Help with Wales Itinerary
May 8th, 2019, 02:11 PM
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Help with Wales Itinerary
I’d like advice on whether we should start our tour clockwise or anti-clockwise. Also suggestions as to where we might stop in our travels thru Wales. I’d thought to begin in North Wales possibly staying in Conwy. From there we’d see Bodysgallen House, Llabdudno, and Snowdonia. Should we use Conwy as a base to tour Porthmadog, Anglesey, Bodnant Gardensand Beaumaris? Could we use Conwy as a base for touring Plas Newyd (Llangollin), Chirk Castle, Erdigg, and Powis? Would tConwy be a good locale for Harlech Castle and Portmerion?
from there we’d like to go south to St. David’s and the Pembroke Coast. Would Tenby a good spot to stay after this drive, or is it too far? From there we’d drive to Cardiff, and on to the Brecons, Hay-on-Wye, Clyro, and Llandrindad Wells.
I was thinking Hereford might be a good place to drop the car (which we’d picked up in Manchester) and then take the train to London.
I’m healing from a broken foot so we won’t do any hiking or biking on this trip. We are NT members and enjoy their properties as well as small historic villages. I’ve already seen Chepstow, Caernarfon, and Blenaevon. I know our itinerary includes a lot of sites. We can usually manage two a day, sometimes three. How long do you estimate our trip would take? Is it practical to begin in Manchester and do N. Wales first? I think the stops in S Wales could be overnight. If we can see the North, from Conwy, how many nights will we require a hotel?
I know these plans sound ambitious. I’d appreciate any suggestions. We can stay in Wales up to two and a half weeks. Is it practical to attempt our itinerary? If we’d need to drop a destination which one would you suggest?
Many, many thanks for all help you can offer.
from there we’d like to go south to St. David’s and the Pembroke Coast. Would Tenby a good spot to stay after this drive, or is it too far? From there we’d drive to Cardiff, and on to the Brecons, Hay-on-Wye, Clyro, and Llandrindad Wells.
I was thinking Hereford might be a good place to drop the car (which we’d picked up in Manchester) and then take the train to London.
I’m healing from a broken foot so we won’t do any hiking or biking on this trip. We are NT members and enjoy their properties as well as small historic villages. I’ve already seen Chepstow, Caernarfon, and Blenaevon. I know our itinerary includes a lot of sites. We can usually manage two a day, sometimes three. How long do you estimate our trip would take? Is it practical to begin in Manchester and do N. Wales first? I think the stops in S Wales could be overnight. If we can see the North, from Conwy, how many nights will we require a hotel?
I know these plans sound ambitious. I’d appreciate any suggestions. We can stay in Wales up to two and a half weeks. Is it practical to attempt our itinerary? If we’d need to drop a destination which one would you suggest?
Many, many thanks for all help you can offer.
May 8th, 2019, 02:17 PM
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Conwy is a long day trip from several of those places you want to day trip to - so another base needed. Conwy is great for Beaumarais- Snowdon - Caernarferon Castle and city and the Great Orme and its antique tramway that takes you up top - you can drive up there too - right opposite Conwy. Chester would be a possible day trip.
May 8th, 2019, 02:26 PM
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Iron Bridge Gorge should be kind on way from south Wales to Hereford. Birthplace of the Industrial Revolution they claim - thus the first large-scale use of iron like in the original Iron Bridge - the gorge it is now in is a national park.
May 8th, 2019, 03:08 PM
#4
Is there a reason you tagged the thread for Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia and Finland??
>>I’d like advice on whether we should start our tour clockwise or anti-clockwise. <<
Makes almost no difference.
>>I was thinking Hereford might be a good place to drop the car<<
You likely cannot collect a car in Manchester and drop it in Hereford. Unless 'maybe' you hire from Enterprise AFAIK there are no other national chains and I'm not sure that Enterprise location allows one way rentals. If you want a one way rental major you might have to go to Birmingham or Cardiff or Stratford upon Avon
>>I’d like advice on whether we should start our tour clockwise or anti-clockwise. <<
Makes almost no difference.
