In case you’re planning a visit to Wales, then you definately’ve come to the correct place! On this information we’re going to share every little thing it is advisable know to plan the right Wales journey. That is based mostly on our experiences of touring in Wales and likewise my time residing in Wales, which I did for a few years. I used to be really born in Wales!
On this publish, we’ll cowl the very best occasions of yr to go to Wales, highlights to not miss, get round Wales, the place to remain in Wales, what to eat in Wales, ebook excursions, and lots of extra ideas that will help you plan the right Wales journey.
We’d counsel studying this information alongside our detailed Wales road trip itinerary, which will provide you with extra concepts of a particular itinerary and sights to see.
Let’s begin with an summary of Wales.
A Fast Overview of Wales
Wales is a rustic with a inhabitants of round three million individuals. It’s a part of the Island of Nice Britain together with England and Scotland. It is without doubt one of the 4 nations (together with England, Scotland, and Northern Eire) that make up the UK.
Geographically, Wales borders England alongside its total east coast, from round Chester within the north down to close Bristol within the south. The remainder of the nations border is made up of gorgeous shoreline, principally alongside the Irish Sea.
The historical past of Wales is pretty complicated. Individuals have been residing right here for tons of of hundreds of years, with steady habitation for at the very least 9,000 years. Because the Roman occasions, many battles have been fought between the Welsh and the English as both sides fought for management over what’s current day Wales.
One of many negative effects of all these wars is that Wales now has an enormous quantity of castles you possibly can go to which is nice as a vacationer. There’s additionally quite a lot of fascinating historical past and tradition which is exclusive to Wales.
Again to the current, and modern-day Wales exists as its personal nation with its personal language (Welsh) and, since 1999, its personal parliament. Nevertheless, there aren’t any border controls or something like that when touring from England to Wales (they’re each a part of the UK), and English can also be in fact essentially the most broadly spoken language.
If you’re not that aware of the historical past of Wales, we will extremely suggest studying a book on Welsh history earlier than or throughout your go to. This won’t solely make it easier to higher perceive most of the locations you might be more likely to go to in Wales (e.g., castles, museums, church buildings, Iron Age ruins), however it can additionally make it easier to higher perceive the trendy tradition and politics in Wales.
What’s there to see in Wales?
There’s a lot to see in Wales, one thing actually for everybody.
To start out with, with a lot historical past spanning hundreds of years, Wales has an enormous quantity of cultural points of interest.
From iron age burial chambers to fascinating museums to distinctive cultural events like the Eisteddfodd, there actually is a large quantity to select from.
After all, the very first thing that possible springs to thoughts if you consider Wales are the castles, a facet impact of all the varied wars through the years. Wales has an enormous variety of castles, together with quite a lot of UNESCO listed medieval castles.
In truth, Wales has extra castles per sq. mile than some other nation in Europe! Suffice to say, if you happen to like exploring castles as a lot as we do, Wales has no scarcity to give you.
In case you do plan on seeing quite a lot of castles, then we will extremely suggest selecting up a Cadw go. This consists of entry to an enormous variety of historic websites in Wales, together with most the castles.
You should buy this online here, or in individual at most Cadw websites. We discovered this saved us some huge cash on our most up-to-date journeys.
Lovers of the outside, like us, may also discover loads to do in Wales. There’s an enormous quantity of pure landscapes to discover, from gorgeous coastal surroundings to lovely hills and mountains. It’s good for hikers of all skills. So whether or not you favor to wander alongside a beautiful little bit of seaside or climb to the highest of a mountain, Wales has you coated.
Talking of seashores, with a lot shoreline, as you may think there are many seashores to select from. These run the complete gamut, from lovely sandy stretches to these coated in pebbles. So if you happen to’re after an excellent swim or only a good stroll on the seaside, there are many choices for you.
All that pretty open air house additionally means Wales is a superb vacation spot for wildlife. The range in panorama and habitat means there’s quite a lot of completely different chook species you possibly can spot, and there are numerous nature preserves you possibly can go to the place you possibly can spot varied sorts of chook and study them.
