Worth getting out of bed for
Highlights the best Brecon Beacons has to offer, from art and culture to fun-packed activities; we've even found the most inspiring place to enjoy the views from.
- Viewpoint
- Brecon Beacons National Park offers one amazing vista after another, but, even beyond the park boundaries, glorious views abound; we love those down the Tywi valley from the dam and hills surrounding the Llyn Brianne reservoir.
- Arts and culture
- Hay-on-Wye is the region’s undisputed culture capital. The Hay Festival in May (www.hayfestival.com) is one of the world’s greatest literary gatherings, where Nobel Laureates rub shoulders with political supremos and wandering poets. But the town’s ideal for literary browsing any time; more than 30 second-hand book shops cover 2,000 specialist subjects here, so there’s something for everybody. Richard Booth’s is where the book-town boom all started: it stocks more than 400,000 tomes, great and small (+44 (0)1497 820322).
- Something for nothing
- Check out remote and beautiful Llyn y Fan Fach, supposedly a bottomless lake inhabited by fairies. Legends tell of a lady who emerged from the waters and married a local farmer in exchange for some bread – so keep an eye on your picnic.
- Shopping
- Fill up your hamper at Abergavenny’s farmers’ market on the fourth Thursday of the month (www.abergavennyfarmersmarket.co.uk); Brecon’s is on the second Saturday (+44 (0)1874 636169). Crowd your mantelpiece after a visit to the Towy Antiques Fair, held four times a year in Carmarthen (www.towy-fairs.co.uk). Toast, purveyor of luxe, laid-back leisurewear, is based in Llandeilo, so get a dressing down at their King Street store (www.toast.co.uk).
- Daytripper
- The Heart of Wales railway runs for 121 miles between Swansea and Shrewsbury, taking in some of Mid Wales’ most impressive scenery; the trains run through Llandovery and the charming Victorian spa town of Llandrindod Wells (www.heart-of-wales.co.uk). Alternatively, visit the National Botanic Garden of Wales near Llandeilo, with its stupendous Great Glasshouse and art gallery (www.gardenofwales.org.uk).
- Perfect Picnic
- You can’t ask for a more scenic backdrop to your meal than the ruins of Carreg Cennen castle near Llandeilo (www.castlewales.com/carreg.html); dramatic and romantic in equal measure, the fortress is perched high up on the craggy cliffs with spectacular views over the surrounding countryside.
- Walks
- The Crychan forest and Epynt mountain range offer lovely walks (www.crychanforest.org.uk).
- Children
- Cefn yr Erw Primate Sanctuary near Abercraf, in the southwest corner of the national park, is home to cheeky chimpanzees, baboons, spider monkeys, capuchins and marmosets (+44 (0)1639 730276; www.cefn-yr-erw.co.uk). Also near Abercraf, the Dan yr Ogof caves provide real adventure; there’s a farmyard to visit and a shire-horse centre, too (+44 (0)1639 730284; www.dan-yr-ogof-showcaves.co.uk). At the Red Kite Feeding Centre in Llanddeusant, up to 50 of the birds of prey swoop down, talons poised, to be fed each afternoon – ring for times (+44 (0)1550 740617; www.redkiteswales.co.uk).
- Activities
- There’s calf-pumping mountain biking at all levels in the Brecon Beacons, including the 55-mile Taff Trail all the way to Cardiff (www.tafftrail.org.uk); Bikes and Hikes in Brecon can get you kitted out and also offers rock climbing for beginners, if you’re so inclined (+44 (0)1874 610071; www.bikesandhikes.co.uk). At the Black Mountain Activities Centre, tire yourself out clay-pigeon shooting, gorge walking, abseiling and kayaking (+44 (0)1497 847897; www.blackmountain.co.uk). The Cantref Riding Centre south of Brecon caters for all levels of equestrian ability (+44 (0)1874 665223; www.cantref.com). Dare yourself to take to the wing and soar silently above the hills with the Black Mountains Gliding Club (+44 (0)1874 711463; www.blackmountainsgliding.co.uk).
- And...
- The green, green hills are that deep, rich colour for one simple reason – rain – but the mixture of sunshine and showers adds immeasurably to the drama of the landscape.
Diary
May For book lovers, the Hay Festival, in Hay-on-Wye, is pretty much mandatory (www.hayfestival.com). For more details, see our European events guide Smith 52, or buy the book get the full lowdown. August The newly established Green Man festival is an already much-loved folk music jamboree that has played host to Joanna Newsom and a reinvented Robert Plant (www.thegreenmanfestival.co.uk). August bank holiday Brecon Jazz Festival is a star-studded affair, with Andy Sheppard and Lulu among the recent roster of performers (www.breconjazz.co.uk). If it’s muddiness you crave, the World Bog-snorkelling Championships in Llanwrtyd Wells over the bank holiday are downright odd but immense fun (www.green-events.co.uk). September Abergavenny Food Festival is a showcase of wild-and-woolly Welsh gastronomy (www.abergavennyfoodfestival.com). November The Mid-Wales Beer Festival sees dinky Llanwrtyd Wells become the centre of even more barminess (+44 (0)1591 610666; www.llanwrtyd-wells.powys.org.uk).
