Top Waterfalls Day Trips from Bath
Written by UK Hidden Gems Editorial
Updated 5 August 2026
The top Waterfalls Day Trips from Bath include Cleddon Shoots, St Audries Bay Waterfall, Trull Waterfall, Pistyll Goleu, Grand Cascade, Berw-ddu Waterfall, Blaen-y-Glyn and Pwll-Du Waterfall.
Bath sits in gentle limestone country, and that means proper waterfalls simply are not on its doorstep. To find falling water you have to travel, but the good news is that a day's drive opens up some wonderful country.
Head west across the Severn into the Wye Valley for Cleddon Shoots above Llandogo, tumbling toward the river through mossy oak woods. Further into the Welsh valleys of Rhondda Cynon Taf lie the tucked-away Pistyll Goleu and the weather-dependent Berw-ddu, while the Brecon Beacons hold the cascades of Blaen-y-Glyn and the shaded pool of Pwll Du in Waterfall Country.
Closer to home, though still a good drive, Somerset offers St Audries Bay on the coast and the modest Trull near Taunton. Swing east instead and the Grand Cascade graces the parkland at Blenheim Palace.
Each is a genuine full day out rather than an afternoon stroll, so plan ahead. Here are eight waterfalls for a day trip from Bath.
Cleddon Shoots
Photo: David M Clark via Geograph.org.uk
Cleddon Shoots The nearest of the bunch still means a proper drive west, out to the Wye Valley above Llandogo on the Monmouthshire side. Here Cleddon Shoots tumbles down a steep, wooded slope, the stream dropping through a ravine of sessile oak and beech toward the River Wye below.
The wood is a site of special scientific interest, damp and thickly mossed, with rough paths leading down from car parks on the higher ground. Quiet and out of the way, it can be reached only on foot.
Pair it with a wander along the Wye and you have the makings of a fine full day out from Bath.
St Audries Bay Waterfall
Photo: Roger Cornfoot via Geograph.org.uk
St Audries Bay Waterfall Roughly seventy kilometres west of Bath, out on the Somerset coast near Watchet, St Audries Bay Waterfall drops straight down the cliff onto the beach. You can reach the base on foot along the shore, but only when the tide is out, so plan around the tide times.
The bay is a well-known spot for fossils, its layered cliffs from the very end of the Triassic and start of the Jurassic yielding ammonites and other remains to those who search the fallen rock. It is a quiet stretch of coast reached down from the cliffs, with the Quantock hills rising behind, making a rewarding full day trip from the city.
Trull Waterfall
Photo: Shazz via Geograph.org.uk
Trull Waterfall A little south of Taunton, just east of the village of Trull, this small fall drops on the Sherford Brook. It is a modest local feature rather than a big natural cascade, and it turns up on a short circular walk with a viewing bridge over the stream.
The Winchester Arms pub stands nearby on Church Road, handy for a pint after your stroll. Some accounts suggest the fall began life as a weir built to feed a mill, though that is not firmly confirmed.
It makes a gentle, low-key objective, best combined with exploring Taunton and the surrounding Somerset countryside on a relaxed full day out from Bath.
Pistyll Goleu
Photo: Alan Bowring via Geograph.org.uk
Pistyll Goleu Deeper into the Welsh valleys, in St Gwynno's Forest near Llanwonno, Pistyll Goleu is a small, pretty waterfall where the Sychnant stream drops over a face of Pennant sandstone. This is a lesser-known, tucked-away spot, reached on a short walk of about ten minutes from the roadside, and often taken in on a longer waterfall walk around Llanwonno.
Its mossy, wooded setting draws photographers, though there are no facilities on hand. Set in the hills of Rhondda Cynon Taf, it lies a good drive west of Bath, so treat it as one stop on a full day exploring the falls and forest tracks of the valleys.