>>I was thinking Hereford might be a good place to drop the car<<
You likely cannot collect a car in Manchester and drop it in Hereford. Unless 'maybe' you hire from Enterprise AFAIK there are no other national chains and I'm not sure that Enterprise location allows one way rentals. If you want a one way rental major you might have to go to Birmingham or Cardiff or Stratford upon Avon
May 8th, 2019, 06:13 PM
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My family and I visited Wales last summer. It was after we dropped one of my daughters off in Liverpool. We stayed at incredible B&B...https://www.visitsnowdonia.info/bryniau-golau in Bala, Gwynedd. It was the perfect base for us. We did Snowdonia and visited a great botanical garden. We stopped in Chester on our way to Manchester for our flight home. I hope this helps.
May 9th, 2019, 10:59 AM
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Thank you for your suggestions. I think we’re going to stick with the destinations I listed.
I am concerned about Conwy being too far from many places we want to visit. It is hard for me to judge travel time. The distances/mileage don’t seem daunting to us because we are used to hopping in the car and driving for a hour. Having said that, I must confess that we are driving on US freeways or wide two lane roads.
I based my calculations on distances and travel times provided by the Rome to Rio website. However, I don’t know how long it will take to drive these distances on Welsh roads. We were in Yorkshire 2 years ago and it took a very long time to travel short distances over narrow, twisting roads!
If you have any estimates of driving times it would be much appreciated! Also, we could use suggestions as to what towns would be logical places to stay given our (hoped for) itinerary.
Thank you again m
I am concerned about Conwy being too far from many places we want to visit. It is hard for me to judge travel time. The distances/mileage don’t seem daunting to us because we are used to hopping in the car and driving for a hour. Having said that, I must confess that we are driving on US freeways or wide two lane roads.
I based my calculations on distances and travel times provided by the Rome to Rio website. However, I don’t know how long it will take to drive these distances on Welsh roads. We were in Yorkshire 2 years ago and it took a very long time to travel short distances over narrow, twisting roads!
If you have any estimates of driving times it would be much appreciated! Also, we could use suggestions as to what towns would be logical places to stay given our (hoped for) itinerary.
Thank you again m
May 9th, 2019, 11:42 AM
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Thank you for your quick reply. The odd ball listings for far off ports of call are due to trying to enter info via my iPhone. I wasn’t able to scroll down to check just the U.K. box. I had to scroll past each country. A check mark appeared and I had to delete it before going to the next country. Sometimes the list would scroll back on its own to countries I’d already eliminated. Aaargh! It took forever to get to the U.K. and check the box. Apparently some other boxes remained checked or re-checked themselves along the way. I had no idea this had happened. Im sorry, but I have no idea how to rectify this mishap.
I asked the clockwise question to determine where we should begin our trip. I didn’t know what city offered direct flights from SFO, and was large enough to make car rental and drop off easy. I picked Manchester because it was close to N Wales and a big city. I hadn’t considered that rentals in some locales wouldn’t allow drop off in another location. I’m completely flummoxed as to where we should land and enter, and exit Wales. And I’m still flummoxed by what towns would offer good locations for day trips given our itinerary. *gently banging my head on the wall*
Ive ordered some maps/books that show driving distances, but they’re coming from small vendors and won’t arrive at the end of May. I haven’t found anything online to calculate driving distance/time except for Rome to Rio. Their estimates may be too optimistic and based on driving times given if one is driving on a motorway versus roads in Wales. *taking a few moments to lay head on desk and sob in frustration*
This trip hasn’t received my usual meticulous preparation. The opportunity to travel only came up last week. Hubby really wants to go to Wales as we’ve missed it on previous trips. I know a lot about ideal destinations, but am struggling with logistics. Perhaps I’ve lost my travel mojo-magic. I feel like I’m trying to pull a rabbit out of a hat without much success. We hope leave by June 1st so I’m feeling a wee bit anxious.
