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Voykit pocket guide · United Kingdom
Red Wharf Bay
Traeth Coch
Come for a half-day: low-tide sand walk, one pub meal, 2–3 h on foot. Sleep elsewhere unless you have a car and want the bay at dawn.
Red Wharf Bay (Traeth Coch) is a hamlet and tidal bay on the east coast of Anglesey, reached by a lane off the A5025 just south of Benllech. At low tide the water pulls back to leave a wide sand and rock flat that is good for wading-bird watching; at high tide the bay is mostly water. There is a pub, a restaurant and a caravan park, and the Anglesey Coastal Path runs through. It is a stop, not a base: most visitors come for two to three hours, or sleep one night nearby in Benllech, Llangefni or Beaumaris.
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Local name
- Traeth Coch
- Best months
- May–Sep
- Avoid
- Nov–Feb (wet, wind, short days)
- Stay
- 0–1 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- GBP
- Money
- Currency is the pound sterling (GBP, £). Cards and contactless work almost everywhere; some places are card-only.
- Daily spend
- Budget £35–60 excl. bed · Mid £60–110 excl. bed · High £110+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- EE, Vodafone (merged with Three in 2025) and O2 run the networks; prepaid SIMs sell in supermarkets, phone shops and airport vending machines, no registration needed.
- Emergency
- Emergency (police, fire, ambulance, coastguard) 999 · Emergency, EU-style dialling 112 · NHS non-urgent advice 111 · Police non-urgent 101
- Plugs
- Types G · 230 V · 50 Hz · Three-pin Type G only; European, US and Australian plugs need an adapter. Bathrooms have two-pin shaver sockets only.
- Tipping
- Restaurant with table service: 10–12.5% if no service charge is on the bill; check before adding more.; Pub or bar: Not expected; 'and one for yourself' offers the bartender a drink.; Taxi: Round up or 10%.; Hotel porter: £1–2 per bag.; Tour guide: £5–10 per person for a day tour; free walking tours expect £10–15.
- Water
- Tap water is safe everywhere. Free refills are common; restaurants will bring tap water if you ask.
- Toilets
- Public toilets are scarce and some charge 50p–£1 or are card-only. Stations, museums, department stores and pubs (if you buy a drink) are the fallback.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee or tea in a café | £3–4.50 |
| Pub main course | £13–20 |
| Pint of beer | £4.50–6 |
| Car park, per day | £2–6 |
| Bus fare, Bangor–Amlwch corridor | £3–6 |
| eSIM or data SIM, about a week | £8–15 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- LPL · Liverpool John Lennon
- About 2 h by car via the A55 and Britannia Bridge
- MAN · Manchester
- About 2 h 30 min by car via the A55
- VLY · Anglesey (Valley)
- Small airport near Holyhead; limited scheduled flights
Typical fares
- Bus 62/62A, Bangor → Red Wharf Bay area
- about £4–6, about 40 min
- Taxi, Benllech → Red Wharf Bay
- £8–12, about 5 min
- Car park at the bay
- £2–6 per day
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
A car is the practical way in: the bay sits on a narrow lane off the A5025. Arriva bus 62/62A runs between Bangor and Amlwch along the A5025; ask the driver for the Red Wharf Bay stop and expect a walk of a few minutes to the water. On foot, the Anglesey Coastal Path links the bay with Benllech to the north and the Moelfre direction to the south.
See and do
Known for
- Tidal sand flats at low water
- Wading birds and wildfowl
- Anglesey Coastal Path
- The Ship Inn and The Tavern on the Bay
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Benllech | Anglesey Coastal Path on foot, or 5 min by car on the A5025 | 30–45 min on foot |
| Beaumaris | Car via the B5109, about 20 min | About 30 min |
| Llangefni | Car via the B5111, about 15 min | About 25 min |
| Menai Bridge | Car via the A55, about 25 min | About 40 min |
| South Stack | Car via Llangefni and Holyhead, about 50 min | About 1 h |
| Holyhead | Car via the A55, about 45 min | About 1 h |
Sleep
- Red Wharf Bay hamlet
- A handful of cottages and a caravan site right on the bay; book far ahead in summer.
- Benllech
- 1.5–2 km (0.9–1.2 mi) north on the A5025; beach, shops and more beds. Walkable along the coast path.0.9–1.2 mi (1.5–2 km) north on the A5025; beach, shops and more beds. Walkable along the coast path.
- Llangefni
- About 8 km (5 mi) inland; the practical base for shops, fuel and year-round beds.About 5 mi (8 km) inland; the practical base for shops, fuel and year-round beds.
- Beaumaris
- About 12 km (7.5 mi) south; castle, pier and the best choice if you want a town with dinner options.About 7.5 mi (12 km) south; castle, pier and the best choice if you want a town with dinner options.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | HeloHEH-lo |
| Thank you | DiolchDEE-olch |
| Please | Os gwelwch yn ddaos GWEL-ookh un thah |
| Goodbye | Hwyl fawrhoo-il VOWR |
| Where is the beach? | Ble mae'r traeth?bleh myre TRYTH |
| Is this the coast path? | Ai dyma'r llwybr arfordir?eye DUM-ar LOOY-bir ar-VOR-dir |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake at first meeting; 'hi' and first names quickly; avoid: Cheek kisses with strangers
- Conversation: Weather is a safe opener; understatement and self-deprecating humour; avoid: Asking about salary or class
- Queues: Join at the back; avoid: Pushing onto buses or trains before others get off
- Apologies: 'Sorry' is said constantly, even when not at fault; avoid: Taking it as an admission of blame
- Pubs: Buy rounds in a group; wait at the bar without waving money; avoid: Clicking fingers at staff
- Nations: Call Scots Scottish and Welsh Welsh; avoid: Calling the whole UK 'England'
Scams and watch-outs
- Tide: the sand flat floods fast. Check a tide table before walking out and never cross a channel you cannot see the bottom of.
- The lane down to the bay is single-track in places with few passing places.
- Phone signal is patchy on the beach; download an offline map.
- Pub kitchens on this stretch of coast close earlier than the bar: check last orders before you sit down.
Low-risk rural coast. The real hazards are the tide, wet rock on the path and single-track lanes; crime is not a practical concern.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Red Wharf Bay yet. Suggested stay: 0–1 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Tidal sand flats at low water
- Wading birds and wildfowl
- Anglesey Coastal Path
- The Ship Inn and The Tavern on the Bay
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Visit Anglesey — official island tourism site: www.visitanglesey.co.uk/
- Visit Wales — Anglesey and North Wales: www.visitwales.com/
- Arriva Buses Wales — timetables: www.arrivabus.co.uk/wales
- National Rail — journey planner: www.nationalrail.co.uk/
- Wikivoyage: Red Wharf Bay, revision 5271334 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5271334
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Red Wharf BayTraeth Coch
I'r cyfeiriad hwn, os gwelwch yn dda
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
- Emergency (police, fire, ambulance, coastguard)999
- Emergency, EU-style dialling112
- NHS non-urgent advice111
- Police non-urgent101
No embassies on Anglesey; the nearest consulates-general are in Manchester and Edinburgh, embassies in London.
One pub, one restaurant and a caravan site: check opening days out of season before you drive down the lane.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/red-wharf-bay). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.