It’s extra than simply birds in fact, with viewing alternatives for all types of wildlife, from seals and different marine life by way of to mammals, reptiles, and extra!
Lastly, Wales can also be an excellent vacation spot for lovers of mythology. This ought to be apparent from the flag, which is emblazoned with a crimson dragon, arguably the world’s coolest flag. Naturally, you possibly can be taught all concerning the mythology of Wales, from the origin story of King Arthur by way of to dragons and druids.
Total, we expect it’s truthful to say that Wales will not be a vacation spot the place you’ll run out of issues to do!
Some Primary Info for Touring in Wales
Let’s cowl some primary data for touring in Wales.
Wales and the broader UK
Wales is part of the UK (UK), so upon getting entered the UK then you possibly can journey out and in of Wales freely.
If Wales is your first level of entry into the UK (similar to if you happen to arrive into Cardiff Airport from outdoors the UK), then you definately would want to undergo passport management and have the right visa and any vital documentation.
You possibly can see extra data on any required visas on your go to on the UK government website here or from your personal authorities’s official journey web site.
In case you arrive into one other a part of the UK similar to England or Scotland, then you definately don’t have to undergo any additional controls if you journey to Wales, be that by automotive, practice, or airplane.
Attending to and from Wales
Wales is a straightforward nation to get to. By way of flights, the one industrial airport in Wales is Cardiff airport, which provides each native and worldwide flights to a restricted variety of locations.
Wales can also be nicely served by regional transport connections from the UK. By practice, Cardiff is round 2.5 hours from London, 50 minutes from Bristol, and 4 hours from Liverpool.
North Wales locations like Conwy are round an hour by practice from Chester, or 3.5 hours from London.
You may as well simply drive to Wales from areas across the UK. It’s round 3 hours by automotive to from London to Cardiff, 4 hours from Liverpool to Cardiff and seven hours to Cardiff from Edinburgh.
Wales can also be served by ferry routes which hyperlink Wales with the Republic of Eire. So if you’re doing a visit like our two week UK itinerary, this may allow you to join between Wales and the Republic of Eire.
There are additionally a number of excursions that embrace Wales, departing from areas similar to London or Bristol. Extra on excursions afterward on this information. Suffice to say, you might have loads of choices for attending to and from Wales!
Language in Wales
Wales has two official languages: Welsh and English. Slightly below 20% of the inhabitants of Wales speaks Welsh, however just about everybody additionally speaks English.
Nevertheless you’ll virtually actually hear Welsh being spoken throughout your go to.
The primary method you’ll encounter Welsh as a customer is more likely to be on indicators. Most indicators are offered in each Welsh and English. Place names are additionally practically at all times written in Welsh.
Welsh is a reasonably difficult language to be taught and the pronunciation is certainly not at all times apparent! Place names can simply journey guests up, though the excellent news is that almost all Welsh individuals are fairly used to it.
In case you’d like to enhance your pronunciation, this is a good starter guide. An excellent guide book to Wales also needs to embrace a information to pronunciation.
Driving in Wales
Driving in Wales is identical as driving in the remainder of the UK, with the principle distinction being that almost all of the highway indicators are in Welsh in addition to English.
In case you drive in Wales, you’ll rapidly be taught some Welsh phrases from the highway indicators, significantly “Araf” which implies “Sluggish”. Within the majority of instances although, indicators can be in each English and Welsh.
Apart from that, driving in Wales is identical as driving in the remainder of the UK. Drive on the left of the highway and be sure you observe all pace limits and highway guidelines. Velocity limits are usually posted, with the nationwide restrict at 60 miles per hour and limits for built-up areas usually 20 to 40 miles per hour. You possibly can see extra ideas in my information to driving in the UK.
If you’re renting a automotive (compare prices here), you possibly can drive the automotive between England and Wales with none points.
