Cardiff
Completed in 1999 at a cost of £220 million, this large dam plugged the gap between Penarth and Porth Teigr, containing the waters flowing out from the…
Must-see attractions in Wales
Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog
Perched on a hill above the River Honddu, Brecon Cathedral was founded in 1093 as part of a Benedictine monastery, though little remains of the original…
Southeast Wales
Of the three mountains encircling Abergavenny, Blorenge (561m) is the closest to town – the round trip is only 5 miles – but it is a steep and strenuous…
Southeast Wales
The large blocky building next to the church is the former abbey's 12th-century tithe barn, the place where people brought their obligatory contributions…
Southeast Wales
Fronting Agincourt Sq at the north end of Monnow St, this handsome Georgian building was built in 1724 to house sittings of the assizes court. It was here…
Southeast Wales
Abergavenny castle's keep was converted into a hunting lodge during the Victorian era and now houses a small museum. It tells the history of the castle…
Swansea, The Gower & Carmarthenshire
Nestled in a tiny valley between wooded hills, this verdant park contains the Long Cairn, a 5500-year-old burial chamber consisting of a stone entryway, a…
The Regimental Museum of The Royal Welsh
Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog
Based at Brecon's military barracks (built 1805), this museum commemorates the history of the Royal Welsh – a newish British Army infantry regiment…
Nelson Museum & Local History Centre
Southeast Wales
Admiral Horatio Nelson visited Monmouth twice in 1802, officially en route to inspect Pembrokeshire forests for ship timber, though it may have had more…
Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog
The finest feature (and the highest point) of the Black Mountain is the sweeping escarpment of Fan Brycheiniog (802m), reached via a fairly strenuous 11.5…
Swansea, The Gower & Carmarthenshire
The shattered ruin of motte-and-bailey Llandovery Castle looms ineffectually over the town centre. Built in 1100 and then rebuilt in stone in the 1160s,…
Southeast Wales
In 2002, construction work for the Riverfront Art Centre uncovered the remains of the most complete medieval ship ever found, buried in the mud on the…
Swansea, The Gower & Carmarthenshire
Perched above a languid loop in the River Teifi, this ruined fortress holds the distinction of being the first stone castle to be built by a Welshman…
Southeast Wales
Between 1859 and 1964 this narrow-gauge railway hauled coal and passengers between Merthyr and Brecon. A 5.5-mile section of track, between Pant Station…
Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog
Standing in considerable decrepitude in the town centre, Hay's battered castle is closed to the public but there are various interesting shops to explore…
Swansea, The Gower & Carmarthenshire
Rhossili beach is backed by the steep slopes of this humpbacked, heather-covered ridge (193m), whose updraughts create perfect soaring conditions for hang…
Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog
Brecon is the northern terminus of this canal, built between 1799 and 1812 for the movement of coal, iron ore, limestone and agricultural goods. The 33…
Southeast Wales
Put your Caerleon explorations into context at this excellent museum, which paints a vivid picture of what life was like for soldiers in one of the most…
Swansea, The Gower & Carmarthenshire
A fascinating view over the salt marshes awaits at this partly ruined late medieval castle, built in the 13th and 14th centuries. Grouped around a…
Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog
The cone-shaped pinnacle of Sugar Loaf (596m) is a 4½-mile round trip from the Mynydd Llanwenarth viewpoint car park. Take the middle track that follows a…
Swansea, The Gower & Carmarthenshire
A couple of solid walls and a few crumbling towers are all that remain of Carmarthen's 12th-century castle, which was largely destroyed in the Civil War…
Swansea, The Gower & Carmarthenshire
Housed in a restored mill with a working waterwheel, this complex has plenty to keep the kids entertained when the weather drives you off the beaches…
Swansea, The Gower & Carmarthenshire
Once a common sight on Welsh rivers, coracles are small, lightweight, round fishing boats. Housed in a 17th-century flour mill, this museum showcases a…
Southeast Wales
The spidery towers of the 1906 Transporter Bridge rise over the river, about a mile south of the city centre. A remarkable piece of Edwardian engineering,…
Snowdonia & the Llŷn
The ever-visible ragged arches and tumbledown walls of Dinas Brân (Crow Castle) mark the remnants of a short-lived 13th-century castle of which it was…
Snowdonia & the Llŷn
During the Civil War Denbigh was a Royalist stronghold (Charles I once stayed here) and owes its ruined state to the Parliamentarians, who destroyed it in…
Southeast Wales
Opened in 2004, the city's swish cultural centre takes a prominent position by the river. Temporary exhibitions are held in its gallery and it also stages…
Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog
Built over 900 years ago as a chapel associated with the Benedictine monastery up the hill (now the cathedral), this large stone church dominates Brecon's…
Swansea, The Gower & Carmarthenshire
The Mumbles' mile-long strip of pastel-painted houses, pubs and restaurants comes to a picturesque denouement with a rocky headland, a pretty sandy beach…
Southeast Wales
Not much remains of Newport's pre-industrial past apart from the cathedral and the litter-strewn ruins of 14th-century Newport Castle squeezed between…
Southeast Wales
A half-mile to the south of Cyfarthfa Castle, a row of pint-sized 19th-century ironworkers' houses built by the Crawshays stands in bold contrast to their…
Swansea, The Gower & Carmarthenshire
It wouldn't be Wales without a castle, and sure enough the trendy shops and bars of Newton Rd are guarded broodingly by a majestic ruin. Once the…
Southeast Wales
Part of a trio of neighbouring castles built by Hubert de Burgh in the early 13th-century (the others being Skenfrith and White Castle), Grosmont stands…
Southeast Wales
Two protected species of bats live in the unusual octagonal belfry of this ancient church. Built out of purplish stone between 1180 and 1300, its…
Southeast Wales
Once all of Chepstow was enclosed in fortifications, fastening it to the castle. The main street still passes through the original city gate, which was…
Southeast Wales
Monmouth's main drag, such that it is, starts at car-free Monnow Bridge, the UK's only complete example of a medieval fortified bridge. It was built in…
Southeast Wales
These turf-covered terraces edged in brick and stone represent the only fully excavated Roman amphitheatre in Britain. It was positioned just outside of…
Swansea, The Gower & Carmarthenshire
Located in a 13th-century country house, which served as the bishop's palace right up until 1972, this museum is a musty emporium of archaeology,…
Southeast Wales
Inside Great Castle House, this volunteer-run regimental museum is a labour of love squeezed into a cupboard-sized space. It traces the history of the…
Swansea, The Gower & Carmarthenshire
Local hermit Cenydd (pronounced Kenneth) lends his name to both the village and this Norman church, topped with a blunt stone tower. Inside there's a 12th…
