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City and county in Wales · United Kingdom

Swansea

Swansea is a port and coastal city in Wales.

Swansea
Swansea · King of Hearts (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The place

Swansea is a port and coastal city in Wales. It is the second-largest city in the country. The city forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea.

Adapted from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

What is there

Worth seeing in and around Swansea

10 places within 25 km that the world writes about, in the order of how widely: the ones a visitor has heard of first, then the ones only a local would name.

  1. 01
    Liberty Stadium

    The Swansea.com Stadium is an all-seated multi-use sports stadium and conferencing venue located in the Landore area of Swansea, Wales, hosting both rugby union and football. The stadium opened in 2005 and was named the Liberty Stadium.

    3 km · Stadium in Wales · Wikipedia
  2. 02
    Swansea University

    Swansea University is a public research university located in Swansea, Wales. It was established as University College of Swansea in 1920, as the fourth college of the University of Wales.

    2.2 km · public research university located in Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom · Wikipedia
  3. 03
    St Joseph's Cathedral

    The Cathedral Church of Saint Joseph, also known as St Joseph's Cathedral, Menevia Cathedral or Swansea Cathedral, is a Grade II-listed Catholic cathedral in Swansea, Wales. It was the seat of the Bishop of Menevia and mother church of the Diocese of Menevia, and is the co-cathedral of the Archdiocese of Cardiff-Menevia.

    1.8 km · Catholic cathedral in Swansea, Wales · Wikipedia
  4. 04
    Swansea Castle

    Swansea Castle is located in the city centre of Swansea, Wales, UK. It was founded by Henry de Beaumont in 1107 as the caput of the lordship of Gower. The castle is now ruined and only two blocks remain, though the site has been improved in the 2010s for use as a public space.

    700 m · castle in Swansea, Wales · Wikipedia
  5. 05
    Oystermouth Castle

    Oystermouth Castle is a Norman stone castle in Wales, overlooking Swansea Bay on the east side of the Gower Peninsula in the village of Mumbles.

    5.7 km · Grade I listed castle in Mumbles, Swansea, Wales, UK · Wikipedia
  6. 06
    Mumbles Lighthouse

    Mumbles Lighthouse, completed in 1794, is a lighthouse located in Mumbles, near Swansea. The structure, which sits on the outer of two islands off Mumbles Head, is clearly visible from any point along the five mile sweep of Swansea Bay.

    5.7 km · lighthouse in Swansea, Wales · Wikipedia
  7. 07
    Dylan Thomas Centre

    The Dylan Thomas Centre is an arts centre located in the Maritime Quarter in Swansea, Wales. It is a Grade II* listed building.

    1 km · Grade II* listed building in Swansea · Wikipedia
  8. 08
    National Waterfront Museum

    The National Waterfront Museum, Swansea or NWMS is a museum in Swansea, Wales, forming part of Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales. It is an Anchor Point of ERIH, The European Route of Industrial Heritage.

    800 m · Museum of industrial and maritime history in Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom · Wikipedia
  9. 09
    Swansea Market

    Swansea Market situated, in the heart of Swansea city centre, is the largest indoor market in Wales. The market is covered by a steel arched portal frame roof clad in steel and glass.

    100 m · retail market in Swansea, Wales, UK · Wikipedia
  10. 10
    The Tower, Meridian Quay

    The Tower, Meridian Quay is a residential tower in Swansea, Wales. It is the tallest building in Wales.

    600 m · residential tower in Wales · Wikipedia

Ranked by the number of language editions of Wikipedia with an article on each, from Wikidata; the sentences are the openings of those articles, CC BY-SA 4.0.

See

What Wikivoyage says to see

  1. 01
    Swansea Castle

    The ruins of this 13th-century castle are in the city centre.

  2. 02
    The Guildhall

    This elegant building of white Portland stone has graced the city centre's western approach since 1934.

  3. 03
    Arthur's Stone

    A neolithic burial chamber or cromlech dating from 2500BCE.

  4. 04
    Dylan Thomas' Childhood Home

    Restored to reflect the environment of Dylan's youth, Number Five Cwmdonkin Drive is open as a self-catering guest house, and is suitable for budding writers.

  5. 05
    Oystermouth Castle

    The castle was founded in the early 12th century by William de Londres of Ogmore and was constructed of ringwork and bailey.

  6. 06
    Mumbles Pier

    Built in the 1880s to encourage more passengers to use the Mumbles Train, the pier is an edifice to the Victorians' love of the ocean.

From Wikivoyage: Swansea, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.

Do

Things to do

Swansea Indoor Bowls Stadium, Beaufort Road, Plasmarl,. An international standard indoor bowling stadium which hosts the Welsh International Open, part of the annual World Bowls Tour. The stadium features 6 bowling rinks with a function room and a bar. Sanghapadipa Temple, Clase House, Pengwern Road, Clase,. A temple in the Thai Theravadan tradition.

From Wikivoyage: Swansea, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.

Eat

Where to eat

Cockles These are harvested from the mud-flats in the nearby Loughor Estuary. Cockles are sold in Swansea Market. Ice-cream. Due to an influx of Italian families into the area during the early 20th century, Swansea has developed quite a reputation for its tubs and cones.

From Wikivoyage: Swansea, CC BY-SA 4.0. Not yet checked by us.

Go there

Getting to Swansea

Airports
Cardiff (CWL), 49 km · Bristol (BRS), 89 km · Birmingham (BHX), 177 km
Stations
Briton Ferry, 8.7 km · Swansea Airport, 8.2 km · Coedffranc, 7.1 km · Swansea railway station, 1.1 km · Sandfields West, 9 km
  • Cardiff → Swansea
    55 km · quickest by road, 1h 22m · £6–8
  • Bristol → Swansea
    95 km · quickest by road, 2h 25m · £12–15
  • Birmingham, West Midlands → Swansea
    169 km · quickest by road, 3h 23m · £19–26
  • From anywhere
    The planner compares every way there from wherever you are.
    Plan a trip

Road and air are today’s quick answer; timetabled trains, buses and ferries load on the results page from the operators’ feeds.

Not yet researched

No local-transport research exists yet for Swansea

Our researched notes are written from a sourced entry: every shared taxi, boat and village bus with its operator, its rule, its fare and the year we saw it, and what could not be confirmed. Nobody has done that work for Swansea. What is above is what we hold from open sources; nothing here pretends to be more.

What Wikivoyage says about moving around
  • Get in}} {{go | name | url | address 51.713889 | long | phone | hours | wikidata=Q542734 | lastedit=2022-06-25 | content= to the west near Burry Port, handles private aircraft and offers charter flights from destinations in UK and Europe.

From Wikivoyage: Swansea, CC BY-SA. Not yet checked by us; that article was last edited 2026-09.

The nearest places where the work is done
  1. 01
    LundyGB

    7 ways of moving, 11 sources

    70 km
  2. 02
    Isle of WightGB

    11 ways of moving, 22 sources

    211 km
  3. 03
    Inis Mór (Inishmore)IE

    8 ways of moving, 20 sources

    426 km
  4. 04
    Isle of ArranGB

    10 ways of moving, 31 sources

    447 km
  5. 05
    Tarbert, Loch Fyne and KintyreGB

    9 ways of moving, 15 sources

    482 km

If you know how people move in Swansea – the stand, the rule, the fare – tell us, and the note gets an entry.

Around it

Next door to Swansea

Swansea is 55 km from Cardiff, the nearest large city, whose note carries the wider picture.