Bear in mind that almost all of vehicles within the UK use a handbook transmission, so be sure you specify an computerized if that’s what you might be used to driving. Simply be aware that these do usually carry a value premium as they don’t seem to be as widespread.
Relying on the place on the planet you might be visiting from and the language your license is in, you may additionally want an international driver’s license from the nation which points your driver’s license.
Public Transporation in Wales
Wales has a reasonably good public transport community, with each buses and trains which hyperlink most of the cities and cities throughout the nation. You possibly can see the principle transport routes on the Transport for Wales website here.
For journey planning by public transport in Wales (and the UK on the whole), we suggest and use the Traveline website. It’s a free service offered by a partnership of public transport operators within the UK, and can make it easier to plan your journey between just about any two factors within the nation.
For almost all of public transport in Wales and the UK (particularly on longer distance routes) you’re going to get higher costs if you happen to ebook on-line prematurely. We suggest the trainline website for practice and bus reserving, we’ve used them for years for our public transport wants within the UK.
Different choices to think about, particularly for lengthy distance bus journeys embrace National Express and Megabus.
Electrical energy in Wales
Wales makes use of the identical energy system as the remainder of the UK. It’s a 220v system which makes use of a three-pin plug (plug kind G).
Travellers from many of the remainder of the world, together with mainland Europe and the USA will want an adapter like this.
American travellers may also wish to verify their gear helps the 220v customary, because the U.S. makes use of a 110v customary. The voltage a tool helps can be written clearly on the ability adapter, normally within the type of 110v – 240v.
In our expertise most trendy laptops, cellphone and digital camera chargers, and different small electronics are common, while bigger units like hair dryers and hair straighteners aren’t.
See extra on journey adapters and the way to decide on one on your journey in our information to the best travel adapters.
Foreign money in Wales
Wales makes use of the identical foreign money as the remainder of the UK, specifically Pound Sterling, or GBP (Nice British Kilos). Wales makes use of the financial institution notes issued by the Financial institution of England, so the foreign money in use in Wales appears to be like precisely the identical as that utilized in England.
Notice that that is completely different to Scotland and Northern Eire, the place financial institution notes are issued by Scottish and Irish banks respectively. These financial institution notes will also be utilized in the remainder of the UK (and Financial institution of England notes can be utilized in Scotland and Northern Eire).
Time Zone in Wales
Wales is on the identical time zone as the remainder of the UK, which is both GMT, or GMT+1, also called British Summer time Time (BST).
BST runs from the final Sunday in March by way of to the final Sunday in October.
Finest Instances to Go to Wales
You is perhaps questioning when the very best time to go to Wales is. While Wales is a year-round vacation spot, there are actually benefits and downsides to visiting at completely different occasions of yr.
Finest for Climate
Wales has a comparatively delicate local weather year-round with out large extremes.
If you need hotter climate and longer hours of daylight for sightseeing, then the very best time of yr to go to goes to be from late Could by way of to mid-September.
This time of yr will provide you with the very best likelihood of fine climate and sunny days, though be aware that rain and cooler temperatures are potential year-round.
The summit of Snowdon in summer time – good climate not assured!
Avoiding Crowds
Wales is a well-liked vacation spot, particularly for guests from different areas of the UK. There are a selection of massive English cities close to Wales similar to Birmingham, Liverpool, Bristol, and Manchester, and guests from these cities usually take journeys to Wales. It’s an particularly common vacation spot for households.
In consequence, the busiest time of yr in Wales is mostly going to be over the varsity holidays (college breaks) in England and Wales.
The precise timing of college holidays varies slightly by space, however typically there are main holidays over the Easter interval, and over the summer time months from mid-July by way of to the top of August.
There are additionally “half-term” holidays which happen midway by way of every college time period and are typically every week in length. There may be usually one in mid-February, one across the finish of Could and one across the finish of October.
The preferred time for individuals to go to Wales is through the hotter summer time months, and through college holidays, particularly the Easter holidays, spring half-term, and summer time holidays.
