Map view
Llyn Idwal Circular, Snowdonia
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: June-Aug
Cost: $
- Mountainous region and national park in Wales, that includes the country's highest mountain, Snowdon
- The park was the first of the three national parks of Wales to be designated, in 1951
- Llyn Idwal is a small lake that lies within Cwm Idwal in the Glyderau mountains of Snowdonia
Conwy Castle
Best time to visit: June-Aug
Cost: $
- Fortification in Conwy, located in North Wales, that was built by Edward I, during his conquest of Wales, between 1283 and 1287
- Constructed as part of a wider project to create the walled town of Conwy, the combined defences cost around £15,000 ($18,416,118 USD in 2023), a massive sum for the period
- It withstood the siege of Madog ap Llywelyn in the winter of 1294–95, acted as a temporary haven for Richard II in 1399 and was held for several months by forces loyal to Owain Glyndŵr in 1401
Cardiff Castle
Best time to visit: June-Aug
Cost: $
- Medieval castle and Victorian Gothic revival mansion, located in Cardiff
- The original motte and bailey castle was built in the late 11th century by Norman invaders on top of a 3rd-century Roman fort
- The castle was commissioned either by William the Conqueror or by Robert Fitzhamon, and formed the heart of the medieval town of Cardiff
- Cardiff Castle was repeatedly involved in the conflicts between the Anglo-Normans and the Welsh, being attacked several times in the 12th century, and stormed in 1404 during the revolt of Owain Glyndŵr
Caernarfon Castle
Best time to visit: June-Aug
Cost: $
- Medieval fortress in Gwynedd, the first fortification on the site was a motte-and-bailey castle built in the late 11th century, which King Edward I of England began to replace with the current stone structure in 1283
- The castle and town established by Edward acted as the administrative center of north Wales, and as a result the defenses were built on a grand scale
Harlech Castle
Best time to visit: June-Aug
Cost: $
- Medieval fortification built onto a rocky knoll close to the Irish Sea, built by Edward I during his invasion of Wales between 1282 and 1289
- Over the next few centuries, the castle played an important part in several wars, withstanding the siege of Madog ap Llywelyn between 1294 and 1295, but falling to Prince Owain Glyndŵr in 1404
- Following the outbreak of the English Civil War in 1642, the castle was held by forces loyal to Charles I, holding out until 1647 when it became the last fortification to surrender to the Parliamentary armies
Stackpole Quay and Bosherston Lakes, Pembrokeshire Coast National Park
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Best time to visit: June-Aug
Cost: $
- National park along the Pembrokeshire coast in west Wales, established in 1952
- It is the only national park in the United Kingdom to consist largely of coastal landscapes
- The park has a varied landscape of rugged cliffs, sandy beaches, wooded estuaries, wild inland hills, the moorland of the Preseli Hills and the wooded Gwaun valley
Beaumaris Castle
Best time to visit: June-Aug
Cost: $
- Beaumaris Castle was built as part of Edward I's campaign to conquer north Wales after 1282
- Plans were probably first made to construct the castle in 1284
- A substantial workforce was employed in the initial years under the direction of James of St George
- It is noted as one of the finest examples of late 13th century and early 14th century military architecture in Europe
National Museum Cardiff
Best time to visit: June-Aug
Cost: $
- Art gallery and museum that has collections of botany, fine and applied art, geology, and zoology
- The museum offers hands-on exploration of the museum's 7.5 million items that are normally in storage, including insects, fossils and Bronze Age weapons
- The National Museum of Art opened in 2011, and includes Pablo Picasso's Nature Morte au Poron, which was acquired in 2009
- Since 2016, the museum has had Rembrandt's 1657 Portrait of Catharina Hooghsaet on permanent display