Wales is Wonderful

Wales welsh beach

Wales is a country of wonderful contrasts – from vibrant cities to colourful fishing villages and from Britain’s smallest city to its third highest mountain (and the highest in England and Wales). It offers something for everyone.

Pembrokeshire coast path
Pembrokeshire coast path

There are 45 Blue Flag beaches along the world-famous 850 miles long Wales Coast Path, which launched in 2012 and proves a big draw both nationally and internationally. The whole path is accessible to walkers, with some sections suitable for cyclists, families with pushchairs, people with restricted mobility, and horse riders.

Below you’ll find just some of the highlights visitors can expect when staying at a Welsh Wolsey Lodge and escaping to this wonderful country.

Many of the Wolsey Lodge luxury B&Bs in Wales offer easy access for walkers and visitors wishing to take in some of the spectacular scenery along its coast – including Manor Townhouse and Elm Grove Country House, both based in beautiful Pembrokeshire, the UK’s only Coastal National Park. This is a county where you can explore the famous walled harbour town of Tenby (currently home to Wally the Walrus), the smallest UK City of St Davids (population 1600 people) – with its spectacular 12th-century cathedral or the historic town of Fishguard with its easy access to the Preseli’s and many of North Pembrokeshire’s hidden gems.

Carew Castle Pembrokeshire
Carew Castle, Pembrokeshire

The county is steeped in history, it was the birthplace of the Tudor dynasty (Henry VII born in Pembroke Castle), Robert Recorde and Augustus and Gwen John. If you go back many thousands of years – the bluestones from Stonehenge were cut from the Preseli Mountains, where many prehistoric standing stones and chambers can still be seen amongst pretty villages and breathtaking scenery.

Moving north through Pembrokeshire’s Preseli Hills you reach the county of Ceredigion (Cardiganshire) – which hugs the west coast of Wales and offers visitors a wonderful choice of rugged landscapes, colourful seaside towns including Aberaeron, Aberystwyth and Newquay, plus some wonderful walking opportunities along the coast and inland. The county town of Cardigan offers the opportunity to browse some wonderful boutiques and discover an impressive range of local producers. Market towns are scattered amongst the landscape of rolling hills filled with folktales and legends. Penbontbren Luxury B&B is perfectly placed to explore this beautiful, mystical region.

Continuing north you start to see more mountainous scenery – driving through breathtaking valleys and over mountain passes as you enter the Snowdonia National Park, with world-famous Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa in Welsh) the highest mountain in Wales and England.

Mount Snowdon
Mount Snowdon

It’s one of our most famous and recognizable landmarks and is well worth a visit, as are the towns and villages that are dotted around the base of this majestic mountain range – including Betws y Coed and the famous Portmeirion village in Gwynedd. It was designed and built by Sir Clough Williams-Ellis between 1925 and 1975 in the style of an Italian village, was later made famous in the 1960’s ‘Prisoner’ TV series, (8.5 on IMDB), and is open to day visitors.

Portmerion village, Wales
Portmerion

Heading North East Firgrove Country House is perfectly located in Llanfwrog, near Ruthin, on the edge of The Vale of Clwyd, an ideal area for walking, exploring, bird watching, cycling and shopping. Ruthin has many independent shops, eateries and an excellent craft centre. Over the HorseShoe Pass, you can reach pretty Llangollen, famous for the National Eisteddfod and the nearby awe-inspiring Pont Cysyllte aqueduct.

As you near the top of Wales you’ll find Conwy, a World Heritage Town with the imposing Conwy Castle guarding the North Wales coast, a stunning medieval fortification with glorious views over the harbour and Conwy’s narrow streets. It’s at the heart of a string of beaches on a gloriously unspoiled coastline. The spectacular Bodnant Gardens are four miles away from Tir y Coed, Those adrenalin junkies are superbly served here: an inland surf lagoon at Surf Snowdonia, and there’s the world’s fastest zipline at Zip World.

Bodnant Garden, Wales
Bodnant Gardens, Conwy

Moving back southwards you come to the county of Powys in mid-Wales, on the Shropshire border – and the pretty village of Norton, near Presteigne where you will find The Old Vicarage. This is the perfect location to explore this beautiful area of Wales, including wonderful drives through the Cambrian Mountains to Cardigan Bay or a visit to Leominster, Ludlow, Hay-on-Wye, Offa’s Dyke Path and Croft Castle.

To find out more about what wonders Wales has to offer take a look at the Visit Wales website.

Jane & Alan Rees-Baynes

Your hosts here are Jane and Alan Rees-Baynes, the third generation to operate Elm Grove Country House in its sixty years as a luxury B&B. The house itself is far older, of course: the foundations were laid in 1840. Cuisine is taken seriously here, with breakfasts of the highest standard: check out the local speciality, 'seaweed scramble'. Dinners are by arrangement and served year-round apart from August: they're always a sensational highlight.

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