Tag: Wales

Wales Top 6 Summer Getaways!

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Considering it’s small size, Wales has a vast array of diverse locations in which to spend a summer break and a great option if you’re heading to the UK. Whether you are looking for an action-packed activity weekend, a relaxing beach holiday or a vibrant city break, Wales has it all. Below are some suggestions of places to visit when you want a break from the day-to-day grind, the hustle and bustle of urban life or when you just feel like a change of scenery will do you good.

Aberystwyth

shutterstock_163836248Owing to it’s university campus, Aberystwyth is a coastal town with a vibrant atmosphere and plenty to keep you occupied on a week away. I love to visit Cardigan Bay when I am in the vicinity but there is also a cliff railway which the kids will love, a historic castle, and a forest park. Tripadvisor counts Gyesty Cymru as the best hotel in the town but I love the quirky B&Bs available.

Tenby

shutterstock_176119391It’s so difficult to choose, but Tenby could be my favourite place in the whole of Wales. It’s charming colourful buildings, the coastal path perfect for blowing the cobwebs off in a morning and the lovely boutique shops! It is a great place to come alone or with the whole family with three gorgeous  sandy beaches to choose from as well as a few nice museums.

Llandudno

Llandudno is the quintessential British seaside resort; this means lovely beaches, great fish and chips and enough fun to keep the kids amused. When lazing on the beach begins to get tiresome there is a medieval castle and a tramway to hop onto. For the culinary enthusiasts, Llandudno also has some excellent restaurants to enjoy. For a carefree coach trip to Llandudno check out www.ukbreakaways.com who run regular holidays to the popular destination.

Pembrokeshire

In the West of the country, Pembrokeshire is a vast area to explore and perfect for a holiday in which you want to pack a lot in. From birdwatching to wild swimming, there is much to see and do in Pembrokeshire. I have already mentioned Tenby, which makes a great base from which to go coasteering in St Non’s and visit the fantastic Oakwood Theme Park.

Brecon Beacons

The Brecon Beacons National Park is the best place in Wales to get away from it all. Comprising of spectacular mountain landscapes, waterfalls and lakes, it’s a veritable walker’s paradise. For the keen fishing fans there are plenty of fresh water and salt water opportunities and for the extreme sports fans there is the Black Mountains Classic cycle track from Talgarth and then there’s canyoning in waterfall country to keep the adrenalin pumping.

Anglesey

Top of the beauty charts, Anglesey is a great place to relax but also fantastic for festivals and events. It’s a unique island which makes for a great romantic getaway as well as a family break. Don’t forget to drop in on William and Kate while you’re there!

The Best Winter Travel Destinations in the UK

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The snowy slopes of the Cairngorms are among the top winter travel destinations in the UK

While most venture to the United Kingdom in the summer months when the weather is at its driest and sunniest, those that do not fear rain nor the damp chill of winter travel to the United Kingdom in the off-season, looking to explore the top attractions and the off-the-beaten track secrets of one of the world’s most famous nations.

If you happily adopt the contrarian approach to tourism, and are looking to explore the best winter travel destinations in the UK this year, the following article will contain some inspiring ideas that will help get your trip planning off to a roaring start. Let’s start by looking north…

Cairngorm National Park, Scotland

While most think that the British Isles are a perpetually rainy and foggy place come winter, a quick trip through the mountains of Scotland will prove this assertion dead wrong. By taking advantage of a cheap car rental Edinburgh Airport UK, you can get your journey to this sublimely beautiful range in the Scottish Highlands off to a quick and financially efficient start.

One of the more exciting things one can do in the Cairngorms is to go skiing or snowboarding, as the heights of its peaks will frequently get buried in copious amounts of snow while lowland areas get drenched in the rain that ones more commonly associates with this part of the world.

If you aren’t the active type, there is plenty to do here besides gazing up at the lovely peaks, as this region has plenty of museums and castles one can comb through, as well as a number of distilleries where one can sample some of the hooch which has made this corner of the UK world famous.

Isles of Scilly, Cornwall

Located off the coast of one of the United Kingdom’s most southerly territories, the Isles of Scilly is the warmest spot in the entire nation, with daily mean (not daily highs, but the average of low and high temps) temperatures in January sitting around seven degrees Celsius.

For those sick of cold winter weather elsewhere in the British Isles, this archipelago is the perfect place to seek relief, as this is a place where locals count flower blossoms on New Year’s Day, even as most others huddle in their homes further north with a steaming pot of tea at the ready.

While the weather is usually mild here in winter, it can be rough when storms push in from the Atlantic, but for those that can find beauty in waves that crash violently upon the seashore, it might prove to the perfect cure to the hectic day to day grind present in cities on the mainland.

Brecon Beacons National Park, Wales

Of all the countryside scenes that the United Kingdom boasts, few are quite as famous as its moorlands, as these moody grasslands are a magnet for those that love the power of introspective thought in such a starkly beautiful place.

You’ll find plenty of places to do just that in Brecon Beacons National Park, but if going for a thoughtful stroll across a grassy highland isn’t enough to capture your imagination, perhaps the fact that this part of Wales is one of the last roaming grounds of the Welsh mountain pony will.

Other highlights here include ancient Celtic and Roman ruins, and the remains of old castles and churches, whose exploration are all tempered by the sharp but never overpowering nip of the chilled air of upland Wales, which is just chilly enough to affirm the fact that you are alive and are actively engaged in the art of living.