Bangor: The oldest city in Wales

Earlier this year, 2002, in May, I travelled to Bangor. I went there with some big expectations because it’s the oldest city in Wales. You’d think that I would have a tonne to tell you, but I’m sorry I don’t since, in all honesty, I wasn’t all that impressed on this trip and I couldn’t get to some of the places I wanted to visit.

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It was a little run-down

It looked pretty dingy and run-down, at least in the city centre, and there were lots of boarded-up shops, which is really sad for a once-thriving city.

Since I just visited the centre and not too far outside of it, I can only report on those areas. Given that I was only there for a single day, there may be far more to it and several locations to find that I am unaware of. Please don’t misunderstand me; I’m sure there are many that genuinely enjoy Bangor, but I suppose it depends on individual tastes. But nonetheless, I did find some beauty spots.

Things start to look up

I remember Googling the location to see what places and things I could visit around the city centre or within walking distance of the center; normally, I take buses and venture out, but I didn’t want to do that; I wanted a fairly relaxed day without having to rely on public transportation, and though there weren’t many recommendations near the city center, I decided the things recommended would suffice.

As a traveler, I have an important rule I go by, and it is that no matter where I go, regardless, I must make the most of the adventure and look for all the positives of a place. So I started to seek out some of those recommendations I had found within walking distance.

Garth Pier

Garth Pier is a listed structure and the second-longest pier in Wales, ninth overall in the British Isles. It is just a short 14-minute walk from the centre of Bangor.

There was a 50p charge to entire and no time retrictions at least when I went.

The pier and its surrounding area were beautiful.

After a walk down the pier, I walked around the cute residential area and found this little spot of beach down an alleyway and ate my lunch here; if I had known this part of the day would be the best highlight of my day, I would have stayed a little longer, but the curious Annie in me wanted to get going with zeal to see what else was on offer.

Port Penrhyn Harbour

Port Penrhyn Harbour was once a major exporter of slate from Penrhyn Quarry, which was once the world’s largest slate quarry.

There wasn’t that much to do here, but it was nice to walk around and enjoy the views of the mountains in the distance.

Lon Las Ogwen

Now this is the most disappointing part of my trip because I was really looking forward to visiting Lon Las Ogwen and the pictures looked absolutely breathtaking.

I couldn’t find this place for some reason and ended up here with no idea where I was, but it definitely wasn’t Lon Las Ogwen.

I had Google Maps on to help me find this place, but it kept leading to a set of gates that were closed, and then to a restricted residential area that I couldn’t get access to. So it ended up just sitting here. It was so quiet. I was here for almost 40 minutes, and I didn’t see a single person, just birds. It was actually quite blissful, but it was a little chilly. I couldn’t help but think how beautiful this little spot would be on a day when the tide was in.

As I wasn’t successful in finding this place, you may want to take a look here to discover more.

Besides the above-mentioned, I didn’t really do much else besides browsing in some shops and purchasing a new jumper before heading back to the train station.

Other recommended places I didn’t get to visit

Penrhyn Castle

I wanted to visit Penrhyn Castle, but unfortunately for me, on the day I went, the castle was closed and was only open over the weekends, although now it is back to its normal opening hours. The castle and its gardens look so beautiful, and I’m looking forward to visiting one day in the near future.

Menai Suspension Bridge

I also wanted to visit Menai Bridge; however, it was a 20-minute bus ride away or a 45-minute walk, and given my limited time, I wasn’t able to do so.

The Menai Suspension Bridge, which was built by Thomas Telford, is connected with the Britannia Bridge, built by Robert Stephenson, and connects Anglesey to mainland Gwynedd. It is a popular tourist attraction. The Swellies are located between the two bridges and are popular for their swirling whirlpools and ever-changing tide currents.

Overall thoughts

Overall, it wasn’t the best day trip. However, I would definitely go back to see the sites I missed I think had I gotten to visit these places, it would have added a lot more value to my trip. Nonetheless, it was good to get out and visit a new destination.

I also thought it was a little unfortunate that over the years, the oldest city in Wales has not received as much investment as other cities have, but I’m happy to learn that there are fresh plans and finances for a redevelopment. So I’m quite looking forward to seeing what will happen in the future in this city.

All in all I would definitely re- visit with a bit more organisation.

Hope you enjoyed my blog today

Thanks for visiting

Stay blessed 🙏🏾

Natalie ❤️

Dec 19

Llandudno: Picture Postcards from Llandudno

Comments 4

Hi, hope everyone is doing good.

