Walk 51: Barmouth to Harlech

The walk from Barmouth to Harlech was the one I’d been waiting for – quite possibly the main reason I was drawn to begin walking the Wales Coast Path in the first place. Because both Barmouth and Harlech are places that mean a lot to me – and this walk bridges the gap between my dad’s family and my mum’s.

My grandads had a few unlikely things in common. Firstly, they were both called Jim. They also had similar jobs – they were both chemists, working in the gas and coal industries – which sometimes even brought them to the same work events. And they both had a soft spot for seaside towns in Snowdonia.

My dad’s dad, Jim McKay, was evacuated to Barmouth as a child, during the Second World War. Barmouth became his favourite place, and he spent many a happy time in the town over the years. By sheer coincidence, years before my parents met, my mum’s dad, Jim Harrison, bought a holiday cottage in Harlech, which remains in the family to this day, and which I’ve enjoyed trips to for my whole life.

This part of Cymru’s coast is stunning, with beautiful, sandy beaches and mountainous views. It just might be my favourite place in the world. But I’d never walked the 17½-mile stretch along the coast from Barmouth to Harlech, so although I know this area very well, there was still plenty to discover on this walk.

On the morning of our walk, we walked from the cottage to Lower Harlech, where we caught the train to Barmouth, where we’d finished our previous walk. We headed straight for the coast (you can see the sea from Barmouth station) and continued along Marine Parade for a short distance. Barmouth is an interesting town – a classic seaside resort brimming with fish and chip shops, ice cream parlours and amusement arcades. On the dull May day we walked, the town was quite quiet, and there weren’t many people on the beach as we walked away from the centre.

After a short distance, the path took us across a train track and up onto the A-road we were very familiar with, having driven along it many a time. This section of the Wales Coast Path has a really handy train service, so it ‘tracks’ that this stretch of the path features quite a few train line crossings! Although the trains only run every couple of hours, we passed quite a few stations on our walks, and it was comforting to know that if the worst came to the worst, we could easily get back to our base in Harlech.

After a short while, the path took us off the road and towards the sea. We walked through a few marshy fields and a couple of campsites, before we reached a road which would finally take us onto the beach. At the end of the road, a boardwalk took us across the dunes and onto Benar Beach, a stunning sandy beach that stretched as far as we could see.

Despite being in such familiar territory, I’m not sure I’d ever visited this beach before, thanks, no doubt, to having the beautiful Harlech Beach in such close proximity to the cottage. We walked along the beach for around two-and-a-half miles, passing Morfa Dyffryn, a naturist beach – although there was nobody to be seen on this day, clothed or otherwise.

We did spot a sweet group of cormorants as we walked, who kept flying away just as we got closer to them. We were a good distance away from them at all times, and weren’t walking in their direction – they would have been better off just letting us pass!

There were several families enjoying the beach as we reached Shell Island. Regularly featuring as a top beach in Wales – including being named as Wales’ beach of the year by the Times in 2025 – this beautiful peninsula boasts three stunning sandy beaches, great numbers of wild birds, and over 200 different shell varieties.

The route took us off the beach and through the popular campsite, which is one of the largest in Europe, before we headed along a path through marshland. After passing Llanbedr Station, we walked alongside the River Artro, through a field with cows in – who were, thankfully, relaxing a good distance away from the path – and across a bridge, onto the A-road we’d left earlier in the day.

We only stayed on the road for a short distance, before we left to pass Pensarn Station and follow the river to Llandanwg. The view here was pretty, but the path was very marshy, and we had to be careful not to fall into any holes!

Once we’d navigated the marsh, we walked along a raised path towards the café at Llandanwg, which we’d planned to stop at. As we walked, the heavens opened, and we had to quickly put our waterproofs on to avoid getting drenched. No sooner as it had started, it had stopped – if only it had started ten minutes later, we would have been safely at the café for the downpour!

We passed St Tanwg’s, a tiny church in the dunes of Llandanwg Beach. Also known as ‘the church in the sand’, it requires regular sweeping to ensure it doesn’t become immersed in the dunes. We were well and truly back in familiar territory by this point – I have visited Llandanwg many times and know it well.

We stopped off for a mug of coffee and a tasty vegan sausage roll at the café, geeing ourselves up for the short remainder of the walk. We were quite tired at this point – because the walk was almost entirely flat, we’d taken it perhaps a touch too quickly!

The final section of our walk saw us head back up to the A-road from Llandanwg, and then back down to Harlech beach via a lovely path with the most stunning view of the beach, and the Eryri mountains behind it, including Yr Wyddfa, the Rhinogydd and Glyderau ranges.

There are quite a few steps down, and another railway track crossing (incidentally, this train route is just stunning). I was pleased to be going down the steps rather than up them – but just as we were getting down to the beach, my quads decided to let me know they weren’t very happy with me! Thankfully, the remainder of the walk was just a lovely stroll along beautiful Harlech beach and along the road back towards the town. By this point, the sun had started shining, so I decided to loosen up my legs with a splash in the sea.

I’d love to say that I had a nice, relaxing swim, but it was a windy day and the waves were fierce – I couldn’t get in far enough to get past the waves, so I spent about ten minutes jumping over them – not as relaxing as I’d hoped, but always good fun! Having abandoned my hopes of a swim, I sat in the shallows for a while, enjoying the waves as they crashed into me a little bit more gently!

My sea dip gave me enough energy to finish off the walk, along a path which goes through the dunes and along the road to the garage where we’d dropped off the car the previous day for some repairs – thankfully, they were complete, so we didn’t have to walk up the hill to Upper Harlech!

All in all, this was a beautiful day. It was lovely to discover places between Barmouth and Harlech I’ve never visited before, in amongst the familiarity of two places I’ve known my whole life. This walk takes in some of the very best of Cymru – the country that has my heart.

🥾 Distance: 17½ miles

⭐ Highlight: So many highlights – this walk incorporates some of Cymru's most beautiful beaches and some of my favourite places.

👎 Less Good: A fair bit of A-road walking where beach access isn't available.

🚗 Transport: We got the train from Harlech to Barmouth and walked back.

🛏️ Accommodation: We stayed at my grandparents' holiday cottage in Harlech.

🌱 Food: We grabbed some lunch at Maes Café in Llandanwg and had dinner at the cottage.

🗺️ Map: This route is featured in the official Snowdonia and Ceredigion Coast guide.

Still not convinced? Read my ten reasons to walk the Wales Coast Path. If you’re ready to start planning your walk, you can find lots of resources to help you on your way here. Please note, I collect a share of the sales from the links on this page.