I asked the clockwise question to determine where we should begin our trip. I didn’t know what city offered direct flights from SFO, and was large enough to make car rental and drop off easy. I picked Manchester because it was close to N Wales and a big city. I hadn’t considered that rentals in some locales wouldn’t allow drop off in another location. I’m completely flummoxed as to where we should land and enter, and exit Wales. And I’m still flummoxed by what towns would offer good locations for day trips given our itinerary. *gently banging my head on the wall*
Ive ordered some maps/books that show driving distances, but they’re coming from small vendors and won’t arrive at the end of May. I haven’t found anything online to calculate driving distance/time except for Rome to Rio. Their estimates may be too optimistic and based on driving times given if one is driving on a motorway versus roads in Wales. *taking a few moments to lay head on desk and sob in frustration*
This trip hasn’t received my usual meticulous preparation. The opportunity to travel only came up last week. Hubby really wants to go to Wales as we’ve missed it on previous trips. I know a lot about ideal destinations, but am struggling with logistics. Perhaps I’ve lost my travel mojo-magic. I feel like I’m trying to pull a rabbit out of a hat without much success. We hope leave by June 1st so I’m feeling a wee bit anxious.
May 9th, 2019, 11:49 AM
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Thank you. This Inn looks very pretty. I’ll keep the idea in my back pocket. I’m not sure if the location will be ideal for some sightseeing we want to do. But, perhaps we’d like a spot to rest amidst the travel madness.
Cheers.
Cheers.
May 9th, 2019, 12:00 PM
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I haven’t used the Forum in quite a few years. The format is confusing to me now. When I read a reply to my questions, I scrolled to Quick Reply and entered my response. I did this with all 4 replies.
When I checked that my replies were posted it showed them all bunched together, not directed to a particular person. Perhaps I have to enter your screen name to have my response appear as a reply to you?
PalenQ the my first two replies were to your suggestions. The next was to Janis J. The last was to Miki2621.
Thanks to all of you for your patience and help.
When I checked that my replies were posted it showed them all bunched together, not directed to a particular person. Perhaps I have to enter your screen name to have my response appear as a reply to you?
PalenQ the my first two replies were to your suggestions. The next was to Janis J. The last was to Miki2621.
Thanks to all of you for your patience and help.
May 9th, 2019, 12:11 PM
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It depends on how long you are planning to stay in Conwy whether all those trips are doable from there.
Plenty of people rent a cottage and use it as a base for most of North Wales. You could easily visit all of those North Wales places listed if you have enough time, and use Conwy as a base though prehaps somewhere further into Snowdonia, maybe around Beddgelert, would work better.
I spent years holidaying in North Wales because we had family there. Our base was Bethesda, which I wouldn't recommend, but we would travel all over as far as Holyhead, covering a lot over Anglesey on the way, over to Llangollen, down to Harlech in our week or two there.
Plenty of people rent a cottage and use it as a base for most of North Wales. You could easily visit all of those North Wales places listed if you have enough time, and use Conwy as a base though prehaps somewhere further into Snowdonia, maybe around Beddgelert, would work better.
I spent years holidaying in North Wales because we had family there. Our base was Bethesda, which I wouldn't recommend, but we would travel all over as far as Holyhead, covering a lot over Anglesey on the way, over to Llangollen, down to Harlech in our week or two there.
May 9th, 2019, 12:21 PM
#12
OK- can't post much right now and haven't read all your latest posts . . . But if you want to fly out of SFO you will want to look at MAN and LHR.
Re cars, it isn't so much one way rentals are allowed, it is tha small towns don't have major rental agencies at all. You'd need the majors - hertz, Avis, europcar, Budget, etc and the best/easiest places to pick up and drop off are at the airports . So you could fly in to MAN. And home from LHR or in / out of the same airport once you figure out your itinerary.
Re drive times, rome2rio is pretty good but even with them you need to add between 25% and almost 100% to every calculation. ESPECIALLY in the rural bits. There is nothing similar to I-5 or even Hwy 50. LOTS of very twisty, very narrow roads.
