Wheelchair Accessible Things To Do In West Wales

Nestled amongst the Cambrian Mountains is the town of Lampeter in West Wales. This was our base while glamping in a wheelchair accessible safari tent. Whilst glamping is all about switching off, relaxing in nature and doing whatever you want, there are also so many beautiful things to see and things to do. What we discovered during this trip was how incredibly picturesque and charming Wales is. So if you are looking for some recommendations for wheelchair accessible things to do in West Wales, whether you’re glamping at Canvas and Campfires or passing through this beautiful part of the country, this is for you.

Here are the beautiful places to visit in West Wales for a great day out or as part of your accessible holiday.

Aberporth Beach

Aberporth beach along the Cardigan Bay Coast was the first place we visited during our stay at Canvas and Campfires. Only a 35-minute drive away, Aberporth beach seemed like the perfect place to start.

We are so glad we visited as it was absolutely beautiful. It was a stunning day, I just wish I had dressed more appropriately for the weather instead of my thick brown jumper. Typical Emma dresses like it’s winter no matter the season. Despite the outfit mishap, we had a great time at the beach.

Aberporth beach is a great spot to see dolphins. Unfortunately, we didn’t see any when we were there. Maybe next time. There is a carved wooden sculpture of a dolphin at the car park, which is supposed to be a good spot for dolphin spotting.

Accessibility

We were impressed by how accessible it was too. We parked in a disabled parking bay in the car park and then followed the path which led us down a gradual ramp until we got down to the beach level. Allan sat at one of the benches and we just took in the gorgeous views. It felt amazing!

There is a little cafe for food and drinks. The Ceredigion Beach Officer Lifeguard Service is available between July and the end of August so a perfect spot for family days out.

We spent a good amount of time there until we literally had to pull ourselves away. Before leaving we nipped along to the accessible toilet located next to the lifeguard office. The toilet was RADAR locked.

National Botanic Garden of Wales

The following day we started our day by visiting the gorgeous National Botanic Garden of Wales. We love wandering around gardens and this one which is set in the Carmarthenshire countryside is a must-visit.

It’s easy to spend most of the day exploring the many themed gardens and the world’s largest single-span glasshouse. Not only that but there is also the British Bird of Prey Centre, a tropical Butterfly House, a national nature reserve and kid’s play areas.

After all that, you will need to recharge and fuel up in one of the cafes.

Accessibility

Wheelchair access is very good around the grounds of the National Botanic Garden of Wales. I didn’t have any problems in my wheelchair and loved how much open space there was.

There are several manual wheelchairs to borrow but there is also a shuttle buggy service to take you to any part of the Garden you wish to visit. Great for people who may struggle to walk distances.

There were accessible toilets throughout, but we used the one at the main entrance before leaving. There was a bit of a queue for the accessible toilet and wheelchair users in front of me had a little difficulty getting back out of the toilet due to the tight space.

I found the toilet on the small side which made transferring tricky. The sink was positioned too close to the toilet which again made transfers difficult.

The National Botanic Garden of Wales has lots of land, which I’d love to see a Changing Places facility built on.

Edit: As of 2022, there is now a Changing Places toilet.

Aberystwyth Town & Royal Pier

Aberystwyth is a town I had heard of before and being only 40 minutes away, we decided to visit. I’ve always found it quite a fun word to say. Who knows if I’m actually pronouncing it correctly though.

It was a little cloudy with drizzly rain when we visited the ancient market town of Aberystwyth, but we enjoyed wandering around anyway. A little rain wasn’t going to put us off.

A popular holiday resort town nestled between three hills and two beaches with a pier, harbour and castle ruins. It’s a nice town to visit as there are shops, cafes, restaurants and bars.

Accessibility

The accessibility around the town of Aberystwyth was good and we managed to get a disabled parking bay next to the water. It was nice to enjoy the view even though it was a tad windy.

We didn’t spend a lot of time here as we wanted to try and squeeze in as much as possible the day we visited. I found the paths and crossing the streets absolutely fine.

Unfortunately, we didn’t get a chance to check out the accessible toilets. However, there are supermarkets like Tesco Superstore and Morrisons that will be a good alternative if you do struggle.

Aberaeron Seaside Town

After Aberystwyth, we headed along the coast and stopped at Aberaeron. This seaside resort town is like something out of a painting or postcard. The pretty colourful buildings are beautiful.

We wandered around the brightly coloured streets and along the main harbour. There was low tide when we visited so the harbour was almost completely drained in the inner harbour, which I believe is known as ‘Pwll Cam’ (“crooked pool”).

There was a range of shops, cafes and restaurants as well as various areas where you could sit and enjoy the beautiful peaceful surroundings.

Accessibility

We had no problems finding disabled parking and there was also an accessible toilet located near the Harbourmaster Hotel. The toilet was locked so we were able to unlock it with our RADAR key. Inside the toilet was clean but a little on the small side. It had grab rails and an emergency cord that hung all the way to the floor.

New Quay Beach & Dolphin Spotting

The next stop on our coastal town tour was the lovely New Quay. Also known as a seaside town on Cardigan Bay, New Quay has a harbour and large beautiful sandy beaches. It’s a great place for Bottlenose Dolphin spotting too.

We may have spotted something in the water that we think could have been dolphins but we couldn’t be certain. Maybe it was wishful thinking.

Accessibility

Even though the weather wasn’t great when we visited, we still loved it. We happily wandered around admiring the stunning views while sheltering under our umbrella. Again there are many cafes, restaurants, takeaway shops etc.

We also spotted disabled parking and accessible toilets down the hill near the pier, which we didn’t realise were there until we walked and rolled down. This may be a good place to try first to save from having to walk too far.

Winston Evans Boat Trips can take you out on the water for dolphin spotting. I don’t think they are wheelchair accessible, but I’m not entirely sure though.

Llangrannog Seaside Village

Llangrannog beach on Cardigan Bay was our next stop along our coastal town tour. We actually stopped off here by chance after randomly spotting it on Google Maps and realising it was near New Quay.

Llangrannog is a rural village with a beautiful beach below rocky cliffs. It’s a great area for family days out to the beach or just for some relaxation. There are lifeguards during the summer months and is a popular spot for watersports too.

It was getting close to dinner time and it was starting to rain a little more so we happily sat in the car watching a group of surfers in the water. It felt so nice and relaxing watching the waves.

Even if you don’t want to get out of the car, I would still recommend a stop off at Llangrannog beach for the views.

The Elan Valley Reservoirs

Leaving day had arrived, but before the long car journey home, we wanted to do one last thing. We wanted to stop off at the Elan Valley to admire the amazing dams and reservoirs. Elan Valley is around one and a half hours drive from Canvas and Campfires.

However, it was on our route home so it made sense for us to visit on our way home. We arrived at the Elan Valley Visitor Centre, but instead of going inside, we continued to drive up the road and past the Visitor Centre.

Accessibility

Once at the top we parked next to a majestic mountainous wall that made us look and feel tiny. We then walked over to the edge of the dam. The path was flat and we were able to pass through a gate without any problems.

The scenery was breathtaking, but also very windy. Thankfully we didn’t get blown into the dam.

A lovely couple stopped and offered to take our photo, so now we have our windswept looks captured in photographic form. It was a perfect end to an amazing trip.

7 Wheelchair Accessible Things to do in West Wales

So there you have it! 7 wheelchair accessible things to do and places to visit in West Wales. Have you visited Wales? What did you enjoy doing? Please share your favourite wheelchair accessible things to do in Wales, in the comments below.

More on this topic…

Wheelchair Accessible Glamping In A Safari Tent | Canvas and Campfires Review

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