Festival participation numbers were well up on 2024, with nearly 400 participants walking over 170 miles of Gower and surrounding area on a total of over 30 walks. Several walks were completely sold out.
It was a truly international Festival with ‘walkers’ coming from as far away as the USA. As always, it was well supported by Swansea and Gower locals wanting to revisit favourite places or discover more about the area they call home. But there were also participants from further afield including: Scotland, Northern Ireland, The Midlands, Avon & Somerset, Hampshire, Oxfordshire and Bedfordshire – all drawn by the opportunity that the Gower Walking Festival provides to discover the beauty of the area.
The 21st anniversary Gower Walking Festival started on Saturday 6th September, officially launched by the Lord Mayor of Swansea, Councillor Cheryl Philpott at the start of The Southgate Circular walk. It continued for 9 days, finishing on Sunday 14th September with walks in the Middle Swansea Valley and up Kilvey Hill.
More details about the success of the 2025 Festival can be found in our Evaluation Report which can be downloaded below.
The success of the Festival relies heavily on our generous sponsors, as well as support from local and national organisations.
Our 2025 sponsors were:
- The Gower Society (a Gold Sponsor) which works to preserve the landscape, nature and history of Gower
- Dynamic Rock – the Clydach rock climbing gym which sponsored the Middle Swansea Valley walk
- Fab Walks – part of the fitness & beauty Fab Company, which sponsored the Hidden Communities of Bishops Wood and Woods, Lily Pond, Common & Garden walks
- Surfside Cafes – which operates cafes in Caswell, Langland and Rotherslade and which sponsored the Bays, Beaches & Bards walk
The list of supporters, national and local, is ever growing and supports the ethos of the Festival to promote the area.
We are already working on plans for the 2026 Festival –Saturday 5th September to Sunday 13th September – which promises to be jam-packed with wildlife, nature, history, arts, views and more!
We will keep you posted as to when tickets for this year’s Festival go on sale (hint: May!). In the meantime, keep walking and we’ll see you in September – hope your boots are laced and ready to discover Gower! Sign up to our newsletter on the home page or follow us on social media for updates.