Re cars, it isn't so much one way rentals are allowed, it is tha small towns don't have major rental agencies at all. You'd need the majors - hertz, Avis, europcar, Budget, etc and the best/easiest places to pick up and drop off are at the airports . So you could fly in to MAN. And home from LHR or in / out of the same airport once you figure out your itinerary.
Re drive times, rome2rio is pretty good but even with them you need to add between 25% and almost 100% to every calculation. ESPECIALLY in the rural bits. There is nothing similar to I-5 or even Hwy 50. LOTS of very twisty, very narrow roads.
May 9th, 2019, 12:24 PM
#13
When I get home from lunch I'll read over your posts and see the new info . . . But just in general rural Wals doesn't really lend itself to hub and spoke touring. The drive times are just too much
May 9th, 2019, 04:22 PM
#14
We spent nearly 4 weeks in Wales last June. We rented a car in Milford Haven from Enterprise and planned to return it at Llandudno Junction about 10 days later. Maybe you'll be fine, but we were so freaked out by driving in Wales that we ditched the car a week early in Bangor. The nice folks at the Enterprise location there said, "Oh, this happens all the time."
We had planned to use the car on Anglesey but were glad to be done with it and just scaled back our plans. Once again, you might do fine.
Don't get me wrong, we had a wonderful trip and didn't want to come home. St. Davids was our favorite little town.
We had planned to use the car on Anglesey but were glad to be done with it and just scaled back our plans. Once again, you might do fine.
Don't get me wrong, we had a wonderful trip and didn't want to come home. St. Davids was our favorite little town.
May 9th, 2019, 04:31 PM
#15
This is likely to be a better site for drive times in the UK: https://www.theaa.com/route-planner/index.jsp
Driving in Wales can be interesting... I based in Conwy without a car a couple of years back, but I didn't go up Snowden. I certainly wouldn't try to get to Portmerion from there as a day trip.
See: https://mytimetotravel.wordpress.com...stle-and-more/
and: https://mytimetotravel.wordpress.com...he-great-orme/
Driving in Wales can be interesting... I based in Conwy without a car a couple of years back, but I didn't go up Snowden. I certainly wouldn't try to get to Portmerion from there as a day trip.
See: https://mytimetotravel.wordpress.com...stle-and-more/
and: https://mytimetotravel.wordpress.com...he-great-orme/
May 10th, 2019, 10:29 AM
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It is about an hour from Conwy to Portmerion. Perfectly doable, main road all the way unless you choose the scenic route, which takes maybe half an hour longer.
However if you want to go on down to St. Davids you can do Portmerion on the way down, and maybe break the journey around Aberystwyth/Aberaeron for the night.
However if you want to go on down to St. Davids you can do Portmerion on the way down, and maybe break the journey around Aberystwyth/Aberaeron for the night.
May 10th, 2019, 11:08 PM
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It depends on how long you are planning to stay in Conwy whether all those trips are doable from there.
Plenty of people rent a cottage and use it as a base for most of North Wales. You could easily visit all of those North Wales places listed if you have enough time, and use Conwy as a base though prehaps somewhere further into Snowdonia, maybe around Beddgelert, would work better.
I spent years holidaying in North Wales because we had family there. Our base was Bethesda, which I wouldn't recommend, but we would travel all over as far as Holyhead, covering a lot over Anglesey on the way, over to Llangollen, down to Harlech in our week or two there.
Plenty of people rent a cottage and use it as a base for most of North Wales. You could easily visit all of those North Wales places listed if you have enough time, and use Conwy as a base though prehaps somewhere further into Snowdonia, maybe around Beddgelert, would work better.
I spent years holidaying in North Wales because we had family there. Our base was Bethesda, which I wouldn't recommend, but we would travel all over as far as Holyhead, covering a lot over Anglesey on the way, over to Llangollen, down to Harlech in our week or two there.
