Powys, United Kingdom

The Royston

The Royston Photos

Style

Hills, hearth and hens

Setting

Cambrian countryside

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Put yourself out to pasture at The Royston, a handsome guesthouse in the green heart of Wales. Each of the seven bedrooms is packed with personality – thanks to owners Clive and Rob’s dashing design sense and love of vintage furniture – and blessed with verdant valley views. Outdoorsy types can wander the waterfalls, go off-grid in the woodlands or get sporty in Snowdonia National Park – though our recommendation is to stay close to the fireplace, help yourself to tots of sloe gin from the honesty bar and linger over heavenly home-made dinners in the dining room.

Smith Extra

Get this when you book through us:

A Royston cotton tote bag and a home-made foodie-approved gift

Facilities

Photos The Royston facilities

Need to know

Rooms

Seven.

Check–Out

10am. Check-in is from 3pm to 7pm. You’ll need to give advance notice if you plan to arrive after 7pm.

Also

Just six months after it opened, The Sunday Times pronounced the Royston the best hotel in Wales. Llongyfarchiadau (that’s ‘congratulations’ in Welsh)!

Hotel closed

The hotel closes annually for Christmas and New Year (exact dates vary).

At the hotel

Fire-pit, kitchen garden, board games, free WiFi throughout and free parking on-site. In rooms: Meraki bath products, tea and coffee, and hypoallergenic bedding on request.

Our favourite rooms

We suggest splashing out on a Superior Room for the superlative mountain and countryside views.

Packing tips

Realistically? Windproofs. But if you’re feeling optimistic, stash a swimsuit for swimming in the waterfalls.

Also

There’s one step-free bedroom on the ground floor suitable for guests with mobility restrictions, but unfortunately the hotel is not accessible for wheelchair users.

Pet‐friendly

Welcome, with advance notice, in one of the Large Rooms or the Deluxe Room with Shower and Bath. There's a flat charge of £25 a booking and a maximum of one dog in each dog-friendly room. See more pet-friendly hotels in Powys.

Children

Ages 12 and over are welcome. An extra bed can be added to Superior Rooms for £35 a night.

Sustainability efforts

Wherever possible, the hotel uses produce from its kitchen garden, orchard or polytunnel; and eggs come from the happy hens.

Food and Drink

Photos The Royston food and drink

Top Table

For verdant views, choose a table at the back next to the windows.

Dress Code

Don a cashmere jumper and well-worn jeans. You'll fit right in.

Hotel restaurant

Breakfast and supper (there’s no lunch available on-site) are served in the cheerful dining room, where soft green walls set off soothing countryside views and the emphasis is on simple, home-made fare with produce from the kitchen garden and meat from local farms. Starters include cod and chorizo fishcakes, a goat’s-cheese tart or pesto chicken salad; hearty main-course options range from flatbreads to a halloumi and chutney or minted lamb and feta burgers. Finish with a Welsh cheese board or an affogato for pudding. When the weather’s co-operating, you can take a slice of cake and cup of tea outside in the gardens, or ask for a fire-pit kit (there’s a small extra charge) to watch the sun go down outside over a glass of bubbly and snacks. NB, you'll need to give 48 hours notice if you plan to eat in for supper – the hotel only prepares what's needed to prevent food waste.

Hotel bar

The honesty bar in the lounge is stocked with the usual suspects as well as home-made sloe gin, Aperol, pre-mixed negronis, plum vodka and vermouth. For alfresco nightcaps, the fire-pit’s waiting.

Last orders

Breakfast is served from 8am to 9.30am. Choose from one of two seatings for dinner: 7.30pm or 8pm.

Room service

There’s no room service, so stash the warm cookies you get on arrival in case hunger strikes after dark.

Location

Photos The Royston location
Address
The Royston
The Royston At Llwynaire
Llanbrynmair
SY19 7DX
United Kingdom

The Royston is in the quiet Powys hills, perfectly placed for exploring the Cardigan Bay coastline and Snowdonia National Park.

Planes

The nearest airports are Manchester and Birmingham, each about a two-hour drive away; the hotel can arrange transfers for £150 each way.

Trains

The nearest stations are Machynlleth or Caersws. They’re both about 20 minutes’ drive from the hotel and serve Aberystwyth, London, Manchester, Birmingham and Shrewsbury.

Automobiles

You’ll want a car if you’re going in search of waterfalls, woodlands and other Welsh adventures. Rent one in nearby Shrewsbury (good options are Easicar and Thrifty) – from there, it’s an hour’s drive to the hotel. Once you arrive, there’s free parking on-site.

Worth getting out of bed for

Don’t go too far too fast – the Royston was designed for unwinding, so take a seat by the fireplace in the lounge with a good book or borrow one of the board games. Have a potter around the gardens and the orchard (don’t forget to say hi to the hens). When you’re ready to venture, motor to nearby Machynlleth, an arty town with a weekly farmers’ market (on Wednesdays) and a picturesque high street full of independent shops. Then, pull on your walking boots to conquer the woodland trails – the Torrent Walk is a circular path that follows the River Clywedog through a gorge. If you’re a brave soul searching for a wild-swimming spot, wander to the Waterfall Walk in Snowdonia National Park. For more manicured meanderings, explore the Italianate gardens at mediaeval fortress and National Trust gem Powis Castle. And, if you think you might get peckish while you’re out and about, just give a bit of advance notice and the hotel can pack you up a picnic.

 

Local restaurants

Run by a foodie couple in nearby Machynlleth, Number Twenty One is an unfussy but outstanding bistro using locally sourced ingredients and herbs from its garden. Also in Machynlleth is Sri Lankan street-food stall The Green Goat Café, which pops up every Wednesday at the food market (known as Mach Market by locals).

Reviews

Photos The Royston reviews

Anonymous review

By Mr & Mrs Smith

Every hotel featured is visited personally by members of our team, given the Smith seal of approval, and then anonymously reviewed. As soon as our reviewers have returned from this stylish guesthouse in the Powys hills and unpacked their waterproofs and wellies, a full account of their bucolic break will be with you. In the meantime, to whet your wanderlust, here's a quick peek inside the Royston in Wales…

Welcome to the Royston, a supremely relaxing Victorian pile in Mid Wales owned by couple Clive and Rob, who left their advertising jobs in Brighton to try their hand at the hotel game. We’d say it’s working out well, judging from their meticulous attention to detail (the honesty bar is better suited to Mayfair than Machynlleth), design nous (the walls are daubed in on-trend inky hues) and the adorably personal touches (home-made cookies on arrival. Bless them). Did we mention they’re dab hands in the kitchen? Delicious dinners are supplemented with fresh ingredients from their kitchen garden and orchard. Of course, there’s plenty of wholesome Welsh adventure to be had just outside your door, but you’ll want to be back by that roaring fire by dusk, snug as a bug in the Royston.

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