables and chairs than admiring the views slipping past the train’s wide windows. 

After hearing that a storm could be on the way, we decided to not stray too far from our accommodation during our last full day in Carmarthenshire, opting to explore the town of Laugharne, which, much to Vinnie and Vespa’s delight, was within walking distance of our chalet.

The pretty town has strong literary connections, having been the adopted home of legendary Welsh poet, Dylan Thomas – the town has even been touted as the real-life counterpart of Llareggub, the fictional village at the centre of one of Dylan’s most beloved works, Under Milk Wood. A walking trail around the town, which also hosts the quirky Laugharne Weekend festival each summer, takes you to both Dylan’s home, overlooking the estuary, and his preserved writing shed, perched on the hillside above.

Along with its Dylan Thomas connections, Laugharne is also a draw for castle connoisseurs. The town’s namesake stronghold, Laugharne Castle, makes for a dramatic sight, with a pair of medieval stone towers standing guard over a Tudor-era mansion. I loved that this castle is dog-friendly, and it was so much fun poking around its weathered rooms and strolling the ornamental gardens. The little one and I even climbed up one of the towers, though I had to carry him back down, of course.

With just enough time for a quick bite at nearby Ty Glo, a pooch-welcoming pizzeria (that also serves ice cream sundaes little visitors will love!), we hurried back to our lodge before the storm arrived. When it did appear, the storm was actually very peaceful and I enjoyed listening to the serene sound of the rain on the roof of our lodge, while Vinnie, Vesper and the little one all napped. Dog Dad, however, did not let the adverse weather stop him from enjoying an evening in the hot tub, despite the winds whipping through his hair. When in Wales!

By Monday morning the storm had passed, leaving us with some lovely brisk, dry autumnal weather for our final few adventures in Carmarthenshire.

First up was a visit to Dinefwr Park. Once an estate owned by the prince of the Welsh kingdom of Deheubarth, the huge site is now a vast nature reserve, comprising ancient woodland and flower meadows, which envelops a grand, 17th-century manor house. We did the Dinefwr Park wildlife walk, which is perfect for families at around 3 miles long, and spotted wild deer (dogs to be kept on leads here, but there are some off-lead zones). There was also ample time for puddle splashing and leaf picking for the little one, and also a pit-stop at the cutest little fairy village.

Before we headed home, we called in for lunch at Diod, in the market town of Llandeilo. Yet another fantastic dog-friendly Carmarthenshire cafe, Diod, which means 'a drink' in Welsh offers a warm croeso (welcome) to visitors, with cake and coffees for the adults, colouring books for the kids, and tasty little treats for well-behaved dogs (which Vinnie and Vesper, of course, always are!).

There’s no need for me to beat around the bush: we had a bloomin’ lovely time in Carmarthenshire, 'The Garden of Wales'. We can’t wait to go back and explore more of what this dog-friendly Welsh destination has to offer.