Castel Dinefwr and/or Castel Carreg Cennen from Llaneli with public transport?

To reach Llandeilo by train from Tenby requires a change at Llanelli. Looking at the schedule, it looks like you would have to leave Tenby at 7.42 and arrive Fairfach at 9.54. I say Ffairfach (be sure to tell the guard in advance that you wish to alight at this station or they won’t stop) because that station is the nearest to the road that goes the 4 miles or so to Carreg Cennen Castle. (Ffairfach is about 1 mile S of Llandeilo).

There is an alternative - take a train from Tenby to Carmarthen and then a Morris Travel bus 283 to Llandeilo. This is especially handy for dropping you off near the driveway to Newton House (NT) and Dinefwr Castle (ruin) - tell the driver to tip you off as to where to alight. You could also use the bus to reach Llandeilo for Carreg Cennen Castle but would have to walk to Ffairfach.

See Google Map of the area.

I stayed in Llandeilo a couple of weeks ago. I took a bus from Swansea. If you decide to take a bus, ask the driver to drop you off near Castell Dinefwr. We stayed in that area and there is a bus stop nearby. It’s probably a 15-20 minute walk to the castle from the bus stop because the castle is not very close to the main road. If you take the train to Llandeilo, it will take twice as long to get there on foot. The rail station is on the other side of town.

We decided to walk from Llandeilo to Cennan Carreg. It’s five miles each way. It’s mostly uphill on the way there, although it’s downhill to Ffairfach, and there’s a pretty steep drop in the middle of the walk that lasts about 15 minutes. Which of course means you give up all that ascent you made and have to do it all over again. It’s not so bad walking back to Llandeilo but you do face an uphill slog from Ffairfach to Llandeilo at the end. However, if you are fit, it is totally doable. My husband and I are 73 and 71, and we pulled it off (we are used to walking hills), but it was exhausting.

It was also totally worth it. We loved the castle and the views were fabulous! Make sure you take the stairs down underneath the castle. That was very cool. (You’ll need a flashlight. We used our phone.)

There is supposed to be an off-road walking route to the castle, but I was unable to find out where it was. So we just used Google Maps. We were on roads the whole way with no sidewalks after Ffairfach. But there were hardly any cars so it was fine.

Both castles are ruins and both are nice, but we thought Cennan Carreg was by far the better of the two due to the dramatic siting on a huge hill overlooking beautiful Welsh scenery.

Thanks for both of your tips.

I'm planning on moving to Swansea after Tenby, so it looks closer to access public transport to this area from Swansea than Tenby.

I also read online about an overland walk (not on the road) from Castel Dinefwr to Castel Cennen Carreg, which sounded nice, but not if hard to locate.

Swansea is more of a transport hub but the city centre is not exactly attractive.

The Gower peninsula to the west of Swansea has wonderful coastal scenery. I would put Rhosilli at the SW tip of the peninsula as your number 1 priority. Adventure bus company run most services on the peninsula.
https://swanseabaywithoutacar.co.uk/gower/

In the event that you have a wet day - suggest you visit the National Showcases of Wales (Dan-Yr-Ogof) for which you need the T6 Traws Cymru bus:>https://traws.cymru/en/services/NADT/T6?date=2025-04-22&direction=inbound
(you might like to consider using this bus service to reach Brecon and rather than going back to Swansea, proceed onward to Abergavenny or even stay in Brecon for a night.

Note that it is the Traws Cymru bus routes that traverse many very scenic areas of Wales and you could consider planning your vacation using their routes. https://traws.cymru/en
https://tfw.wales is the main provider of train services in Wales.

James, might just be me but the journey planner for Gower Peninsula wasn't very user friendly. is there a map or timetable you could link me to for the Adventure bus circuit around Gower Peninsula?

Is Swansea a good base for car free travel on Gower Peninsula?

I see there is a bike path Swansea to Mumbles which looks nice.