Here’s a collection of photos taken from my trip to Llandudno. You can see and find out more about Llandudno in previous posts here and here

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Have a great week and stay blessed x

Photos shot from the beach

Not sure if the yellow building is a house or hotel. How beautiful does it Look?

One thing I really admire, houses/hotels built on hills and there are plenty here.

Notice all the pastel coloured hotels. This is because when someone purchases a business here they have to choose a pastel colour from a charter.

Views walking towards The Great Orme

Views from the top of The Great Orme

St Tudno’s Church

Dec 11

Llandudno: A real wonderland

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Since I revisited Conwy, it was only right I visited Llandudno again, especially since there so close by. ( You can read more about my first visit here). Its only a 13-minute car drive away, 22-minute train ride away, or you could catch the tour bus, like I did. If your visiting one consider visiting the other as they are both worth the small journey.

Like Conwy, the first time I visited I didn’t have enough time to explore properly, so this time I got to enjoy it alot more.

The real wonderland of Alice

Llandudno is the place where the real Alice (Alice Liddell) used to holiday. The Alice who Lewis Carroll based his famous book Alice in Wonderland on.

There are many features of the book all around. The Alice in wonderland trails map and souvenir can be purchased at the tourist centre. I never did this, however I did visit Happy Valley, which has a few of the featured trails.

Happy Valley

Views at the side of happy Vally near the cable car centre

This place took me right back to my childhood years. So Cute!

I couldn’t help but think, how my eight year old self would have loved to have explored the trail. I loved the story as a child.

The views from Happy Valley are stunning

Thank you for visiting my blog today, stay tuned for more.

Stay blessed

Natalie ❤

Dec 03

Conwy: A Magical Medieval Town

Comments 14

Hi! I hope you have all been keeping well and looking forward to Christmas. Can you believe its December already?

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning, I get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no cost to you. Please read my Disclosure page for more info

Today’s blog is just a collection of photos taken from my trip to Conwy. I’ve been here once before on a minibus daytrip. ( You can read about this trip here ). As it was a scheduled time planned daytrip I didn’t get as much time as I would have liked here. So I decided to come back, this time I went alone and managed to get some amazing shots.

What do you think of Conwy? Have I convinced you to visit Yet?

Thank you for visiting my blog today

Stay turned for more

Stay blessed ❤

Apr 06

Pontcysyllte Aqueduct: The river in the sky

Comments 6

Hi! 🙋🏽 Hope your all keeping well.

This will be the last post on North Wales, until I get to revisit again. Just wanted to share this incredible attraction.

*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning, I get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no cost to you. Please read my Disclosure page for more info.*

Some of you may have heard of Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, for those who haven’t. Pontcysyllte Aqueduct is located in Llangollen and one of North Wales biggest attractions. It is built over the River Dee and is the highest Canal Aqueduct in the world.

It was built and designed by Thomas Telford, with the help and advice of William Jessop. It took 19 years to plan and build between the years of 1795 and 1805.

Would you dare walk along here? I did!

The views are absolutely incredible! It feels like your actually flying from up there, it’s mesmerising!

It actually doesn’t look that high on the pictures, it is! If your scared of heights, this could be quite a challenge.

Additional Information

It’s free to walk along the tow path and aqueduct or you can take a 45mins to a 2 hour boat trip, which will take you over the structure. I didn’t do this, but here’s a site with more information Llangollen Wharf

Parking is available nearby

Thanks for reading 🙂

Stay safe x

Mar 04

Conwy: A little treasure town

Comments 8

Hi there!🙋🏽 It’s been a while, hope your all keeping well and in good health.

This blog is a continuation of my last few blogs from my time in Wales. If you liked the last few places I’ve mentioned, here’s another town which is just minutes away from those places and worth a visit.

*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning, I get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no cost to you. Please read my Disclosure page for more info.*

Conwy is a beautiful quaint medieval market town situated in the north coast of Wales. The town is also surrounded by the countryside with an overlooking view of Snowdonia, making it one of the most beautiful and unique places to visit.

I visited here after my visit to Llandudno and the Great Orme and was pleasantly surprised. It was just one of those places I felt immediately excited about.

