Sights in Southeast Wales
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Maritime Quarter
WWII bombing flattened much of central Swansea, which was rebuilt as a rather soulless retail development in the 1960s, '70s and '80s. What little remains of Georgian and Victorian Swansea stretches from Wind St and York St to Somerset Pl and Cambrian Way in the Maritime Quarter ; this is the most attractive part of the city centre.
The area around the former docks to the southeast of the city centre was originally redeveloped as a residential area in the 1980s - low-rise red- and yellow-brick apartment blocks with blue-painted steel balconies, which are beginning to look a little tired now. The South Dock and the Tawe Basin (enclosed by a smaller version of Cardiff Bay's…
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Chepstow Castle
Magnificent Chepstow Castle perches atop a limestone cliff overhanging the river, guarding the main river crossing from England into South Wales. It is one of the oldest castles in Britain (building began in 1067) and the impressive Great Tower retains its original Norman architecture.
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The Mumbles
The Mumbles, strung out along the shoreline at the southern end of Swansea Bay, has been Swansea's seaside retreat since 1807, when the Oystermouth Railway was opened. Built for transporting coal, the horse-drawn carriages were soon converted for paying customers, and the Mumbles train became the first passenger railway service in the world.
The name - which becomes a vowel-free zone in Welsh, Y Mwmbwls - is a legacy of French seamen who nicknamed the twin, rounded rocks at the tip of the headland Les Mamelles - 'the breasts'.
Newly fashionable in recent years, with gourmet restaurants vying for trade along the promenade, the Mumbles got a boost to its reputation when its …
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Nelson Museum & Local History Centre
Admiral Horatio Nelson visited Monmouth twice in 1802, officially en route to inspect Pembrokeshire forests for timber for his ships (though it may have had more to do with his affair with local heiress, Lady Emma Hamilton). Despite this tenuous connection Lady Llangattock, local aristocrat and mother of Charles Stewart Rolls, became an obsessive collector of 'Nelsoniana', and the results of her obsession can be seen in the Nelson Museum & Local History Centre.
It's fascinating to see how complete Nelson worship was in 19th-century Britain, with forged relics such as locks of his hair, alongside copies of his first attempt to write with his left hand. Children can make Ne…
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National Waterfront Museum
Housed in a 1901 dockside warehouse with a striking glass and slate extension, the museum's 15 hands-on galleries explore Wales' industrial history and the impact of industrialisation on its people, from 1750 to the present day, making much use of interactive computer screens and audiovisual presentations. The effect can be a bit overwhelming, but there is a lot of interesting stuff here, enough to occupy several hours.
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Swansea Museum
It would be hard to find a more complete contrast to the Waterfront Museum – Dylan Thomas referred to it as 'the museum which should have been in a museum'. Founded in 1834, it remains charmingly low-tech, from the eccentric Cabinet of Curiosities to the glass cases of archaeological finds from Gower caves. Pride of place goes to the Mummy of Hor.
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Glynn Vivian Art Gallery
Housed in an elegant Italianate building, the city's main gallery displays a wide range of Welsh art (Richard Wilson, Gwen John, Ceri Richards, Shani Rhys James) alongside works by Claude Monet and Lucien Freud and a large ceramics collection.
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Egypt Centre
Swansea University is in the suburb of Sketty, halfway between the city centre and the Mumbles, and possesses the UK's biggest collection of Egyptian antiquities outside the British Museum. It displays a fascinating collection of everyday ancient Egyptian artefacts, ranging from a 4000-year-old razor and cosmetics trays to a mummified crocodile.
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Chepstow Museum
Housed in an 18th-century town house across the road from the castle, this small, child-friendly museum covers Chepstow's industrial and social history.
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Shire Hall
Agincourt Sq is dominated by the arcade of the 1724 Shire Hall, and a statue of former Monmouth resident Charles Stewart Rolls (1877-1910), one half of the team that founded Rolls-Royce. Not only a pioneering motorist and aviator, he was the first British citizen to die in an air accident (his statue is clutching a model of the Wright biplane in which he died).
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Beaches
From the parking area beyond Mumbles Head (continue along Mumbles Rd, past the pier), you can hike along a cliff-top path to Beaches. Hike for a mile to Langland Bay, and on for another mile to Caswell Bay; both are popular swimming and surfing beaches. You can return to the Mumbles waterfront by walking back along Caswell Rd, Langland Rd and Newton Rd.
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Plantasia
A huge glass pyramid parked between the Parc Tawe Shopping Centre and the river contains Plantasia, a botanical exhibition containing hundreds of species of exotic plants, plus attendant insects, reptiles, tropical fish, birds and tamarin monkeys. A coffee shop and range of kids' activities make it a popular rainy-day retreat.
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Mumbles Pier
At the end of its mile-long strip of pastel-painted houses, pubs and restaurants is a rocky headland abutted by a Victorian pier with a sandy beach below. Built in 1898, it houses the usual amusement arcade and a once-grand cafe, festooned with chandeliers.
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Dylan Thomas Centre
Housed in the former Guildhall, this centre contains an absorbing exhibition on the Swansea-born poet's life and work. Aside from the collection of memorabilia, what really brings his work to life is a series of recordings, including the booming baritone of Richard Burton performing Under Milk Wood and Thomas himself reading Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night, the celebrated paean to his dying father.
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Oystermouth Castle
It wouldn't be Wales without a castle, hence the trendy shops and bars of Newton Rd are guarded by a majestic ruin. Once the stronghold of the Norman lords of Gower it's now the focus of summer Shakespeare performances. There's a fine view over Swansea Bay from the battlements.
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Swansea Castle
The ruins of 14th-century Swansea Castle - closed to the public - stand on the east side of Castle Sq, hemmed in by modern buildings and dwarfed by the gleaming blue skyscraper of the BT Tower. It was mostly destroyed by Cromwell in 1647, but had a brief lease of life as a prison in the 19th century.
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Port Wall
The 13th-century Port Wall, the old town fortification, runs along the west side of the town centre. You can see it from the Welsh St car park and near the train station. Chepstow's main street, High St, passes through the Gate House, the original city gate, which was restored in the 16th century.
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Mission Gallery
Set in a converted 19th-century seamen's chapel, it stages Swansea's most striking exhibitions of contemporary art, as well as selling glassware, ceramics, jewellery and art magazines.
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Monmouth Castle
Nearby on Castle Hill are the meagre remains of Monmouth Castle, where Henry V was born in 1397. Except for the great tower, it was dismantled in the 17th century and the stone used to build Great Castle House next door, now headquarters of the Royal Monmouthshire Regiment.
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Monnow Bridge
Monnow Bridge, at the southwest end of Monnow St, is the UK's only complete example of a late-13th-century fortified bridge. Much of what you see now was restored in 1705. On the far side of the bridge is the partly Norman St Thomas's Church.
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Regimental Museum
Inside Great Castle House is the volunteer-run Regimental Museum, a labour of love squeezed into a cupboard-sized space, tracing the regiment's history from the 11th century to the Gulf War.
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LC2
The Marine Quarter's new £32-million leisure centre includes a gym and a 9m indoor climbing wall, but best of all is the waterpark, complete with a wave pool, water slides and the world's first indoor surfing ride.
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Laugharne Castle
Built in the 13th century, Laugharne Castle was converted into a mansion in the 16th century for John Perrot, thought to be the illegitimate son of Henry VIII. It was landscaped with lawns and gardens in Victorian times.
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King Street Gallery
Sells interesting work by a cooperative of 29 local painters, sculptors, ceramicists and printmakers.
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