In consequence, if you wish to go to Wales when it’s more likely to be quieter then you definately can be finest served avoiding these occasions.
In case you nonetheless need good climate, we’d counsel June or September to be optimum months, though April and Could can supply good climate you probably have a little bit of luck in your facet!
Finest for Mountain climbing / Climbing Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa)
While you possibly can hike in Wales at any time of yr, we’d counsel that the very best occasions for climbing are going to be just like that for visiting for the very best climate. So that’s going to be from late Could to mid-September.
No matter time of yr you intend to go climbing although, bear in mind that the climate can change in a short time. So you’ll want to be ready, guarantee somebody is aware of your route and the place you’re going, and pack appropriately. For extra data, this safety guide may be very useful.
The preferred hike in Wales by far is the hike up Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa in Welsh). You possibly can each hike and take a practice to the summit, each of that are common choices.
In our expertise, Snowdon may be busy yr spherical, however the hotter summer time months are positively the preferred time to sort out the hike.
If you wish to keep away from the crowds on the hike itself, then we’d counsel avoiding the Llanberis path which tends to be the preferred, and taking one of many different much less common routes such because the Snowdon Ranger path or the Rhyd Ddu path.
After all, Wales has an excellent many extra mountains you possibly can hike, nearly all of that are far much less busy and common than Snowdon. A private favorite is Cader Idris, which additionally provides spectacular views throughout the Snowdonia Nationwide Park, and attracts a fraction of the guests!
Main Festivals in Wales
Wales performs host to quite a lot of festivals and festivals all year long, together with music festivals, meals festivals, literary festivals, craft festivals, artwork festivals, and extra (see a reasonably complete list of festivals in Wales here).
The most important competition in Wales is generally the National Eisteddfod of Wales, which is held for round every week on the primary week of August annually. The placement for the competition modifications annually, and it usually attracts upwards of 100,000 guests. The competition celebrates Welsh tradition, with the occasions and actions all going down in Welsh.
In case you plan on visiting the Eisteddfodd (or some other competition in Wales), you’ll positively wish to plan nicely forward as lodging can ebook out, and the realm the place the occasion is being held is more likely to be a lot busier than standard.
Conversely, it’s price being conscious when and the place festivals are being held even if you happen to don’t plan on attending them, so that you don’t get caught up within the crowds!
How Lengthy to Spend in Wales
As ought to hopefully be apparent by now, though Wales is a comparatively small nation, there’s a large quantity to see and do in Wales. You can simply spend many weeks exploring the nation with out working out of issues to see and do.
Our advice can be to spend at the very least every week if potential to get a good suggestion of what’s on supply and to have time to discover a number of the nation’s highlights.
When you’ve got much less time, say three to 5 days, then we’d suggest specializing in one space or area of the nation somewhat than attempting to cowl an excessive amount of floor.
So, for instance, with three days you may wish to give attention to visiting Cardiff and south-west Wales or discover a part of north Wales with visits to Caernarfon and Snowdonia Nationwide Park.
When you’ve got every week or extra, then you possibly can increase your itinerary to cowl extra of the nation.
We are going to share some urged itineraries additional on on this information that will help you plan, and we even have a 7 – 10 day Wales road trip itinerary it’s best to discover useful. That itinerary can simply be expanded to 2 or extra weeks.
The place to Keep in Wales
Wales has a variety of lodging choices throughout all budgets. Whether or not you favor camping, glamping, self-catered accommodation, family-run guesthouses, country house hotels or regular hotels, you’re going to discover one thing to go well with.
Now we have stayed at an enormous vary of lodging choices throughout Wales, together with house leases, guesthouses, mattress and breakfasts and motels. Normally we want to both keep at a domestically owned mattress and breakfast or small resort. However for longer stays, we usually ebook an house or cottage.
When in search of lodging, we suggest a mixture of the next websites:
- Booking.com – that is normally our first cease for all types of lodging sorts, from motels to visitors homes to flats. We just like the highly effective filter system that enables us to hone in on precisely what we would like in every location, in addition to the map device that lets us see completely different choices in several areas.
