Brockweir is a small but attractive village located alongside the River Wye, where there used to be a boat building industry. It is reported that vessels up to 90 tonnes could reach this point from the sea, where their cargoes were transferred to shallow barges and hauled up the river by teams of men. In front of the Quay House there is a screw and shaft (a propelling mechanism) which is reputed to have come from the Belle Marie, which in 1914 became the last boat to sail to Brockweir. . Built in Gloucester in 1860 it was Brockweir's 'market boat' and carried local produce to Bristol on a weekly basis between 1898-1912.

Before the cast iron road bridge was built in 1904/6, only one narrow road led into the village and access was usually achieved by water, with a ferry-taking travellers to and from the Welsh bank. Many of the buildings had river connections, acting as warehouses and although today only one public house remains, there were once 16 inns to satisfy the demands of locals, watermen and shipbuilders! Other interesting buildings include the 16th century Manor House (which stands facing the bridge), the 19th century Moravian Chapel (with its Gothic Windows, Art Nouveau glass and a bellcote) and the Old Malt House (which has a fine Tudor-arched stone doorway). During World War 2, Brock weir and its bridge had a narrow escape when a Wellington bomber, returning from a mission to France, crashed just upstream of the bridge after its crew had safely baled out.

Tintern Abbey is also close by.