Current restrictions mean none of us can travel anywhere right now, but we can still experience the beauty of the ‘Celtic Routes’ through the eyes of some very special authors.

Get lost in the colourful images evoked by the stories from these celebrated writers across Pembrokeshire, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire.

Make yourself a cup of tea, get cosy and take a trip via these wistful words from the comfort of your own home…

Dylan Thomas Boathouse, Carmarthenshire - It’s almost impossible to mention the town of Laugharne without mentioning ‘Dylan Thomas’ in the next breath. He is synonymous with the place – he lived here, loved here, drank in many of its pubs and is buried in the graveyard of St Martin’s Church.

The Boathouse is where Dylan lived with his wife and family in the last years of his life. On the path to it lies the writing shed overlooking the Taf Estuary, where Thomas wrote his famous radio drama, ‘Under Milk Wood’. It’s been left just as though Thomas had popped out for a breath of fresh air.

Dylan Thomas (1914-53) was born and raised in Swansea, and his dazzlingly inventive use of language made him one of the most important poets of the 20th century. Thomas’ most celebrated works include the play ‘Under Milk Wood’ and poems ‘Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night’ and ‘Fern Hill’.

Roald Dahl, Pembrokeshire Coast Path - The Pembrokeshire Coast Path twists and turns for 186 miles from St Dogmaels in the north to Amroth in the south. It covers almost every kind of coastal landscape, from volcanic rock headlands, limestone arches, blowholes and sea stacks, to narrow glacial inlets. Lines of red and grey sandstone cliffs are broken by sandy beaches. The Path reveals an abundance of coastal flowers and bird life, as well as evidence of human activity from Neolithic times to the present.

It’s easy to see why the Pembrokeshire Coast Path is a popular place for visitors of all kinds, including one of Britain’s most loved writers. Every Easter, Roald’s family used to visit a house they later bought called The Cabin, in Tenby, which remains in the family’s possession today.

‘My Year’, published in 1991, shortly after his death, is based on a diary Dahl wrote during the final year of his life, in which he fondly remembers Easter holidays in Tenby.

Relive Roald Dahl’s footsteps through his most treasured memories of Tenby and the Pembrokeshire Coast Path in this special final publication.

Background about the Celtic Routes:

The Celtic Routes has been borne out of partnership between six Irish and Welsh counties encouraging visitors to ‘go deeper, stay longer’. The relationship between the two Celtic nations has been formed on the basis of an unbreakable bond formed through their shared heritage of untamed landscapes, ancient crosses, chapel ruins and sacred stones.

Irish migrants who settled in Wales in the 5th century left their mark through the Ogham stones that still line the Welsh coastline today. And in return, Wales gave St Patrick to Ireland – or so they say.

The Celtic Routes aims to showcase this primal relationship to new eyes and ears, to new visitors who will discover untamed nature and roads less travelled, that still follow the pulse of the changing seasons and rhythms of the natural world. And where legends of saints, giants and princes will transport visitors to whole new worlds.

The Celtic Routes partnership is comprised of the coastal communities of Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire, Wicklow, Wexford and Waterford, who have joined forces to deliver a selection of curated travel experiences in order to encourage visitors to Ireland and Wales to discover the Celtic Spirit by offering a number of immersive and authentic Celtic experiences.

Each of the six partner counties has put forward their five best Celtic Routes ‘experiences’ under the title Celtic Beacons. The Celtic Beacons are the places where you’ll find the sights, sounds and stories that shaped these beautiful parts of the world. Each Beacon reveals a snapshot of a particular moment in Celtic history, whether it was 2,000 years ago, 200 years ago or in living memory.

In support of the Celtic Beacons, the six counties have also each suggested three Celtic Moments, which allow visitors to get even closer to the Celtic experience. They have been chosen to showcase the times and places where the connection with the past, the land and the spirit is heightened.

The Celtic Moments include a specific location and perhaps a time of day, or time of the year, to give visitors the knowledge that they are discovering the Celtic spirit at the time when that experience is at its peak. Highlights include whales breaching at Hook Head, seal spotting at Cemaes Head and the Aberaeron Mackerel Fiesta.

In total, the Celtic Routes are comprised of 78 visitor experiences that can be enjoyed across the six counties, affording tourists the opportunity to really explore these beautiful and spiritual corners of west Wales and eastern Ireland that act as almost mirror images of each other from across the Irish Sea, characterised by long, unspoilt beaches, lush rolling countryside and, rising up in the distance, dramatic mountain ranges.

For further information about Celtic Routes please see: https://www.celticroutes.info