A must visit when in West Wales is the charming and colourful Georgian town of Aberaeron. Spend an afternoon walking round this characterful small town marvelling at its elegant brightly painted traditional townhouses – there are almost 250 listed buildings to enjoy! Not to mention the magnificent harbour where you can enjoy a lunch or drink overlooking the boats and colourful houses across the water. Don’t miss the famous honey ice cream at the hive and the fresh oyster happy hours at Harbourmaster finished off with a fish and chip supper at the award winning New Celtic.
Aberaeron beach is a pebble beach so it may not be as attractive as other nearby sandy beaches but it’s well worth a stroll along the coastal path with an ice cream in hand.
History
With its long history as an important local fishing port primarily for herring, in 1805 the harbour was constructed at the mouth of the river Aeron. Planned and developed by Rev. Alban Thomas Jones Gwynne, the town expanded and many of the fine houses you still see standing today were built.
Aberaeron was also an important town for the shipbuilding industry in the 19th century helping to transform Aberaeron from a small fishing village to one of the major trading ports along the Cardigan Bay coast.
The introduction of the railways in 1911 also resulted in the development of coastal towns making Aberaeron and Aberystwyth and many others across the UK became popular holiday destinations (Aberaeron no longer has a railway connection). This did however affect the success of the town’s harbour and was the beginning of the end of Aberaeron’s great seafaring traditions. Today, tourism is still one of the town’s main industries with its many guesthouses, cafes, restaurants and festivals attracting visitors from across the world.
Here’s how we would spend the perfect afternoon in Aberaeron. <insert blog>