- Sykes Holiday Cottages – for longer stays in Wales (and the broader UK) we additionally use Sykes. They specialise in vacation cottages, and now we have stayed at some actually pretty properties by way of their system.
- Vrbo UK – if we’re particularly in search of an house or trip rental, we’ll additionally normally look on Vrbo. They provide a wide selection of choices and it’s good to have a comparability.
If you want extra choices for lodging reserving in Wales and the UK, see our guide to booking holiday homes in the UK for some concepts!
What to Eat in Wales?
You is perhaps questioning what meals it’s best to strive in Wales if you go to, and if there are any uniquely Welsh dishes. Effectively, the reply is sure there are.
While there are actually quite a lot of similarities between Welsh meals and English meals, together with staples similar to fish and chips and the complete fried breakfast expertise, there are some dishes which can be widespread to Wales. Listed below are some to strive:
- Cawl – considered one of extra conventional Welsh dishes, cawl (pronounced cowl) dates again to the eleventh century at the very least and is actually a stew made with meat, greens, and potatoes.
- Welsh Rarebit – while this sounds prefer it’s going to contain rabbit, this quintessential Welsh dish is definitely melted cheese on toast. There are variations on the recipe, with mustard or a bechamel sauce added to the cheese. Scrumptious nevertheless it’s made!
- Glamorgan sausage – this common “sausage” is a conventional vegetarian sausage primarily constructed from leeks, cheese, and breadcrumbs. It dates again to at the very least the 18th century however rose in recognition throughout World Conflict II because of meat rationing and stays common in the present day.
- Welsh desserts – this small cake is constructed from dough, raisins, currant and candied fruit peel after which cooked on a griddle. It may be eaten sizzling or chilly and is texturally extra just like a shortbread than a cake. We prefer it served sizzling and eaten with butter!
- Bara brith – this fruit loaf is a well-liked choice to have with afternoon tea and is commonly served with butter on it. It’s principally a fruit cake full of raisins, currants and dried candied fruit peel.
- Laverbread – This can be a very fascinating delicacy, which regardless of the title, isn’t a bread in any respect. As a substitute, it’s a puree constructed from a particular kind of seaweed which grows alongside the Welsh shoreline. The seaweed is cooked for hours to kind the puree, which is then mostly served with bread.
- Welsh cheese – Wales is house to many milk producing animals, together with cows, goats, and sheep. As such, there are numerous conventional Welsh cheeses to get pleasure from. Probably the most well-known is Caerphilly, which is a tough however crumbly white cheese. Others embrace Y Fenni, Tintern and Pantysgawn
- Native drinks – Wales produces a variety of native drinks, together with domestically brewed beers and ciders. There are additionally over 20 vineyards in Wales producing Welsh wine, and Welsh whisky is rising in popularity as nicely!
In addition to particular dishes, there are additionally many meals that Wales is mostly identified for. These embrace Welsh lamb and beef, seafood, seaweed, and leeks, the latter of which is definitely the nationwide image of Wales.
If you’re going to be procuring and cooking throughout your time in Wales, you shouldn’t have any drawback discovering some native Welsh produce.
Suffice to say, we don’t suppose you’re going to go hungry throughout your keep in Wales.
Learn how to get round Wales?
There are fairly a number of choices for getting round Wales, which we’ll undergo now.
By Automotive
Our most popular choice for touring in Wales is to drive ourselves. Wales has quite a lot of points of interest which can be slightly off the overwhelmed path, and a automotive makes it lots simpler to succeed in these tucked away castles or hidden seashores.
That mentioned, you have to be conscious that the highway community in Wales is primarily made up of normal two-lane roads somewhat than multi-lane freeways (often known as motorways within the UK).
As such, journey occasions can take a bit longer than in different components of the UK. It’s troublesome to zip throughout Wales and journeys might take longer that you just count on from simply trying on the map.
