Driving along roads that grow narrower and windier, you start to wonder how a thriving town with independent shops and sweeping beaches could possibly be waiting at the end. But sure enough, as you drive towards the sea, the 13th-century city walls — considered among the most important surviving medieval walls in Britain — come into view.

Rough Guide lists it as the UK’s best seaside towns, and you immediately understand its reputation as you walk through the Grade 1 defence barrier, believed to have been built to protect against opposing Welsh forces. Inside, the smell of freshly baked Pembrokeshire pies wafts down the street, galleries sell paintings from local artists, and seats spill onto flower-lined streets from the breweries.

But Tenby’s real magnet is its four beaches, which were named the best in the country in the 2025 Which? seaside survey.

North, South, Castle and Harbour beach are all within walking distance of the town centre for its small population of just over 4,000 to enjoy, and all roads tumble gently towards them.

As we walk towards the sea, we bump into tourists Kay Wiseman and Katriona Arnold, who are completely enchanted and already want to return, having just arrived on a coach tour of South Wales.

“Because we’re from Brixham, which is very similar, we’re not overawed by just the seaside,” Kay tells me. “But this is spectacular. This is something special.”

“I wasn’t really sure what to expect and I think it’s charming,” Katriona adds. “There’s woods everywhere. And all the new gardens, they’re absolutely charming. So I think it’s been really well laid out. It’s gorgeous.”

She also loves how it doesn’t feel “commercialised”, adding: “It’s still got loads of character. It’s tastefully done, it’s not garish.”

Kay adds: “It feels lived in, it’s just not taken over by Airbnb. Well, there probably is a lot, but it doesn’t feel like that.”

We wander down to the seafront, where Ann Goggins and Peter Berdet are sipping cups of coffee with views of the castle, which was built by the Normans in the 12th century. 

They are equally as impressed by the historic Welsh town after deciding to come on a last-minute trip when they had to cancel their holiday to Spain.

“What more do you really want in a holiday, to be honest?” asked Ann. “The beaches and the people are lovely, and there’s lots of eateries and cafes. It’s just lovely.”

Aside from the beaches, she also praises nearby villages like Saundersfoot, which is “another lovely little place” and a 4.5-mile walk away along the scenic Pembrokeshire Coast Path.

Having come from Northamptonshire, Peter admits it’s quite a journey, but “you just take it in your stride and it’s worth it when you get here, definitely”. He adds: “I’m really impressed. I’d recommend it to anybody.”

As we head back up the street away from the beach, we stumble across the gallery of acclaimed painter Naomi Tydeman, who came on holiday to Tenby 45 years ago, and “stayed because it’s so beautiful”. 

“Pembrokeshire actually made me into an artist,” she tells me. “I wasn’t an artist before I came and I knew nothing about watercolour at all.”

After dog walks on the beautiful beaches, she started to wonder how to capture Pembrokeshire on paper. 

“It took about four years for me to think, okay, I’m going to give this a go and see what happens. And everybody thought I was mad,” she said. “I’ve had this gallery for almost 30 years now.”

When I ask why she enjoys painting here, she says it’s the light, which usually bounces off the water. “And Tenby is just quintessentially pretty,” she adds. 

“The harbour has been done to death,” she admits. “But I will do endless studies of the doors of Tenby, or all the little quirky back streets and what have you,” she says. “It’s absolutely beautiful.”

Naomi, who has had many international exhibitions and won several awards, including Welsh Artist of the Year for watercolour, explains that the seaside town was different 30 years ago.

She says it used to attract stag nights and hen dos rather than families, and surprisingly, they didn’t come to shop for paintings. 

“So that’s why everyone thought I was nuts to open up in Tenby. But I did,” she explains. “It’s more family orientated now, which is great.” She adds: “It has [changed], and for the better.”

An intoxicatingly delicious smell draws us into Roly’s Fudge, where we meet Kelly Smith, who is stirring up a fresh batch as she chats.

Although she says they are not completely immune to the blights of the high street, and they could do with a greengrocer and a shoe shop, she praises the independent scene.

She tells us about a local pie shop just a few doors down, ice cream sellers that make everything on site, and a gift store that sells goods from South Wales. “There’s a nice mix,” she concludes. 

“I think the towns that are really surviving are the ones that have kept their small independent shops and haven’t got the chains,” she says. “It’s nice to have those shops where people can come in and say it’s from Tenby.”

Even though Roly’s is a chain, the shops are all independently owned, and she focuses on using Welsh products and even flavours, like Welsh cake fudge. “We try and support local trade as best we can,” she tells us. 

We learn that Tenby has just had one of its busiest summers, which presents locals with difficulties parking, worsened by the walled town becoming pedestrianised between 11am to 5.30pm each day from July 7 to September 12. 

However, she says the area needs the tourists for the economy, which keeps their lifestyles going. Now, it’s starting to enter her favourite time of year in Tenby, when winter rolls in over the beautiful beaches, which are far emptier now. 

We find the gift shop Kelly mentioned, Nook, where Elizabeth Griffiths tells us that 85% of 120 independent stockists are from South Wales, and the rest are either from the UK or fair trade.  

When we ask what she likes about Tenby, she tells us simply: “It’s unique.”

Elizabeth adds: “It’s mostly independent shops in Tenby, which is a good thing. Obviously we do have a Peacocks and Greggs, but generally the bigger chains don’t seem to come here. It’s a sort of good indicator that, yes, independent trades can thrive.”

“It’s still quite a vibrant high street here,” she says. “The independent businesses put an awful lot of effort in.”

Tourists clearly love it, as the season is “definitely much longer than it used to be”, running more or less from Easter to October.

It was previously reported the small population can swell tenfold during peak summer. However, with huge events like Iron Man comes trade, which she is grateful for.

“You obviously have naysayers those people that like to have a little complaint, especially when it’s Iron Man and stuff like that. But to be honest, we do really well from Iron Man,” she says. “They’re putting money into the economy.”

When we ask if it ever gets too busy, the answer is obvious: avoid August. Still, after just a few hours, I’m sold. Tenby’s firmly on my holiday checklist, just not in peak season.