Lonely Planet Wales , livre ebook

Wales

Contents

Plan Your Trip

Welcome to Wales
Wales' Top 16
Need to Know
If You Like
Month by Month
Itineraries
Outdoor Activities
Travel with Children
Regions at a Glance

On The Road

Cardiff
Sights
Activities
Tours
Festivals & Events
Sleeping
Eating
Drinking & Nightlife
Entertainment
Shopping
Penarth
Sights
Sleeping
Eating
Barry (Y Barri)
Sights
Sleeping
Eating
Brecon Beacons & Southeast Wales
Brecon Beacons & Southeast Wales Highlights
Newport (Casnewydd)
Caerleon (Caerllion)
Monmouthshire (Sir Fynwy)
Chepstow (Cas-gwent)
Lower Wye Valley
Monmouth (Trefynwy)
Skenfrith (Ynysgynwraidd)
Abergavenny (Y Fenni)
Brecon Beacons National Park
Black Mountains (Y Mynyddoedd Duon)
Hay-on-Wye (Y Gelli Gandryll)
Driving Tour
Talgarth
Brecon (Aberhonddu)
Cycling Tour
Llanfrynach
Talybont-on-Usk
Llangorse Lake
Crickhowell (Crughywel)
Fforest Fawr & Black Mountain
South Wales Valleys
Merthyr Tydfil (Merthyr Tudful)
Blaenavon (Blaenafon)
Caerphilly (Caerffili)
Swansea, Gower & Carmarthenshire
Swansea, Gower & Carmarthenshire Highlights
Swansea (Abertawe)
The Mumbles (Y Mwmbwls)
Gower Peninsula (Y Gwyr)
Driving Tour
Parkmill & Around
Oxwich Bay
Port Eynon
Rhossili
Coastal Walk
Llangennith
Reynoldston
Llanmadoc
Carmarthenshire (Sir Gaerfyrddin)
Llanelli
Laugharne (Talacharn)
Carmarthen (Caerfyrddin)
Llanarthne
Llandeilo
Llandovery (Llanymddyfri)
Pumsaint
Newcastle Emlyn & Around
St Davids & Pembrokeshire
Saundersfoot
Tenby (Dinbych Y Pysgod)
Manorbier (Maenorbyr)
Stackpole (Stagbwll)
Angle
Pembroke (Penfro)
Narberth (Arberth)
Haverfordwest (Hwlffordd)
Skomer, Skokholm & Grassholm Islands
Little & Broad Havens
Newgale (Niwgwl)
Solva (Solfach)
St Davids (Tyddewi)
Porthgain & Around
Fishguard (Abergwaun)
Cwm Gwaun
Newport (Trefdraeth)
St Dogmaels (Llandudoch)
Aberystwyth & Mid-Wales
Cardigan (Aberteifi)
Aberaeron
Aberystwyth
Around Aberystwyth
Machynlleth
Corris
Rhayader (Rhaeadr Gwy)
Elan Valley
Llanwrtyd Wells (Llanwrtyd)
Builth Wells (Llanfair-Ym-Muallt)
Llandrindod Wells (Llandrindod)
Presteigne (Llanandras)
Knighton (Tref-Y-Clawdd)
Newtown (Y Drenewydd)
Montgomery
Berriew
Welshpool (Y Trallwng)
Snowdownia & the Llyn
Holywell (Treffynnon)
Ruthin
Llangollen
Bala (Y Bala)
Coed y Brenin Forest Park
Dolgellau
Cader Idris (Cadair Idris)
Tywyn
Barmouth (Abermaw)
Harlech
Blaenau Ffestiniog
Penmachno
Betws-y-Coed
Capel Curig
Llanberis
Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa)
Beddgelert
Porthmadog
Criccieth
Pwllheli
Abersoch
Aberdaron
Bardsey Island (Ynys Enlli)
Morfa Nefyn
Pistyll
Nant Gwrtheyrn
Anglesey & the North Coast
Caernarfon
Bangor
Bodnant Estate
Conwy
Llandudno Junction
Llandudno
Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch (Llanfair PG)
Menai Bridge
Beaumaris (Biwmares)
Moelfre
Church Bay (Porth Swtan)
Holyhead (Caergybi)
Rhosneigr

Understand

Understand Wales
Wales Today
History
Culture
Food & Drink
The Natural Environment

Survive

Directory AZ
Accommodation
Climate
Customs Regulations
Discount Cards
Electricity
Health
Insurance
Internet Access
Legal Matters
LGBT Travellers
Maps
Money
Opening Hours
Post
Public Holidays
Safe Travel
Telephone
Toilets
Tourist Information
Travellers with Disabilities
Visas
Volunteering
Women Travellers
Work
Transport
Getting There & Away
Getting Around
Language
Behind the Scenes
Our Writers
Welcome to Wales

The phrase 'good things come in small packages' may be a cliché, but in the case of Wales it's undeniably true.


Wilderness
Compact but geologically diverse, Wales offers myriad opportunities for escaping into nature. It may not be wild in the classic sense – humans have been shaping this land for millennia – but there are plenty of lonely corners to explore, lurking behind mountains, within river valleys and along surf-battered cliffs. An extensive network of paths makes Wales a hiker's paradise – and thousands of people duck across the border from England each year for that reason alone. Things are even more untamed on the islands scattered just off the coast, some of which are important wildlife sanctuaries.

