National walking route · Wales

Wales Coast Path

321 km (200 miles), in Wales, through 1 national park.

Map of the Wales Coast Path The Wales Coast Path runs 321 kilometres through Wales, passing through Eryri (Snowdonia). 50 km
Route from OpenStreetMap (ODbL). Coastline, borders and national park boundaries from the Office for National Statistics (OGL v3.0). Summits from the Database of British & Irish Hills (CC BY 4.0).
Distance
321 km
In miles
199.5 mi
Day stages
15 at ~20 km
Typical trip
12–16 days
Countries
Wales
National parks
1
Listed summits within 2.5 km
0
Within 1.5 km of the coast
80% of the line

How long it really is

We measure Wales Coast Path at 321 km (199.5 miles), computed by walking the OpenStreetMap route geometry point by point across the 2 relations the route is mapped in.

No ascent in this figure

This is horizontal distance only. Our trail dataset carries no elevation profile, so we will not quote a total climb or a confident walking time — on hill routes ascent can add hours a day. A flat-ground pace gives roughly 77 h 08 min of walking for the whole route, which is a floor, not an estimate. Add your own ascent figure in the walking-time calculator for something usable.

Access rights along the way

The route stays within Wales, so one access regime applies along its length.

Wales

Conditional Right to roam: Right to roam only on mapped CRoW open access land.

Permission needed Wild camping: Permission needed everywhere.

Full access rules for Wales

A waymarked route is a route you may walk — it does not follow that you may camp beside it, leave it, or take a dog on it. Long-distance paths cross farmland, estates and access land in turn, and byelaws and seasonal restrictions override the general position. This is general information, not legal advice. Check a specific spot with the access checker.

National parks on the route

The line passes through one national park, each with its own byelaws and camping position.

The route in day stages

Wales Coast Path cut into 15 stages of roughly 20 km, measured along the line itself. These are equal-distance splits computed from the geometry, not an official itinerary — they will not always land on a village, a bunkhouse or a station, and the real day you walk should be set by where you can sleep.

This route is mapped in 6 separate pieces

OpenStreetMap does not hold Wales Coast Path as one continuous line, so the stages below run through the pieces in order of length and the joins between them are not walking distance. Treat the stage boundaries as approximate, and check the official route for the sections between them.

Day stages of the Wales Coast Path at roughly 20 km each
Stage Distance Cumulative Starts near Ends near Flat-ground time
1 20.4 km 20.4 km SS 6640 9300 SS 7767 8843 4 h 29 min
2 20.4 km 40.8 km SS 7767 8843 SS 8476 7709 4 h 29 min
3 20.6 km 61.4 km SS 8476 7709 SS 9281 6766 4 h 32 min
4 20.1 km 81.4 km SS 9281 6766 ST 1032 6619 4 h 25 min
5 20.2 km 101.6 km ST 1032 6619 ST 1885 7160 4 h 27 min
6 20.4 km 121.9 km ST 1885 7160 ST 2845 8053 4 h 29 min
7 20.2 km 142.1 km ST 2845 8053 ST 3281 8284 4 h 27 min
8 20.5 km 162.6 km ST 3281 8284 ST 4797 8756 4 h 31 min
9 22.3 km 184.8 km ST 4797 8756 SH 7451 7849 4 h 54 min
10 20.4 km 205.3 km SH 7451 7849 SH 7962 8212 4 h 29 min
11 22.8 km 228.1 km SH 7962 8212 SH 9921 8096 5 h 01 min
12 20.8 km 248.9 km SH 9921 8096 SJ 1551 8095 4 h 35 min
13 21.3 km 270.3 km SJ 1551 8095 SJ 2899 6997 4 h 41 min
14 20.1 km 290.4 km SJ 2899 6997 SH 5756 7253 4 h 25 min
15 20.8 km 311.2 km SH 5756 7253 SJ 3856 6549 4 h 35 min

Positions are 8-figure (100 m) OS grid references for points on the line, computed from WGS84 coordinates. Flat-ground times are Naismith at 5 km/h with a 6 min/hour rest allowance and no ascent — add the climb in the walking-time calculator before you plan around them.

Conditions on the route

Weather at the route midpoint live

Loading forecast for the midpoint of the route…

Forecast for the midpoint of the Wales Coast Path, at MET Norway's own ground level — we hold no elevation profile for this route, so nothing here is altitude-adjusted, and conditions vary considerably end to end on a route this long. Weather data from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0).

Daylight at the midpoint today

Sunrise
Sunset
Daylight
Civil twilight ends

Computed astronomically for 51.405, -3.184. Set a turnaround with the daylight safety planner.

Plan this walk

Other long-distance paths nearby


Sources for this route

  • Route geometry, name, waymark and operator: OpenStreetMap relation 20280307 and 1 further relation making up the route — © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.
  • Distance, stages, country crossings, park crossings and summit proximity: computed by OpenFell from that geometry.
  • Boundaries: Office for National Statistics (OGL v3.0). Summits: Database of British & Irish Hills v18.3 (CC BY 4.0).

OpenStreetMap data is licensed under the Open Database Licence. Our derived trail measurements are published under the same terms — see data sources.