To get from Swansea to Rhosilli you need the Adventure bus 118 > Link >https://www.adventuretravel.cymru/bus-services/swansea/118/
(I can’t get the map to show on my browser because I have an old i-mac and Apple won’t update it - or at least that is I presume the reason). Anyway, the route shows and trust me, it goes down the peninsula calling at places on the way.

Should you go to Rhosilli, the bus stop is right in the village and you will see the huge bay to your north with Worms Head to the west.
Suggest you walk towards Worms Head and then proceed eastward along the south coast to beautiful Fall Bay (which is due S of the car park). You can then take as short cut back to Rhosilli on tracks weaving around fields. It is a bit hard to spot the track back but it is above Fall Bay. Alternatively, you can continue E on top of high cliffs towards Mewslade Bay. If you decide stay in Rhosilli, you may have time to high up the downland above the big bay but it is steep but not dangerous. Although this is National Trust land - you do not pay an entry fee. People with cars pay to park. Note that you have to be a mountain goat to get down to the beach at Fall Bay.
https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/wales/rhosili-and-south-gower-coast/visiting-rhosili-and-south-gower-coast

There is a cycleway around Swansea Bay to Mumbles. You might like to take a look at Clynne Gardens(free) if in that area.https://www.swansea.gov.uk/article/6799/Clyne-Gardens

Thanks--perfect! If not fine weather while I have a free day in Swansea, what other ideas do you have besides the caves? I'm in Swansea to visit Llangyfelach Parish church for geneaology, but wanted to see Gower Peninsula, or see something up in the hills if possible. But those are not great ideas when rainy/windy.

If you have a bad weather day, another alternative would be to take a train to Cardiff (1 hour trip) and visit Cardiff Castle - as well as visit the National Museum of Wales - which is the domed building next to the City Hall. Then wander around the shopping area and if time take a Cardiff Bus 6 (from S side of library - a blue coloured building near John Lewis store) 1 mile S to see Cardiff Bay which has the Senedd = Welsh Parliament - go in through the door of this modern building.
https://www.cardiffcastle.com

Cardiff really deserves more time as 3 other castles are within 8 miles of the city centre.

In Swansea, you might also find this of interest:> https://museum.wales/swansea/about/

Caves >https://www.showcaves.co.uk

I can attest to the beauty of Rhossili. That is where we stayed prior to Llandeilo. (Swansea was just a transition point.) The Adventure Travel bus (either 118 or 119) runs fairly frequently between Swansea and Rhossili, close to hourly.

The walk out to Worms Head at low tide is very scenic but challenging due to the uneven surface of the causeway. The walk on the headlands looking out over the beach is also fabulous. It’s indeed steep going up, but totally worth it. You can also walk along the beach. There are a couple of small cafes where you can grab a bite to eat, but they close in the afternoon, so be aware of the time if you want to eat there.

We took the Adventure Travel bus from Rhossili to the Swansea bus station where we caught the First Cymru X13 bus to Llandeilo. No need to buy tickets in advance; just pay the driver by card when you board.

Thanks for the tips. I don't use bus transport much so its good to know how /when to pay and whether I can use a card.

I'm moving over to Cardiff at end of my trip and definitely plan to go to museums, as well as the Rhondda valley. I want to go to the coal mining experience there. I don't have time to go to the Big Pit.

Carroll, any other Wales travel tips for a non-car driver for me?

After Llandeilo, we spent 6 nights in Abergavenny, a very nice town. We took the train from Llandeilo, changing at Craven Arms. While we were on the first train, I checked online and saw the second train was cancelled due to an operational issue. We had to wait 55 minutes for the next train to Abergavenny, which was not a big deal. We were able to use our Advance tickets which were for a specific train since that train was cancelled.

While in Abergavenny, we took three day trips using public transportation:

1) Hereford in England — just a 30 minute train ride. I wanted to see the Mappa Mundi. I loved it, but I am a bit of a map geek. My husband liked it too, and he is not a map geek.

