Aberaeron

A picture postcard feel envelops the sleepy fishing village of Aberaeron, quite literally in fact, as the Georgian architecture was deemed so picturesque that it was featured on postage stamps. What is now a quiet and quaint town that welcomes tourists was built with the intention to be a bustling sea port.

Aberaeron offers everything one might expect from a seaside holiday destination with shops, restaurants, beaches and a picturesque harbour. Aberaeron has its own Seafood Festival to complement its annual Carnival and the Cob Festival, showcasing the very best of the Cardigan coast.

Known affectionately as the Jewel of Cardigan Bay, Aberaeron is world famous for the quality of its honey (plus honey ice-cream and honey mustard produced locally) and also features prominently on the Dylan Thomas trail.

LOCAL HISTORY & CULTURE
Sited at the mouth of the river Aeron, the harbour was funded entirely by the Lord of the Manor, Rev. Alban Thomas Jones Gwynne from 1805. The buildings, a large proportion of which are listed and were designed by the architect Edward Haycock in an ornamental Regency style, give the town a very distinctive feel that is at odds with the vernacular architecture of much of Wales. Aberaeron's architectural interest does not end there however, as Llanerchaeron, designed by John Nash, is only a few miles away.

The harbour operated as a port and supported a shipbuilding industry in the 19th century. Steam ships continued to visit the harbour until the 1920s but, in later years, it evolved into a small half-tide harbour for recreational craft. The estuary is also crossed by a wooden pedestrian bridge.

It is a predominately Welsh speaking town, with some 70% of the inhabitants able to speak the language, and much of daily life in shops and businesses is conducted through the medium of Welsh here.