This isn’t a nasty factor, because the surroundings is mostly pretty, and there are many issues to cease and take a look at anyway. Nevertheless, you’ll simply wish to bear in mind when planning that even when the distances don’t look significantly lengthy, it will possibly take a little bit of time to get from place to put.
If you’re planning on touring by automotive and have to lease, we suggest comparing car rental prices here.
Public Transportation
As talked about within the part on public transport, Wales has a reasonably good public transport community.
The primary factor to know if you’re planning to journey in Wales by public transport is that you just’ll positively wish to plan nicely prematurely. Additionally, you will wish to bear in mind that it will possibly take fairly a little bit of time to get between areas.
I’ve accomplished a good bit of journey by practice and bus in Wales, and while the surroundings is at all times very fairly, it will possibly take some time to get from location to location. So simply bear in mind that if you’re on a restricted timetable, you’ll need to plan fastidiously in order to not spend all of your time sitting on a bus or practice.
It’s additionally price noting that while trains and buses join quite a lot of the nation, they don’t go completely all over the place. So if there may be someplace you actually wish to see, do verify to make sure you can really get there by the mode of transport you want to use.
Total, while you possibly can positively get round Wales by public transport, for people on a restricted timeframe who wish to see lots, we’d most likely suggest both driving or taking a tour.
Best Locations to go to in Wales by public transport?
If you’re planning on visiting Wales by public transport, you is perhaps questioning what the very best areas are for doing so. Listed below are some ideas.
First, we’d counsel specializing in a particular area of Wales if you happen to plan on visiting by public transport, as then you definately’ll be capable to spend extra time sightseeing and fewer time touring.
Cardiff is a really well-connected metropolis, after which from right here you can simply discover alongside the south coast to Tenby and even St. David’s.
Alternatively, if you happen to’d want to discover extra of the mountains, then head to North Wales. I’d suggest taking the practice line alongside the north coast from the English metropolis of Chester (or Liverpool), which connects to quite a lot of different practice and bus routes.
This can let you discover many highlights of the area, together with Conwy, Bangor, Caernarfon, the Snowdonia Nationwide Park, in addition to the northeast shoreline together with Harlech and Barmouth.
You can simply make a loop by way of North Wales by public transport, going into Wales from Chester throughout to Conwy and Bangor, then heading south down the coast to Barmouth and Aberdovey, after which lastly east by way of Machynlleth to Shrewsbury.
This route will allow you to discover castles, see shoreline and expertise the mountains, all without having a automotive.
Be part of a Tour
Among the best technique to see Wales in our opinion, particularly if you happen to want to not drive, is to hitch a tour. A tour lets another person deal with all of the logistics, from planning what to see and do to get from place to put.
You do lose a little bit of flexibility when taking a tour in fact, as they often observe a set itinerary. That is significantly the case if you happen to be a part of a bunch tour. A non-public tour will usually supply much more customization, with the draw back that they are typically costlier.
That mentioned, in our expertise most group excursions give attention to the highlights that guests wish to see anyway. Simply ensure when selecting a tour to make sure it visits nearly all of sights and points of interest you actually wish to see in Wales.
Now we have some really useful excursions of Wales within the part of this information on really useful excursions. You may as well see a spread of excursions by varied suppliers at completely different value factors and durations on TourRadar here.
Finest Guided Excursions of Wales
A good way to see the highlights of Wales with out having to fret concerning the logistics of planning transport and lodging is to take a guided tour.
There are a selection of excursions to select from that go to Wales, of various length and value.
The longer Wales excursions typically depart from London, Bristol, or Cardiff.
Some we recommend are as follows:
- This 5 day road trip with Rabbies can be our first choose of accessible small group excursions of Wales. We’ve taken an excellent many excursions with Rabbies and we love their educated driver guides and small group sizes. This tour departs from London and covers most of the highlights of the nation, from Snowdonia all the way down to south west Wales.
