For those venturing out on January 1 - Saundersfoot is the place to be - as the seaside village hosts one of the most popular spectacles on Pembrokeshire’s festive calendar - with the New Year’s Day Swim set to celebrate its 39th charity event.
The event started in 1984 with just 10 swimmers, and turning to 2023, and amazing 2,254 took to the sea to take part, with a crowd of roughly 9,000 watching!
“The swim has developed into an incredible spectacle and is classed by Pembrokeshire County Council as a major event,” said county councillor for the seaside village’s south ward Cllr Chris Williams, whose father Martyn was one of the founders of the event.
Cllr Williams, who has taken on the role of chair of the charity swim, which is also the biggest festive dip in the UK and to date has raised over £750k for charities, went onto say: “As well as providing a spectacle for the community, the main driving force for hosting the swim is to provide people with an opportunity to raise money for worthwhile causes.
“We cannot stress enough the importance of swimmers raising monies from their personal sponsorship as this makes such a big difference annually to the supported causes.”
Entry to the swim can now be made by entering online via: www.saundersfootfestivities.co.uk/nyds or visiting in person the New Year’s Day Swim ‘Registration Hut’ which is located on the slipway heading down towards the beach.
Every paid entrant who registers for the swim will receive a medal, so if you haven’t done so already, please register online or visit the registration hut at the top of the slip.
The registration hut will be open for a limited time on the day from 8.30 am onwards.
Only those registered before New Year’s Day will be entered into a prize draw to win a mini spa break to the Dylan Thomas Coastal Resort, or tickets for the Six Nations!
The swim will take place between 12.30 and 1.30 pm on January 1.
If you are bringing your four-legged friends to the beach, please keep them on leads at all times, as there will be two loud fireworks at 12.30 pm to start the swim
Taf Valley Coaches will once again be sponsoring a bus to operate a Park and Ride service on New Year's Day between Kilgetty Community centre and Saundersfoot Village.
The service is free of charge (donations to the charity are encouraged) and will be operated by a wheelchair accessible vehicle. The service will run from 10 am to 2 pm.
Further details can be found on the NYDS website at: www.saundersfootfestivities.co.uk/nyds; the NYDS Facebook page or via email at: [email protected]