Cwm Connell Coastal Cottages

Dogfriendly Magazine Review

Read our comprehensive review of this listing printed in our bi-monthly magazine.

Cwm Connell – Ty Twt, Dyfed
Review by: - Hannah Isted

West Wales is the perfect combination of coastal charm and rolling countryside, so we were really excited to find Cwm Connell cottages right in between the two.  Our two Chocolate Labradors, Bernie (4) and Tilly (10), love to spend time at the beach so we couldn’t wait to head over there for the week.

Cwm Connell Cottages are award-winning accommodation in Pembrokeshire with stunning views of Cardigan Bay and the beautiful Welsh coastline.

The owners, Emma and Alex, have recently renovated a number of the cottages on site and are set to finish the rest next year. It’s clear plenty of thought and care has gone into the design. We loved the blue sofa and tiles in the bathroom, the log burner is perfect for winter and the bed was the biggest we have ever seen!

Waiting for us inside the cottage were some delicious treats for the dogs, tags to add to their collars during their stay and towels and blankets for those wet and windy walks. Lots of care and thought had gone into the touches around the cottage and we had everything we needed for our stay.

Once we’d unpacked the car we decided to pull on our wellies and head down one of the coastal paths to the beach. Emma had left clear instructions and maps for us to follow for five different local walks to take with the dogs. It’s best to keep them on a lead as there are cows and other wildlife around which we were happy to do. We followed the path down to Ceibwr Bay just as some kayakers were leaving and we had the whole beach to ourselves for the dogs to swim and run around. It was so beautiful being there as the sun was starting to go down and there were plenty of new smells for the dogs to explore. The path was well maintained and we loved walking through the woods on the way back. As we arrived back at Cwm Connell we used the dog wash room to clean off. There were plenty of towels and we put our name down to use the hot tub that week. There are lots of facilities on site including a doggy hair dryer and laundry if you need to do a wash during your stay. There’s even a bin especially for their business!

Our pups were tired after all the fun so we left them in the cottage with permission from Emma for the evening. We use a dog camera on our iPad to check that they are okay but we didn’t need to worry as they slept the entire time we were out. For dinner we chose one of their recommendations, The Ferry Inn. We booked this a few weeks before as it has a beautiful view of the water and we wanted to make sure we had plans for the night we arrived. We both had seafood and it was absolutely delicious. Dogs are very welcome here so if you decide to bring your pups this wouldn’t be a problem. 

In the morning we went straight to the enclosed dog walking paddock which was such a useful place that we could let the dogs run around and feel safe. There are benches and logs so you can sit down and enjoy a cup of tea while they play. There’s even a sign you can pop on the front if your dog is nervous. We took the dogs here each morning so they could stretch their legs before a busy day.

We drove a short way into St Dogmaels for the local producer’s market to grab some breakfast and look round the medieval abbey ruins. Dogs are welcome here and there are many lovely places to explore. The stalls were full of brilliant makers so you can pick up food, gifts or even treats for the dogs. 

From there we went on to Cardigan which is somewhere we were really looking forward to visiting. The town is very dog friendly and nearly everywhere we visited allowed dogs even the charity shops. We had lunch at Stiwdio 3 which was delicious and very dog friendly too. It’s surprisingly big with a second floor and it goes back quite a way so there is lots of space. They had a good menu and we chose a couple of winter warmers including soup and a baguette. Later in the week we came back to Cardigan to visit the popular Pizzatipi. It was great to get out of the rain and sit around the fire under the cover of the tipi while we enjoyed our pizza (and a glass of wine too). Dogs are also welcome here. That evening we spent some time in the hot tub and enjoyed a relaxing evening at home. There was also a log burner at the cottage so it’s the perfect place to get cosy although it wasn’t quite cold enough on our trip.

The following day we decided to get up and drive straight down to Poppit Sands which was highly recommended by Emma and our dogs would definitely agree! 

A word of warning before you head over there. The café ‘Crwst’ doesn’t open until 10am so if you need a coffee to wake you up before a walk, have one before you head over. The beach was beautiful, and our dogs loved a good run around across the sand. There were plenty of other dogs on the beach but it still felt spacious and open so we weren’t on top of each other. This would be a great spot to go sea swimming too if you’re feeling brave!

We spent an hour playing before heading back to Crwst for a drink and some breakfast. The breakfast baps were great, and we had to watch the dogs who were looking for any opportunity to steal one. Luckily, we treated them to a special dog friendly ice cream, even though we visited in September it was still a warm and sunny morning. That day we spent some time at the cottage sitting in the garden reading and enjoying the sunshine before heading out for a walk.

In the evening we visited another recommendation and had a second pizza of the week at The Canteen in Newport. Emma suggested picking it up and heading to the beach with the dogs, which is exactly what we did. If we had an extra day we would have also visited the beach at Newport Sands but it’s one to tick off next time we visit.

We loved our trip to Cwm Connell. The little touches for our dogs made us feel relaxed and at home and the facilities were brilliant. There’s plenty to see and do around the local area with your dogs and great restaurants to visit too. We would highly recommend a stay here and we think Bernie and Tilly would too.

Cwm Connell – Ty Twt, Dyfed, review by Hannah Isted and appears in DogFriendly magazine issue 74.  For more information on the DogFriendly magazine visit  https://www.dogfriendly.co.uk/magazine