Penllergare Valley Woods
Penllergare Valley Woods
Penllergare Valley Woods
4.6
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
On the northern fringe of the city of Swansea, and within sight of the M4 motorway, lies the estate of Penllergare Valley Woods. Here, deep in the valley, away from the noise and fumes of the passing traffic and encroaching development, you'll find the remnants of an important historic landscape, which is gradually being preserved and restored. It is a secret and magical place; where you can enjoy the sound of birds, delight in the profusion of wild flowers, discover evidence of exotic plantings and uncover for yourself the hidden features of a grand design. This romantic and picturesque place was contrived for the enjoyment of its creator John Dillwyn Llewelyn - a pioneering mover in science, nature, photography and astronomy in the 19th century. After over half a century of neglect, today it is a place that can be enjoyed and explored by everyone. Penllergare is run by a small charity, The Penllergare Trust. Our Volunteer-run Coffee Shop is open 10-4 daily and our car park 9-5.
Meets animal welfare guidelines
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4.6
434 reviews
Excellent
296
Very good
123
Average
12
Poor
3
Terrible
0
Victoria F
Swansea, UK1 contribution
Jul 2024 • Friends
I enjoy coming here regularly for walks with my dog. The price of the car park has recently gone up ÂŁ2.50 for 3 hours or ÂŁ4 for all day. The new cafe serves good food and drinks but could do with more tables and chairs in the dog friendly area of the cafe (especially at busy times) or take the leaflets of the big/long table in the middle of the cafe and put chairs with it. Lovely area and walks. This would be an ideal place for a park run!
Written 17 July 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
mr_bukaroo
Leicester, UK426 contributions
Nov 2024 • Couples
Had lovely walk around here with my two dogs. Parking cost £2.50 for 3 hrs, which is plenty of time to have a good walk around and there is plenty of parking available. The walk itself is nice and the majority of the time, on decent paths, it is muddy in places and slightly uneven, but what you would expect for a woodland walk. Could do with better signage or a map in the car park (apologies if there is one but didn’t see it) as we did struggle to find the waterfall initially (listen for the rushing water, i thought it sounded like a weir, rather than a waterfall) but found it eventually. Can’t believe this place is straight off the M4, a real gem and all volunteer run who do a great job. There is a cafe and toilets in the car park but didn’t use so can’t comment. Spent around 2hrs here and walked approx 4km around some of the woodland. A good afternoon out.
Written 5 November 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Stoke P
33 contributions
Dec 2024 • Solo
I come here regularly. After the Dec 7th storm, when loads of trees came down, I thought it would be closed for ages. Nothing of the sort. Open after a couple of days and everything clear by the weekend. Very impressed with how well they maintain this place.
Written 29 December 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Manny Minpin
64 contributions
Aug 2024 • Family
A lovely place to walk around. Car parking reasonable. The waterfall is beautiful but on the sunny day, in school summer holidays it was very busy. Cafe was nice with views of the place. Would love to visit again if we were in the area.
Written 4 August 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Trip17925210268
Cardiff, UK11 contributions
Jul 2024 • Friends
excellent café, expensive carparking £2.50 for a few hours, but that's my only gripe. lovely staff in the newly built café area. great walks for the fittest but take your time if slightly disabled. not good for wheelchairs or scooters. beautiful scenery. visited today with a friend. will call with my wife soon.
Written 1 July 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Regular Guy
73 contributions
Oct 2024 • Family
First time visit since the upgrade and very impressed. On a fairly busy Friday morning, four of us had snacks which were very tasty, well cooked and brought to the table by a very pleasant waitress.We will certainly visit more often now there is a comfortable and roomy indoor area when the weather is not too good.
However, behind the busy counter there seemed to be organised chaos! The unhappy and unfriendly young lady at the till appeared totally confused with the ordering system (or lack of!) Seems like she needed some help.
I hope next time they will price up the home made cakes on display ,which were embarrassingly small portions, especially the lemon drizzle - my favourite, but there again, they could have been small prices?
