Road Trippin’ — Exploring Snowdonia 360
In case you hadn’t heard, there’s a new adventure route in town — the Snowdonia 360.
Often described as Wales’ answer to the now rather well known Scottish North Coast 500 (check out my experience of that here!) — I was invited to visit and, naturally, I had to see what the fuss is about!
I obviously usually tackle these routes on my bike and the route itself forms the bulk of my journey. This time, however, I was heading off in my car so I could cram in some attractions, too. Quite a novelty! I will admit that by the first day I did feel a tinge of sadness at leaving the bike behind — roads like these…
Having said that, we (I went with my friend Tamsyn) definitely managed to squeeze more in by using a car and I definitely saw a side of the route I wouldn’t have by bike. I think I’ll just have to come back in the summer to explore some more on 2 wheels!
In the meantime, I hope this blog will be useful if you’re planning your own Welsh adventure.
On the first day (Monday), I stopped off at Bala to stretch my legs after being in the car for a few hours and I reminisced how the last time I was there was with my bike for #Park2ParkUK — as some of you may remember, during this particular section, I’d been unable to digest food for 48 hours and I was in a bit of a state! So, it was obviously great to come back with the intention of making some much happier memories. The weather gods had apparently forgiven me this time, too — the torrential rain that featured for the duration of my drive stopped just as I reached Llyn Tegid: outdoor swimmers, this is an ideal place for a dip!
Accommodation for the first 2 nights was the Plas Weunydd Hotel — named the Sunday Times ‘Hotel of the Year 2021’ for Wales and located in the UK’s newest UNESCO World Heritage Site no less! (There’s a glamping site, too!)
We loved our stay here — the rooms were cosy, the staff were friendly and the setting was incredibly peaceful. However, as a heads up, it’s a good idea to grab food before you arrive (or have some with you, as I did) if you’re staying there during the week/in winter season as we were (January) — the hotel itself only serves evening meals Friday/Saturday and the nearest open takeaway was a 25 minute drive away!
Breakfast, however, is delicious:
Our region for Tuesday was Llanberis. We had hoped to hike up to the summit of Snowdon itself. However, the weather had other ideas (extremely high winds!) so we stayed down low for safety reasons. Instead, we opted for a peaceful walk around Llyn Padarn before an afternoon visit to the Slate museum. The museum itself is free!
Wednesday was my favourite day of the whole trip. We headed to Anglesey — an area I’d heard was gorgeous but had never been to… It did not disappoint!
The fun kick started with a Rib Ride in the morning, something I would happily do again and cannot recommend enough if you’re in the area!
Our “Chills and Thrills” ride was hosted by the lovely Christian, who included some brilliant facts about the local area in between speeding all around the Menai Strait. Some of you may know that I really like bridges so getting to finally see Menai Bridge (the world’s first iron suspension bridge)— up close, after also getting to drive over it on the way to Rib Ride HQ — made me happy, too!
From there, we headed to Newborough Warren for an absolutely stunning afternoon coastal walk to Ynys Llanddwyn — it was 10 minutes into this walk (Komoot route here / Strava route here) that I decided that I’d officially fallen in love with Anglesey. The weather undoubtedly helped but just look at these views…!
Llanddwyn also has a famous story behind it — an appropriate one perhaps given how much I loved this area of Wales in particular! (Image below via Visit Wales)
As a wonderful end to a fantastic day, we then made our way to our final accommodation option for the week — Tan y Fryn; a dreamy three-bedroom stone house boasting beautiful scenery, a very friendly owner (thanks for the warm welcome on the first night, Jonathan!) and a secluded (and therefore blissfully quiet!) location, on the private Glasfryn Estate.
FYI: This house also has a sauna… but sadly we didn’t get round to testing it out! (I know, I know… next time!)
Our region for the next day was the stunning Lleyn Peninsula. We started by popping in to Nant Gwrtheryn — home to the National Welsh Language and Heritage Centre. Located in a former quarrying village, there’s also a homely cafe here should you want to grab a coffee/some food in between learning about the history of the village.
There’s a large car park at the top of Nant Gwythen — the perfect place to start a walk up to the Tre’r Ceiri Iron Age Hillfort.
With the afternoon ahead of us, we decided to explore the rest of the peninsula, enjoying a late lunch al fresco in Porthdinllaen. There are so many gorgeous beaches in this area, you’re spoilt for choice!
For our final day, we took a detour on the way to Portmeirion to briefly stop by the birthplace of the only Welsh Prime Minister (the museum is open Easter to October)
Portmeirion is very pretty — full of colour and character. Quite a few (but not all!) of the restaurants and cafes were closed, again due to it being quiet in the winter season, but I actually quite enjoyed it being so peaceful — there are definitely perks to visiting in the off season!
There are accommodation options in Portmeirion and a couple of good walking options nearby as well, but sadly we were running out of time so I don’t have any routes for this area! However, the Portmeirion website it a good resource and, as always, I can thoroughly recommend Komoot — it’s how I plan many of my adventures, big and small! (Find more of my routes here!)
The grand finale…
What better way to end a road trip through North Wales than by getting your car directly involved in the coastal action? Say hello to Black Rock Sands.
We drove up and down here— just because we could — before waving a fond farewell to the coast and beginning our respective journeys home.
This area of Wales isn’t one I knew well before this trip, but the Snowdonia 360 route really is spectacular. Even with an action packed schedule, it felt like there was so much more to see and do. I’ll definitely be back!
This trip was gifted but all opinions are genuine! Find out more and plan your own adventure by visiting the website here: www.snowdonia360.com
As per usual, I was head to toe in BAM Bamboo clothing (I’ve been a proud ambassador for BAM since 2015!). Comfiest clothes, ever. Added bonus of the ability to be worn for several days at a time without getting too stinky! You can use the code “Kennington” to get 15% off.
