Pembrokeshire Coast Workhouse @AlbroCastle

The Workhouse (Plas-y-Berllan) is the main building of Albro Castle workhouse situated in its own valley overlooking the Teifi Estuary. We are surrounded by beautiful countryside with the start of the Pembrokeshire Coast Path at the end of our lane. Poppit beach is a 15 minute walk away and the Preseli Mountains a 20 minute drive. St.Dogmaels is a pretty village with a local produce market every Tuesday, brilliantly stocked shop for essentials and the Ferry Inn pub just a 5 minute walk form us. *Featured in Wild Guide Wales 2018* Can be booked in conjunction with Cosy Cottage @AlbroCastle for groups up to 16. This beautiful 19th centuary workhouse is ideal for families or groups of friends to get together and experience all that the Pembrokeshire coast line and surrounding area has to offer. A peaceful retreat from the bustle of daily life in the beautiful welsh countryside. The renovated workhouse is a spacious place even with the maximum number of 12 people staying here. There are three double bedrooms and three twin rooms (although one of the twin rooms has a bed that slides under the other bed) and there are two camp beds that are suitable for small children which can be set up in two of the double rooms or two of the twin rooms. Each of the bedrooms has a sink and windows that look down the valley to the estuary. Downstairs there is a large kitchen with a slate flagged floor containing a range cooker, fridge/freezer, microwave and dishwasher (as well as the usual toaster and kettle!) and plenty of work surfaces so the whole group can be in there cooking! There is a wide range of pots and pans to cook for considerably more than 12 people. The kitchen is the main way into the building for guests going in from the parking area through the courtyard. The dining room has a large table that can seat up to 16 people if necessary and there is enough crockery and cutlery etc to accommodate still more. The dining room contains a coal fired Rayburn which also runs the heating upstairs. Once you get the hang of using this (Pete will demonstrate how to use it when you arrive and will be around give additional help if needed) it keeps the place very cosy even in winter. The coal for the Rayburn is included in the price. The lounge is a very large room with sufficient seating for everyone and a log burner, a great space for everyone to congregate after dinner and catch up. The first basket of logs is free but any subsequent nets used are charged £4/net. You are asked to keep a tally of this yourselves and settle up at the end of your stay. Downstairs there is also the large entrance hall. Towards the back of the building there is the lobby area which contains the washing machine, the downstairs toilet and shower and has another door onto the courtyard garden. You have the sole use of a huge courtyard which contains a BBQ, table and chairs so you can eat alfresco if you want. The courtyard faces south-east and is a sun trap, great for the not so hot spring and autumn days when perhaps it is a bit chilly to go on the beach. The courtyard is entirely enclosed with a gate that leads out to the parking area. It is the perfect safe space to let children and animals relax and play without worrying about their whereabouts. There is sufficient parking for 4 cars (5 at a push). If your group has more than this, we can arrange for parking off-site There will alway be someone around to help with any issues or questions you may have. We live within 50m of the house in what was the old stables. This is an old building which we try to repair what is there rather than replace with new materials so sometimes things need sorting. On the odd occasion when we are not around, you can always phone us and we'll help as best we can, ultimately getting someone in to resolve any issues. You can always ask us for advice on where to go and what to do. We're here to make your stay as comfortable as you need. This is an authentic and historic Workhouse This old Grade 2* Listed Building built in 1838 for the poor and destitute of the Cardigan area nestles in its own valley overlooking the Teifi estuary which flows out to the sea at Poppit sands, between Cemaes head with the Pembrokeshire Coast Path and Cardigan Island to the north. This is a wild stretch of coastline with wild flowers, streams, sand dunes, estuary birds, rugged cliffs as well as dolphins and seals in Cardigan Bay. The building is set to one side of the village of St. Dogmaels, for the poor this would have been an austere and frightening place, a place which may well have been their last home. Now the building is softened by time and vegetation with flowering climbers and wild flowers grow to the front door. The interior of the building has not been replaced with new materials but has been repaired, leaving the interior as much as possible as it was, reflecting the lives and stories of the people who have lived here for the past 180 years. Since the 1930’s it has had a chequered history being variously a home for American GI’s during the war, flats, a school, holistic healing centre, guest house as well as, since 2004, holiday accommodation. The repair of the building is on-going and any income from the lettings goes in to further repair. This place is not a historic shell with a modern interior, which is what happens to most old country buildings. It is left, as much as possible, just as it was. In fact, in many places, the emulsion paints that have been put on in recent decades are slowly and painstakingly removed with a scalpel to reveal the old lime paints applied in the 1800’s. The buildings and spaces around the workhouse are also the home to many animals, birds and plants and we ask guests to respect these as well, to not pick any flowers or trample them inadvertently. Plants are not restricted to borders and are generally allowed to grow where they want provided they don't restrict access or create health and safety issues. So please be aware of the other lives around you. The water is a private supply that comes from the "Seven Medicinal Springs" and is very pure water which is tested regularly. However, for everyone's peace of mind, the water is passed through a UV filter which eliminates any potential for bacterial contamination. As a consequence, we don't have mains water pressure and everything takes a little longer than usual.