We have time for a one night + half a day stop in Wales arriving and departing by train.

The choices are Newton, Aberystwyth, Machynlleth, Aberdovey, Tywyn, Barmouth, Harlech, Porthmadog and Blaenau Flestiniog ???

Thank you all for your assistance.

I assume you are arriving in Cardiff & departing from there?

If so, you would be hiring a car.
We found you can travel from Cardiff to a place like Hay-On-Wye for instance and have a stopover in a wayside pub for lunch and see a lot of the Brecon Beacons all very easily in a day.
This past May we entered Wales near Newton, motored down to a little village called Llandog ( hope spelling correct) for the best Sunday roast I've had in a long time, called on relatives in Cardiff, spent an hour at Caerleon (Roman amphitheatre) and still drove as far as Weston-Super-Mare for a hotel. Only stopped here because it was around 8pm now and all the campsites were closed so couln't get motohome parking.

You can do a lot in a day.

Doesn't Aberystwyth rejoice in the status of a city? Cosher Bailey would be VERY pissed off if you called it a village. But it's got lots more to see (and eat at) than the others on the list.

Harlech has splendid sea and castle views: Blaenau Ffestiniog's mountainous and pretty. They'd be my alternatives for somewhere really titchy.

Aberystwyth is not a village. It has a univeristy, the national library of Wales, a ruined castle, and sits on Cardigan Bay with a couple of beaches.

Machynlleth is a lovely market town, south of Snowdonia, but to explore the area from there you need a car.

Barmouth is just a seaside resort, as is Tywyn and Aberdovey as far as I recall. Harlech has it's castle, Porthmadog is on the coast and you can get the train up to Blaenau from there. Blaenau is an old slate town. The mines are worth visiting - they have slate mines there rather than the quarries you will find the other side of Snowdon.

I thought you were now leaving for Ireland from Fishguard? If so why are you travelling up the west coast instead of exploring the south?

Personally I'd say Porthmadoc as a gateway to Snowdonia would be amazing. As you're arriving by train it's a little more difficult to get to. Public transport is reasonable and a train to Bangor then a bus to Porthmadoc wouldn't be too arduos of a journey.

You could visit Harlech and Blaenau from there on buses quite easily.

If you decide more mid-wales then Aberystwyth is great but consider stopping in picturesque Aberaeron.

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http://www.colin-julie.com/travel.htm

You could combine two of your list in a very enjoyable way: http://www.ffestiniograilway.co.uk/

Thank you all for your helpful comments.

I am hopeful that we get the opportunity to travel around in steam trains for a day or two near to there.

Here is the latest news on the great rail project that will be completed early next year = http://isengard.co.uk/

If you go to Aberystwyth, you can go on the The Vale of Rheidol Railway.
http://www.rheidolrailway.co.uk/

It is a narrow gauge steam train and passes through some very picturesque scenery, ending at Devil's Bridge which is well worth a visit.

Aber also has a funicular railway, if you are interested in such things.

Thank you Miss Prism. 1 hour at Devil's Bridge is rather a long time for the steam engine to recover - hope there is alot to see there. I must say I am having great difficulty linking all these railway timetables. So on this occasion what would be your recommendation for the local cuisine ? Any interesting pies, cakes et alia ?

Sounds like Aberystwyth is the right place for an overnight. I am very interested in flanneruk's "and eat at" recommendations. Thank you.

There are two walks at Devil's Bridge, one fairly easy one and another a bit longer and more challenging, but a reasonably fit person could do it easily.
BTW, if you are familiar with steam trains, I won't need to warn you not to ride in one of the open sided carriages.
It's years since I lived there, so I am not really up to eating places.
You would probably enjoy Bara Brith which is a fruity Welsh tea-bread.

And we could wash it down with some good sparkling pink or blanc de blanc from Penarth Vineyard in the Montgomeryshire region of Powys, Mid Wales. Lovely.