Celebrate Dewi Sant in Tenby

St David’s Day, the 1st of March is always a special day in Tenby and Pembrokeshire, with businesses and residents celebrating being Welsh and everything about Wales. Young girls will have their welsh costumes on, some wearing tall witch like hats and others with cockle hats. The latter were mainly worn in the Swansea area and I can confirm this because I used to wear one with my costume many years ago. The traditional attire for men was very similar to the English costume, consisting of a brightly coloured waistcoat, a jacket often of blue or grey wool, a neckerchief, a pair of breeches, woollen stockings and a black felt hat, either like a bowler or one with a low, drum-shaped crown with a broad floppy brim. These days the young boys wear Welsh Guards uniforms or a Welsh Rugby kit but always with a large leek pinned to their chests. I can remember when I was in school one young lad was violently sick after munching on his leek whilst watching the school Eisteddfod. Silly boy.


The parish church on Caldey Island is called St Davids and one of the stained glass windows depicts our patron saint, St. David. It was designed by one of the monks, Dom Theodore Bailey who lived on the island in the early 1920s. You can visit Caldey Island easily during the milder summer and spring months when there are numerous boats back and forth from Tenby. During the winter months the boats have to rely on the weather and aren’t guaranteed.

YOU can experience St David’s day in Tenby and stay for the weekend or longer. The town is looking good with tubs and tubs of daffodils placed outside the shops and restaurants, vases full of daffodils in windows, Welsh flags flying proudly. Have a look at FBM Holidays website and find yourself a nice cosy, self catering cottage or apartment, book it and enjoy.