Three South Wales towns have been named among the wettest in the UK in a study by Sykes Holiday Cottages and former BBC weather presenter, Owain Wyn Evans.

The study, compiled by Wyn Evans and Sykes analysed Met Office figures, from 1991 to 2020, revealing the seaside towns and cities in the UK which see the most rain.

Aultbea in the Scottish Highlands was found to be the wettest in the UK with an average rainfall of 121mm a month.

It also rains on average 17 days of each month.

Other seaside towns to feature on the list included Tenby, Aberporth, Cardiff and Blackpool.

South Wales Argus: Mumbles Head and Cardiff are among the wettest seaside towns in the UK.Mumbles Head and Cardiff are among the wettest seaside towns in the UK. (Image: Getty Images)

Top 20 wettest seaside towns in the UK

The top 20 wettest seaside towns in the UK, according to Sykes and Wyn Evans, are:

  1. Aultbea, Scottish Highlands
  2. Tiree, Inner Hebrides
  3. Lochboisdale, Outer Hebrides
  4. Helensburgh, Argyll & Bute
  5. Portrush, Country Antrim, Northern Ireland
  6. Fair Isle, Shetland
  7. St Bees, Cumbria
  8. Cardiff, South Glamorgan
  9. Tenby, Pembrokeshire
  10. Milford Haven, Pembrokeshire
  11. Killowen, County Down, Northern Ireland
  12. Morecambe, Lancashire
  13. St Athan, The Vale of Glamorgan
  14. Mumbles Head, Swansea
  15. Helens Bay, County Down, Northern Ireland
  16. Aberporth, Ceredigion
  17. Bude, Cornwall
  18. Slapton, Devon
  19. Aberdaron, Gwynedd
  20. Blackpool, Lancashire

The 3 South Wales seaside towns among the wettest in the UK

Three seaside towns in South Wales featured among the wettest in the UK, according to the study based on Met Office figures:

  • Cardiff (8)
  • St Athan (13)
  • Mumbles Head (14)

The list also featured four other locations in Wales:

  • Tenby
  • Milford Haven
  • Aberporth
  • Aberdaron

Cardiff was the wettest seaside town in Wales with an average rainfall of 100mm (per month), with it raining 13 days a month (on average).

South Wales Argus: There are seven seaside towns in Wales among the wettest in the UK.There are seven seaside towns in Wales among the wettest in the UK. (Image: SWNS)

St Athan was revealed as the 13th wettest location in the UK with an average fall of 87mm and with it raining 13 days a month.

While Mumbles Head in Swansea was found to have an average rainfall of 85mm a month, with it raining 13 days each month.

But it's not all bad news for seaside towns.

On average, seaside towns are drier than the rest of the UK, with analysis showing they get an average of 75mm of rainfall a month, compared to 97mm for the rest of the country.

Brits don't let 'typical wet British weather' get in the way of a staycation

A survey of 2,000 adults in the UK, as part of the study by Sykes Holiday Cottages and Wyn Evans found that 72% of people don’t let typical wet British weather get in the way of a staycation.

On top of that 61% said it wasn't a British holiday if it didn’t rain. 

When it came to activities while on holiday in the UK sightseeing (53%), strolls along the pier (37%), and tucking into fish and chips (30%) were among the most popular activities people would do regardless of the weather.

Sykes chief executive, Graham Donoghue, said: “Rain is often part and parcel of a UK holiday, but our latest research shows that wet weather isn’t necessarily a dampener on people’s staycation experiences.

He continued: “You don’t need to shy away from the wet weather while on staycation – in fact, you may find you get to know your chosen location better than you would’ve in the sunshine by spending more time with the local community in pubs, restaurants, and local eateries.”

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Former BBC weather presenter, Wyn Evans, added: “I love that even in the rain, holidaymakers will still embrace a Great British staycation.

“Us Brits won’t let a bit of wet weather keep us indoors, and I’d argue some activities can even be better with a few rain drops.

“Despite my experience as a weather presenter, the exact detail on rain, especially showers can be hard to predict, so hopefully this analysis will give Brits some idea of what to expect and plan for if they’re heading to a seaside location this year.”