Positioned at the root of the Downs, halfway between the villages of Rhossili and Llangennith, on an ancient raised shoreline plateau, is the Old Rectory, an isolated cottage complete, if legend is to be held true, with ghosts and other apparitions that go bump in the night.
At the most westerly end of the bay and breaking entirely from it at high tide, is the grassy promontory of Worm’s Head, the Gower Peninsula’s very own ‘Land’s End’. Lying like a serpent sliding out from the mainland into the icy depths of the Atlantic, the islet is one of the most curious natural features along the length of the entire Welsh coastline.
Inland, perhaps the most distinctive feature of Rhossili village is its complete lack of trees. With the salty spray of the ocean and the prevailing winds that soar from the Atlantic and scour and tear at all it meets, the only tree that has stood here within living memory was that of an ancient and giant ash. And that only managed to survive by growing on its side and flat to the ground.
On such days of inclemency, when the elements conspire against an exploration down the long 200 foot descent to the beach or up to the dizzying heights of Rhossili Downs, the unbounded pleasure the Rhossili landscape can relay to the senses, can be appreciated from the welcoming warmth and comfort of a traditional hotel.
