Historic buildings from all over the country have been dismantled and re-erected in the semirural surrounds of St Fagans village, 5 miles west of central Cardiff. Almost 50 buildings are on show, including thatched farmhouses, barns, a watermill, a school, an 18th-century Unitarian chapel and shops selling period-appropriate goods. Buses 32, 32A and 320 (£2, 25 minutes) head here from Cardiff. By car it's reached from the continuation of Cathedral Rd (which becomes Pencisely Rd then St Fagans Rd).
You'll need at least half a day to do the whole complex justice and you could easily spend longer, picnicking in the grounds.
It's a super place for kids, with special events in the summer, tractor-and-trailer rides and an old-time fun fair. Craftspeople are often on hand, demonstrating how blankets, clogs, barrels, tools and cider were once made. In winter, fires are stoked by staff in period costume, and there's a high-ropes course through the beeches, CoedLan, between May and October (£12 per person).
Highlights include a 16th-century farmhouse imbued with the smell of old timber, beeswax and wood smoke. A row of six miners' cottages from Merthyr Tydfil has been restored and furnished to represent different periods in the town's history, from the austere minimalism of 1805 to all the mod cons of 1985. It took 20 years to move St Teilo's Church (built 1100 to 1520) here, stone by stone. It's been restored to its original look, before Protestant whitewash covered the vividly painted interior. Then there's the museum's six-year multimillion-pound redevelopment, completed in 2019, which has added two Iron Age roundhouses and a re-creation of the llys (court) of medieval prince Llywelyn Fawr (Llywelyn the Great), one of the last kings of Wales, as well as three new indoor galleries charting Wales' social history through experiential exhibits (from prehistoric times right up to a beautifully tiled coal-fired, deep-fat fryer) and a restaurant.
St Fagans Castle is no johnny-come-lately to this site, either. It was originally built by the Normans in 1091 as a motte-and-bailey castle before being rebuilt in stone. The manor house (1580) at its heart is recognized as one of Wales' finest Elizabethan houses.
The property was donated by the earl of Plymouth in 1946, along with its lovingly maintained formal gardens and the grounds that encompass the site. Despite inside areas being closed to the public due to Covid-19 at the time of research, the grounds remained open. A walk around them still shows most of the enthralling edifices.