However, behind the busy counter there seemed to be organised chaos! The unhappy and unfriendly young lady at the till appeared totally confused with the ordering system (or lack of!) Seems like she needed some help.
I hope next time they will price up the home made cakes on display ,which were embarrassingly small portions, especially the lemon drizzle - my favourite, but there again, they could have been small prices?
Written 4 October 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
John A
Brentwood, UK472 contributions
Jul 2023
A great place to explore with good walks down the valley. At times the environment seemed a bit unchanging but then you would get to a new area with new scenery.
The downside was that the way markers for the walks seemed to have gone missing and we struggled to follow the green route - probably walking an extra half mile because we missed the (unmarked) turning.
The community run cafe was great with friendly staff, some of the best large coffees we have had and some gorgeous chocolate and salted caramel muffins.
When the building work is finished this will be an even better location.
The downside was that the way markers for the walks seemed to have gone missing and we struggled to follow the green route - probably walking an extra half mile because we missed the (unmarked) turning.
The community run cafe was great with friendly staff, some of the best large coffees we have had and some gorgeous chocolate and salted caramel muffins.
When the building work is finished this will be an even better location.
Written 17 July 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Vincent L
Swansea, UK1 contribution
May 2020 • Solo
My favourite part of the woods is the river and the two lakes, the variety of wildlife, buzzards, kingfishers, goldcrests, dipper's The list is endless.i walked penllergar wood's back in the 70s it was really wild back then,it's just my opinion but it's a bit to manicured now.But it's still a wonderful place with a lot of history.I would recommend this place to anyone.for people that are disabled it could be a challenge.
Written 23 April 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Margo
Vilnius, Lithuania43 contributions
Mar 2023 • Friends
Very beautiful and relaxing breakaway from the city. Located only a quick drive from Swansea it’s a great little spot to unwind and spend some time in the nature. Thank you to the amazing guides who definitely made the experience even better!
Written 25 March 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Janet R
Burgess Hill, UK203 contributions
Jul 2021
Stopped here on our way down to Gower, really easy to find, very cheap parking (ÂŁ2 for the day). Great for dogs as they can be off lead once through the garden. Good variety of distances you can walk which lead back to the lovely cafe all run by volunteers. There is a very good selection of cake and lovely coffee. Never seemed very crowded, we ended up going 3 times it was so good. Definitely a place to visit.
Written 15 July 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sorry I dont know, it didnt look like is but maybe another area we didnt see
Written 31 July 2023
I wouldn't take a pushchair there the incline is too bumpy
Written 6 June 2022
You could go around in a mobility scooter I think as there is a path all way around, it’s a little uneven in places but shouldn’t be an issue.
Written 5 November 2024
Is the Terrace of the cafe under cover or inside?
For dogs?
Written 29 April 2019
Hi Trish. There is a large, heated marquee on the terrace which dogs are welcome in. We also have free dog treats and water for our canine Coffee Shop customers.
Written 29 April 2019
How far is the walk from cadle to the cafe?
Written 20 April 2019
Hi. It is approximately 1.5 miles if you walk along the Carriage Drive, which is mainly flat/gently sloping.
Thank you.
Written 23 April 2019
Hi, We welcome dogs at Penllergare Valley Woods and they are also welcome on our Coffee Shop terrace where we have free dog treats and water bowls for our customers.
We ask that dogs are kept on leads in the car park and Coffee Shop areas, and that they are kept under close control elsewhere (i.e. good recall, not allowed out of sight, not allowed to inconvenience other visitors). We also ask that dogs are not allowed in the water both for their own safety and to preserve our wildlife along the river banks.
There are poo bins at all our main entrances, so we ask visitors to please bag and bin any poo.
Thank you. We hope you enjoy your visit.
Written 30 August 2018
It’s James i think it’s a brilliant place to work I have worked there 3 years and it’s great place to meet people and customers to penllegear
Written 4 August 2018
It certainly is a brilliant place, full of history and charm. However James, where you have worked is called Penllergare Woods, situated in Penllergaer!
Written 16 November 2018
And Alice how does the gardens great while smoking her e cigarette
Written 11 July 2017
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