2) Chepstow Castle — it’s an hour and a half by train with a change in Newport South Wales. The train rides are short, and the layover was 20-25 minutes. We loved the castle and were really glad we went. My husband went back to Abergavenny while I took a 17 minute bus to Tintern Abbey. I had seen it before, but it was pouring rain. I was happy to see it in sunshine. However, I should warn you they were covering it with scaffolding on April 8. I don’t think it would be worth seeing in those circumstances. I planned to take the bus back to Chepstow at around 3:00, but when the bus came, she said she was not going to Chepstow because she had to pick up school children. We have run into this before, but we have been able to get on the bus with the school kids. Not this time. It was an hour until the next bus, so I walked back to Chepstow. It took hours and was a real drag. I was reluctant to wait a hour for the next bus because she also said there were no more buses coming that day due to a fire. I still don’t know if this was true; she spoke English as a second language and we did not communicate well.

3) Brecon — this was a 40 minute bus ride and can be an hour if you take the longer more scenic route. Brecon is a nice town (we had been there 12 years ago but didn’t have much time). The only snag is that when the bus came — again around 3:00 — the driver said he wasn’t going to Abergavenny because he was doing a school run. He was going as far as Crickhowell, so we took the bus there (we had stayed there 12 years ago and loved it though it’s very small) and waited an hour for the next bus there instead of waiting in Brecon.

So while I found the trains and buses work well, I would just be careful with buses around 3:00. I did not see anything in the bus timetables either online or at the bus stops to indicate schedule changes due to school runs, but maybe I missed it.

We adore Wales and were happy to get back. We rented a car the last time, and driving on those narrow roads and trying to find parking is something we are no longer willing to do. Please let me know if you have any specific questions.

You, mentioned going to see the coal mining museum at Rhondda Heritage Park; a quick tip > Stagecoach bus 132 will take you from Cardiff to a bus stop right outside the entrance. On its way out of Cardiff, it has a couple of stops in Tongwynlais and this where you would need to alight in order to walk up the steep hill (should take about 17 minutes) to see Castell Coch - which is best seen in the morning for photos as it is backlit in the afternoons. So, you could see that Castell en-route to the Rhondda. Also note that if using the local train that you need Trehafod station for the Rhondda Heritage Park which I guess is about an 8 minute walk away.
Bus >https://www.stagecoachbus.com/routes/south-wales/132/cardiff-maerdy/XRAO132.I

When using buses and not sure where to get off - ask the drivers to tip you off when getting on board or they may not stop. Also, some bus stops serve several routes so be sure to know the number of the bus route you want and hold out your arm when bus approaches - or they may not stop.

A You Tuber has made a video of the Traws Cymru T3 service from Wrexham to Barmouth. Suggest you watch it to get an idea of what to expect.

Carrol > I am sorry you were stuck at Craven Arms as just a couple of miles south is the lovely historic town of Ludlow. You could also have claimed back compensation from TfW for not getting you to your destination on time.

James, I agree with you about Ludlow. That was our next stop after Abergavenny. We loved it. I was surprised how nice the castle was.

I don’t know why I didn’t think to apply for a refund after my train was cancelled. I know in the past I have gotten a refund for a train being late, and I think it came automatically, although I could be misremembering that. Oh well. It was an advance ticket so not expensive, and we were not inconvenienced all that much. I appreciate you mentioning it so I know what to do if it happens again.

thanks so much. i will be traveling by train and bus. I haven't bought any train tickets yet. i see that some of them can be used for any train travel that day, whereas others are for specific trains. On a couple of my trips I want to break my journey to get a taxi to and from a church/cemetery, so want to be sure I have the correct train ticket. especially if I'm at a place where there is no ticket kiosk.

Thanks for tip about efficiently getting to Rhondda heritage park and the castle. Sounds like a good plan for me.

Trying to see rural sites for family history purposes has proven very challenging without a car and without spending big $$$ on a private driver/guide for 4-5 days. One guide wanted to charge me 800 GBP to drive me around the Rhondda valley for a day, which I think I can easily do on the light rail and on foot.