Here are some interesting facts about Conwy

1 It’s home to the smallest house in Britain

Known as the Quay house of Conwy, this tiny little home measures only 10 feet deep and not even 6 feet wide and is split into two floors. The tenant a local fisherman named Robert Jones who stood at 6-foot-3inch lived here up until 1900. As you can imagine the rooms were too small for him to have been able to stand up fully. As a result of this he was forced to leave the home and the home was declared unfit for human habitation. The home is still owned by his descendents and is now one of the favourite visitor attractions in Conwy at £0.50 for adults and £1 for adults. Note: It will probably be the quickest you’ve ever spend £1 but it’s an interesting 30 seconds 😉

2 Medieval Walled Town

Conwy has the most complete and best preserved medieval walls in the UK. The walls can be walked around mostly for free however, there are few sections that require a small fee.

3 Conwy Castle

Conwy castle was built by King Edward l during his conquest of Wales between 1283 and 1289, it was designed by the Master builder, James Of Saint George. This castle is one of the best preserved Castles in North Wales, along with it’s incredible walls and tower this castle has been featured in various photos and paintings.

Note: Some of the outer parts a free to walk around but to go inside theres a small fee ( see prices below)

Adults £8.80

Child (under 16) £5.40

Family ticket (2 adults & 3 children (under 16) £25.10

Senior Citizen £7.10

Students £5.40 ( Note prices based on 2020 prices)

The first thing I did on arrival was explore the Conwy Castle.

Peeping through the walls of the castle (Look at the countryside in the far distance 😍)

4 Suspension Bridge

This magnificent bridge was design by Thomas Telford a Scottish Civil engineer, architect, road, bridge and canal builder. The bridge is connected to the castle and the two together are just incredibly magical.

After visiting the above attractions it was time for lunch. I found a little traditional place called the cheese room around about 2 minutes walk from the castle.

Many tradditional shops here that give you that old tradditional shopping experience

This shop sells such a wide variety of cheese. I hadn’t even heard of many of them! I wanted to purchase a lunch box and take a selection of cheese home. The staff were so helpful and helped me pick out a great cheese selection, allowing me to sample whilst sharing their knowledge about the cheese. Never had much knowledge about cheese until visiting here.

With just a short time left before moving on to the next destination, I had a little walk around to catch a glimpse of the surrounding area.

Come across this beautiful quaint residential area

Until next time, stay safe and thank you for reading

Natalie x

Jan 02

Llandudno and The Great Orme

Comments 7

Llandudno is another place we stopped off whilst visiting the picturesque North Wales. Located between Bangor and Chester and is one of the UK’s most popular holiday destinations.

Llandudno is an old Victorian-era seaside resort with a 19th century pier and is said to be once an old favourite of queen Victoria. Along the pier you’ll find a number of shops, games arcades and not forgetting the wonderful views.

You can take a relaxing walk all the way to the end of this pier, the views are incredible!

The Great Orme

Llandudno is also home to the Great Orme (Y Gogarth in welsh)

The great orme is a huge chunk of limestone headland and is one of Llandudno favourite places for tourism.

The Great Orme has it’s own country park that can be accessed by cable car, tramway, by car or if your fit enough by taking the hike up.

No matter what way you choose, you will not be disappointed with the beautiful views, wildlife, fascinating geology, archaeology and history.

A shot taken from the top of the limestone

Just opposite of where I took this shot is a church and graveyard named after it’s founder St.Tudno, one of the seven son’s of king Seithenyn. It was built in the 12th century on the Christian site that dates right back to the 6th century.

If you are thinking of visiting Llandudno, don’t miss out the opportunity to see this Great little place.

Thanks for reading and a happy New year to you all! And a huge thank you for your continued support! It’s very much appreciated xx

Nov 22

A place to wash your spirit clean, Snowdonia

Comments 8

*Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning, I get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no cost to you. Please read my Disclosure page for more info.*

In September I visit North wales. One of the places I stopped off at was Snowdonia National Park, the largest national park in Wales and the proud owner of the highest mountain in both England and Wales. Yes, you probably guessed it, Mount Snowdon. Did I climb mount Snowdon? No I’m far too lazy for that, but I did hike a little into some moutains, after being driven up most of the way that is, Sshhhhhhhh!

Although my face says different, I really was having the time of my life here 🙂

I visited on a minibus shared with eight other travellers. We were taken to the most tranquil place, it literally felt like we had the whole national park to ourselves.

I honestly could not believe how beautiful and relaxing this place was! It was so silent with only the sounds of the waterfalls. It was like stepping into another world where everything stood still. A place where you could forget every worry in the world, a place where you could wash your spirit clean.

If your thinking of visiting North Wales, this is one place not to be missed.

Thanks for reading 🙂 Stay safe x