Grand Cascade
Photo: Graham Hogg via Geograph.org.uk
Grand Cascade For something different, head east to Blenheim Palace near Woodstock in Oxfordshire, where the Grand Cascade spills over a dam at the western end of the Great Lake. The River Glyme pours across in a broad sheet of falling water, part of the landscape shaped in the 1760s by Lancelot Capability Brown, who dammed the Glyme to create the lake.
It has been called one of the most lovely waterfalls in England. A major restoration in the early 2020s lowered the lake, rebuilt around a hundred and fifty metres of walling and uncovered original timbers from Brown's day.
Reached through the parkland, it rounds off a full day out from Bath.
Berw-ddu Waterfall
Photo: Nick Earl via Geograph.org.uk
Berw-ddu Waterfall Back in the valleys, at the head of the Dare Valley west of Aberdare, Berw-ddu spills off the hillside below the cliffs of Tarren y Bwllfa. Its Welsh name means roughly 'black rapids'.
You can reach it from the walks in Dare Valley Country Park, though it is very much a weather-dependent fall: it needs a good spell of rain to flow and can run nearly dry otherwise. This is a lightly documented local feature rather than a mapped landmark, so keep your expectations modest and pick your day after wet weather.
Wrapped into a walk in the country park, it makes a pleasant leg of a full day out from Bath.
Blaen-y-Glyn
Photo: Nigel Davies via Geograph.org.uk
Blaen-y-Glyn Up at the eastern edge of the Brecon Beacons, above the Talybont valley, Blaen-y-Glyn is a run of waterfalls on the Caerfanell river. The river and its side streams drop through a series of falls and cascades in steep, wooded gorges, the rocks thick with moss and ferns and the water tumbling from one pool to the next.
Paths climb beside the streams, crossing footbridges and linking fall to fall over a couple of miles. Higher up on the open moor stands a memorial to the crew of a Wellington bomber that crashed there in 1942, killing all five men aboard, with pieces still on the hill.
It is a green and atmospheric spot.
Pwll-Du Waterfall
Photo: Colin Pyle via Geograph.org.uk
Pwll-Du Waterfall Furthest of all, deep in the Waterfall Country of the Brecon Beacons, Pwll Du, the black pool, lies in the wooded Nedd Fechan gorge just above Pontneddfechan, where the Afon Pyrddin joins the Nedd Fechan. Small cascades feed the dark, shaded pool rather than a single tall fall, in a steep gorge rich in moss and fern.
You reach it on an easy riverside walk from the car park by the Angel Inn at Pontneddfechan, the same path that carries on to bigger falls higher up, such as Sgwd Gwladys. There are no facilities in the gorge itself, so it is a place to slow down and take in the surroundings.
FAQs
Why are there no waterfalls close to Bath?
Bath sits in gentle limestone country, where streams tend to sink underground rather than tumble over hard rock. The nearest true falls lie a good drive away, in the Welsh valleys, the Brecon Beacons and along the Somerset coast.
Which of these makes the easiest day trip from Bath?
Cleddon Shoots in the Wye Valley is the closest at around forty-five kilometres, reached on foot above Llandogo. Paired with a walk beside the River Wye, it makes a manageable full day out from Bath.
Are the Brecon Beacons waterfalls worth the longer drive?
Yes. Blaen-y-Glyn and Pwll Du sit in the heart of Waterfall Country, with cascades, gorges and riverside paths, well worth the drive from Bath for anyone who enjoys a proper day in the hills.
Conclusion
Bath itself may sit in waterfall-free limestone country, but a day on the road brings a fine spread within reach. The Welsh valleys and the Brecon Beacons hold the pick of them, from Cleddon Shoots in the Wye Valley to the cascades of Blaen-y-Glyn and the black pool at Pwll Du.
Closer options in Somerset, such as St Audries Bay and Trull, make gentler outings, while the Grand Cascade at Blenheim adds a touch of grandeur to the east. None of these is a quick stop, so set off early, pack a picnic and make a proper day of it.
Whether you head for the coast, the valleys or the parkland, these are the waterfalls for a day trip from Bath.