- This 8 day tour from Cardiff follows an analogous path to our personal suggested Wales road trip itinerary. This tour consists of time in Cardiff, the Brecon Beacons mountains, Snowdonia Nationwide Park, Conwy Fort, St. Davids, Tenby, and the Pembrokeshire Coast Nationwide Park.
- When you’ve got much less time to spare, then this 3 day tour with Rabbies departs from Bristol and focuses on the highlights of south Wales, together with Carreg Cennen Fort, Hay on Wye, St. Davids, Tenby, and the Pembrokeshire Coast Nationwide Park.
- That is one other 3 day tour with Rabbies which departs from Bristol and focuses on the highlights of North Wales. It consists of Snowdonia Nationwide Parks, Conwy Fort, Harlech Fort, the Slate Museum, and Portmeirion.
There are in fact extra excursions to select from in Wales. See this selection from a range of operators on TourRadar which is able to allow you to type and filter by length, locations visited and value.
Highlights in Wales
There’s lots to see in Wales, sufficient to fill many weeks of explorations. As it may be laborious to determine what to see, we needed to share a few of our private highlights within the nation. That is under no circumstances an exhaustive record, however we do suppose it covers quite a lot of what the nation has to supply.
We’ve divided it roughly into points of interest within the southern half of Wales (principally every little thing south of round Aberystwyth) and the northern half of Wales (every little thing north of Aberystwyth).
We expect this is sensible as a result of if you’re on a shorter timetable you’ll want to give attention to a extra manageable space.
If you’re fortunate sufficient to have extra time then you possibly can positively go to the entire nation!
South Wales Highlights
South Wales has lots to supply, from the cultural points of interest in and across the capital metropolis, by way of to the gorgeous landscapes of the Pembrokeshire Nationwide Park the place one can find ample climbing and wildlife viewing alternatives.
This a part of Wales can also be house to historical burial grounds, lovely church buildings, castles, seashores, and extra!
Listed below are some highlights to think about including to your Wales itinerary.
- Cardiff Fort
- Cardiff Museum
- St. Fagans (Nationwide Museum of Historical past)
- Castell Carreg Cennen
- Caerphilly Fort
- Tenby
- Freshwater Seaside
- Whitesands Seaside
- St. David’s Cathedral
- Mountain climbing in Pembrokeshire Coast Nationwide Park
- Pentre Ifan Burial Chamber
- Amgueddfa Ceredigion Museum, Aberystwyth
- Elan Valley
- Brecon Beacons
- Hay on Wye
North Wales Highlights
North Wales is maybe finest often known as being the spectacular Snowdonia Nationwide Park, which is truthful sufficient as it’s a really lovely a part of the world.
Nevertheless, there’s heaps extra to this area of the nation, from epic castles by way of to heritage steam railways and fantastic seashores.
Listed below are a number of highlights to think about including to your itinerary for Wales!
- Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways
- Caernarfon Fort
- Beaumaris Fort
- Conwy Fort
- Harlech Fort
- Mount Snowdon & Snowdonia Nationwide Park
- Nationwide Slate Museum
- Fowl Watching within the Dyfi Valley & Coast
- Centre for Different Expertise
- Barmouth Seaside
- Aber Falls
- Portmeirion
Recommended Itineraries for Wales
There’s a lot to see in Wales! We needed to share some urged itineraries for visiting the nation for various durations, so you possibly can benefit from your go to.
After all, your mode of transport will dictate precisely how far you’ll be able to go and what you’ll be able to see. If you’re counting on public transport, we’d positively suggest specializing in a smaller space so you possibly can spend extra time seeing sights and fewer time touring.
If you’re on a tour or in your personal car, you’ll possible be capable to match extra in.
1 – 3 Day Wales Itineraries
With one to 3 days in Wales we’d extremely suggest specializing in a particular space of the nation, similar to an space of south Wales or north Wales.
For instance, for south Wales you may contemplate spending a day in Cardiff after which a day or two exploring the Pembrokeshire Coast Nationwide Park, overnighting in St. David’s or the gorgeous coastal village of Tenby.