Stones with Stories
Castles are an inescapable part of the Welsh landscape. They're absolutely everywhere. You could visit a different one every day for a year and still not see them all. Some watch over mountain passes, while others keep an eye on the city traffic whizzing by; some lie in enigmatic ruins, while others still have families living in them. There's also an altogether more inscrutable and far older set of stones to discover – the stone circles, dolmens and standing stones erected long before castles were ever dreamt up, before even histories were written.

Beaches
Sure, the climate's not exactly tropical, but regardless of the weather's vagaries, Wales is a superb beach-holiday destination. The beauty of the British coast is cruelly underrated, and Wales has some of the very best bits. When the sun is shining, the beaches fill up with kids building sandcastles and splashing about in the shallows. And when it's not, how about a bracing walk instead? The Wales Coast Path traces the country's entire length, so you're unlikely to run out of track.

Hospitality & Hiraeth
Beyond the scenery, it's the interactions with Welsh people that will remain in your memory the longest. Perhaps you'll recall sitting in a Caernarfon cafe, listening to the locals chatter in the ancient British tongue. Or that time in the pub, screaming along to the rugby with a red-shirted mob. They talk a lot in Wales about 'hiraeth'. A typically Welsh word, it refers to a sense of longing for the green, green grass of home. Even if you're not from Wales, a feeling of hiraeth may well hit you when you leave, only to be sated when you return.

Mawr Lighthouse, Isle of Angelsey | ADAM BURTON/GETTY IMAGES ©


Why I Love Wales
By Peter Dragicevich, Writer
I well remember my first time in Wales – a short trip to Cardiff with a fellow Kiwi living in London. We were so impressed with the castle that we took the train to Caerphilly the following day for an extra serving. I returned shortly afterwards to walk the extraordinarily beautiful Pembrokeshire Coast Path, and I've been back numerous times since and explored most corners of the country. Yet on every visit there's always been another beautiful beach, rugged mountain path or kooky village pub to discover. And, of course, there's always another castle.
Wales' Top 16

Wales Coast Path
Since 2012, all of Wales' famously beautiful coastal paths have been linked up in one continuous 870-mile route. Walk for two months or for two days – there's no rule that you have to do it all in one go. The best stretches take in the Gower's beautiful beaches, Pembrokeshire's multicoloured cliffs and limestone arches, the remote edges of the Llŷn Peninsula and the ancient vistas of Anglesey. And if you link it up with Offa's Dyke Path, you can circle the entire country!

Worms Head, Gower Peninsula | JOE DANIEL PRICE/GETTY IMAGES ©


Top Experiences
Snowdonia
The rugged northwest corner of the country has rocky mountain peaks, glacier-hewn valleys and lakes, sinuous ridges, sparkling rivers and charm-infused villages in abundance. The busiest part is around Snowdon itself, where hordes hike to the summit and many more take the less strenuous cog railway from Llanberis. Elsewhere in Snowdonia's rugged mountains are rarely trodden areas perfect for off-the-beaten-track exploration. Glorious under the summer sun and even better under a blanket of snow, Snowdonia is one of Wales' absolute treasures.

CHRIS2766/GETTY IMAGES ©


Top Experiences
St Davids
Some places have a presence all of their own, and that's certainly true of precious little St Davids . Officially a city but more like a large village, the peaceful home of Wales' patron saint has attracted the spiritually minded for centuries. Whether you come seeking salvation in the surf, hoping to commune with the whales in the Celtic Deep, or genuinely wishing to embrace the grace of Wales' patron saint, St Davids is a strangely affecting place.

St David’s Cathedral | RADEK STURGOLEWSKI / SHUTTERSTOCK ©


Top Experiences
Conwy Castle
The golden age of castle building happened to coincide with the golden age of 'let's show the Welsh what's what'. There's barely a town in Wales of any note that doesn't have a castle towering over it. None has a more symbiotic relationship with its settlement than Conwy . The castle still stretches out its enfolding arms to enclose the historic town in a stony embrace, originally designed to keep a tiny English colony safe from the populace they displaced. Even today it's an awe-inspiring sight.

SAMOT / SHUTTERSTOCK ©


Top Experiences
Food & Drink
It's in the provision of top-notch produce that Wales has found its culinary niche, chanting the mantra 'local, sustainable and organic' all the way. Many fine restaurants have sprung up in the Welsh countryside, such as the Whitebrook in Monmouthshire, namedropping their farmers, butchers and other suppliers as if they were rock stars. Local craft breweries supply the better local pubs, while Penderyn Distillery has brought whisky, that nectar of the Celts, back to this once teetotal land. Some classics have never gone away – pass us another Welsh cake, will you?

Welsh cakes | NEIL LANGAN / SHUTTERSTOCK ©


Top Experiences
Pembrokeshire
Whether you come armed with hiking boots, a bucket and spade, or a surfboard, Wales' western extremity won't disappoint. Famous in Britain for its beaches and coastal walks, Pembrokeshire is a small sampler of all that Wales has to offer. Pembroke has one of Britain's f