Must-see attractions in Snowdonia & the Llŷn

  • Portmeirion Village

    Llŷn Peninsula

    Set on its own tranquil peninsula reaching into the estuary, this fantastical collection of colourful buildings with a heavy Italian influence was…

  • Braich-y-Pwll

    Llŷn Peninsula

    The rugged, ethereally beautiful extremity of the Llŷn Peninsula is where medieval pilgrims set off to reach the holy island of Bardsey; one glimpse of…

  • Harlech Castle

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    Edward I finished this intimidating yet aesthetically pleasing castle in 1289, the southernmost of his 'iron ring' of fortresses designed to keep the…

  • Erddig

    Snowdonia & the Llŷn

    For a glimpse of the life of the British upper class in the 18th and 19th centuries, and the 'upstairs-downstairs' social hierarchy of their bygone world,…

  • Gwydyr Forest

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    The 28-sq-mile Gwydyr Forest, planted since the 1920s with oak, beech and larch, encircles Betws-y-Coed and is scattered with the remnants of lead and…

  • National Slate Museum

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    Even if you're not enraptured by industrial museums, ignore the dull-sounding name and check this one out. At Dinorwig Quarry much of the slate was carved…

  • Llechwedd Slate Caverns

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    Blaenau's main attraction takes you into the bowels of a Victorian slate mine. You descend the UK's steepest mining cable railway into the 1846 network of…

  • Cellb

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    Recently opened in the Edwardian-era police station (hence 'Cell B'), this multifunction centre hosts everything from yoga to live bands to screenings in…

  • St Winefride's Well

    Snowdonia & the Llŷn

    Marking the site at which St Winefride was supposedly martyred (and revived by her uncle, St Bueno) is the holy well which gave the town its name. It's…

  • Mawddach Estuary

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    The Mawddach Estuary is a striking sight, flanked by woodlands, wetlands and the mountains of southern Snowdonia. There are two Royal Society for the…

  • Oriel Plas Glyn-y-Weddw

    Llŷn Peninsula

    A diverse collection of work by contemporary Welsh artists – all available for purchase – is only part of the attraction of Wales's oldest gallery. It's…

  • Plas Newydd

    Snowdonia & the Llŷn

    The 18th-century home of the Ladies of Llangollen (Irish aristocrat Lady Eleanor Butler and her companion, Sarah Ponsonby), Plas Newydd is an atmospheric…

  • Nantclwyd y Dre

    Snowdonia & the Llŷn

    Dating from 1435, half-timbered Nantclwyd y Dre is thought to be the oldest town house in Wales. It originally belonged to a family of weavers and it…

  • St Hywyn's Church

    Llŷn Peninsula

    Stoically positioned above a pebbly beach, St Hywyn's Church has a left half dating from 1100 and a right half that was added 400 years later to…

  • Valle Crucis Abbey

    Snowdonia & the Llŷn

    The dignified ruins of this Cistercian abbey are a 2-mile walk north of Llangollen. Founded in 1201 by Madog ap Gruffydd, ruler of northern Powys, its…

  • Barmouth Bridge

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    You're unlikely to miss Barmouth's foremost landmark: in fact, you'll probably arrive on it, by train, on foot or on two wheels. Curving scenically into…

  • Sygun Copper Mine

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    This mine dates from Roman times, although extraction was stepped up in the 19th century. Abandoned in 1903, it has since been converted into a museum,…

  • Porth Dinllaen

    Llŷn Peninsula

    Porth Dinllaen is on a tiny thumb of land jutting north into the Irish Sea from Morfa Nefyn. Offering a lovely, sheltered beach, today it is owned in its…

  • Ruthin Craft Centre

    Snowdonia & the Llŷn

    This is an excellent gallery and arts hub. Aside from the three galleries – which do great work bringing the best of local photography, painting and…

  • Electric Mountain

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    More than just Dinorwig Power Station's public interface, Electric Mountain is a tourist hub incorporating a gallery, cafe and souvenir shop. It also has…

  • Ugly House

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    The Ugly House isn't actually ugly at all. This unusual cottage is constructed from huge boulders and is home to a characterful tearoom and, upstairs, the…

  • Llyn Tegid

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    Llyn Tegid was formed during the last Ice Age when glaciers blocked the valley of the River Dee with debris. The resulting rectangular lake is 4 miles…

  • Lloyd George Museum

    Llŷn Peninsula

    Tiny Llanystumdwy, 1.5 miles west of Criccieth, was the boyhood home of David Lloyd George. The video, photos, posters and personal effects at the museum…

  • Dinas Oleu

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    Rising behind Barmouth, rocky Dinas Oleu (258m) made history in 1895 by becoming the first property ever bequeathed to the National Trust, kick-starting a…

  • St Beuno's Church

    Llŷn Peninsula

    St Beuno (died 640) was to North Wales what St David was to the Welsh south (another St Beuno's sits further up the coast at Clynnog Fawr, where his…

  • St Michael's Church

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    The name Betws is thought to be derived from 'bead house', meaning a place of prayer (y coed – in the woods). It's likely that 14th-century St Michael's…

  • Criccieth Castle

    Llŷn Peninsula

    Ruined Criccieth Castle, perched on the seafront's most prominent headland, offers views stretching along the peninsula's southern coast and across…

  • Tŷ Siamas

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    Dolgellau has been a Welsh folk-music hub since holding the first national folk festival in 1952. The town's former market hall now houses the volunteer…

  • Penarth Fawr

    Llŷn Peninsula

    Surrounded by stone farm buildings that time forgot, Penarth Fawr is a 15th-century manor that has somehow survived into the 21st century. Basically one…

  • Ruthin Gaol

    Snowdonia & the Llŷn

    This sombre building is the only Pentonville-style Victorian prison in Britain that's open to visitors. A free audio guide allows you to follow the…

  • Dolbadarn Castle

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    Built before 1230 by the Princes of Gwynedd, the keep of Dolbardarn rises like a perfect chessboard rook from a green hilltop between the two lakes, Llyn…

  • Conwy Valley Railway Museum

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    If you're the sort who's fascinated by dioramas and model train sets, this tiny museum is for you. In which case the model shop you have to pass through…

  • Plas-yn-Rhiw

    Llŷn Peninsula

    The three Keating sisters, Eileen, Lorna and Honora, came to the rescue of this little decaying 17th-century manor house in the 1930s and '40s. The lush…

  • St Tudclud's Church

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    After 12 years of closure, little St Tudclud's reopened in 2009 after the community rallied to save it. It isn't particularly old (1859), but inside are…

  • Borth-y-Gest

    Llŷn Peninsula

    The best views over the estuary are from Porthmadog's Terrace Rd, which becomes Garth Rd above the harbour. At its end a path heads down to Borth-y-Gest,…

  • St Gwynhoedl's Church

    Llŷn Peninsula

    Part of the chain of pilgrim's churches leading to Bardsey, pretty St Gwynhoedl's looks like three churches fused together. It still has its 15th- and…

  • Llangollen Museum

    Snowdonia & the Llŷn

    Staffed by committed volunteers of the best sort, this diverting little museum of local history occupies a hexagonal building retaining some of the air of…

  • Narrow Gauge Railway Museum

    Snowdonia National Park (Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri)

    At Tywyn Wharf Station, the terminus of the Talyllyn Railway, this museum is one for steam-locomotive buffs. Its 1000-plus artefacts date as far as 200…

  • Burgess Gate

    Snowdonia & the Llŷn

    This twin-towered gate, dating to the construction of the walled town in the 13th century, once commanded the main entrance to medieval Denbigh. Despite…