Another choice can be to give attention to the mountains and castles of north Wales.
Basing your self in Caernarfon for instance would put you in straightforward attain of a number of the most spectacular castles in Wales, in addition to the hike or practice trip up Snowdon. You can simply spend an exquisite one to 3 days visiting castles, exploring seashores and climbing within the mountains of Snowdonia.
3 – 6 Day Wales Itineraries
With three to 6 days you’d be capable to extra completely discover a area of Wales.
Once more, we wouldn’t essentially suggest attempting to see the entire nation on this time interval as it’d really feel a bit rushed. As a substitute, give attention to a selected space and hone in on a number of the points of interest you have an interest in.
For instance, if you wish to expertise tradition and coastal surroundings, then we’d counsel beginning in Cardiff, working your method alongside the south coast, after which heading up in direction of Aberystwyth.
Alongside the way in which you’ll be capable to go to cultural points of interest, expertise lovely coastal walks and soak up quite a lot of castles.
Alternatively, head as much as north Wales. With a bit extra time you possibly can discover extra of this lovely a part of the world, from the peaks of the Snowdonia Nationwide Park to the UNESCO listed castles to the heritage steam railway traces.
We’d counsel basing your self in two or three areas, similar to Caernarfon, Porthmadog, Conwy, or Barmouth, and exploring from there.
6 Day+ Wales Itineraries
With greater than six days in Wales, you’d be capable to discover from prime to backside if you happen to so wished. We’d counsel a loop alongside the coast, beginning in Cardiff, heading out to the Pembrokeshire Coast Nationwide Park, then all the way in which as much as Snowdonia Nationwide Park and north Wales.
Now we have a urged 1 week Wales itinerary (may be adjusted to 10+ days) for doing simply that with a lot of detailed data, which we expect you’ll discover helps you get round.
What to Pack for Wales
Wales, like the remainder of the UK, is a rustic the place the climate may be extremely variable. Rain is feasible at any time of yr, as are cooler temperatures.
So if you plan what to pack on your journey to Wales you’ll want to be ready for a wide range of situations. Moreover, as quite a lot of the actions in Wales contain time spent open air and significantly climbing, you’ll wish to plan and pack accordingly to make sure you are ready.
We might suggest studying our information to what to pack for the UK as a normal overview, but additionally to recollect the next gadgets:
Additional Sources for Visiting Wales and the UK
And that’s it for our detailed planning information for visiting Wales! We hope you discovered this information helpful. We additionally needed to share some extra assets we expect may make it easier to with planning this and future journeys within the UK.
- Now we have an in depth 7 – 10 day road trip itinerary for Wales, with daily highlights, recommendations on the place to remain, and much extra.
- In case you’re in search of extra highway journey inspiration within the UK, now we have a two week UK road trip itinerary and a one week UK road trip itinerary. We even have a one week Cornwall itinerary
- In case you’re heading to Scotland, take a look at our 2 day Edinburgh itinerary, our Glasgow and Loch Lomond itinerary, our information to the best day trips from Glasgow, our information to things to do in Edinburgh, our itinerary for Skye and the Highlands, our information to the best day trips from Aberdeen, and our information to the very best day trips from Edinburgh. We even have a North Coast 500 planning guide and North Coast 500 seven day itinerary
- In case you’re not aware of driving within the UK, see my guide to driving in the UK for useful ideas.
- Now we have guides to many cities within the UK you possibly can take a look at! See our guides to things to do in Manchester, things to do in Stratford upon Avon, things to do in Bristol, things to do in Portsmouth, recommendations on a weekend in York, recommendations on Visiting Oxford on a Day Trip, and things to do in Cambridge to get began
- In case you’re in search of a guidebook on your journey, take a look at the Rough Guide to Wales
And that’s it! Have you ever ever visited Wales? Do you might have something you’d add to the above? Simply tell us within the feedback beneath, and secure travels!
