Portmeirion, Snowdonia and Castles Day Tour from Llandudno

The Great Orme and the castle town of Conwy

The day opens with the Marine Drive around the Great Orme, the limestone headland that rises above Llandudno. The narrow road clings to the cliffs, with views across the Irish Sea to Anglesey, seabirds on the rocks and the wild Kashmiri goats that roam the slopes. It is the perfect start to a North Wales day tour.

Next comes Conwy, one of the finest medieval walled towns in Europe. Its castle, built in the 1280s with eight massive round towers, and almost a mile of town walls are part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site. On the quay you find the smallest house in Great Britain, so narrow that you can almost touch both walls with arms outstretched, and the elegant early nineteenth-century suspension bridge with castellated towers that leads to the castle gate.

Caernarfon and its mighty castle

Caernarfon, on the Menai Strait, is dominated by one of the largest and most impressive castles in Wales. Its polygonal towers and bands of coloured stone were designed to echo the walls of Constantinople, a statement of power that still impresses today, and the castle shares the same World Heritage listing as Conwy.

On this tour you have about 45 minutes to walk around the outside of the castle and through the old walled town, with its narrow streets, harbour and square. Your guide explains the castle's history and its ceremonial role in modern times. If you have searched for Caernarfon Castle day trips from Llandudno, this stop gives you a good view of the fortress and the town in a single walk.

Portmeirion: an Italianate village in Wales

Portmeirion is unlike anywhere else in Britain. Built between the 1920s and the 1970s on a wooded peninsula above the Dwyryd estuary, it is a fantasy village of pastel houses, domes, arches, statues and a slender campanile, inspired by the villages of the Italian Riviera. Ornamental gardens with palms and exotic plants run down to the sands of the estuary.

You have time to wander its piazza, colonnades and viewpoints and to walk down to the shore. Is Portmeirion worth visiting? For lovers of architecture, gardens and photography, absolutely: every corner looks like a painting. Note that the Portmeirion entrance fee is required and is not included in the tour price, so it is paid on arrival at the village.

Snowdonia National Park and Pen-y-Pass

Snowdonia National Park, called Eryri in Welsh, covers the highest mountains in Wales. The tour follows its most spectacular driving routes, climbing to Pen-y-Pass, the mountain pass at the foot of Snowdon, and descending through the rocky Llanberis valley. Snowdon itself, or Yr Wyddfa, rises to 1,085 metres and is the highest peak in Wales.

Along the way the minibus pauses at several viewpoints, including a 360-degree panorama over a valley filled with lakes, rivers and rugged peaks. These stops are short but frequent, perfect for photographs. The best time to visit Snowdonia is from late spring to early autumn, when the roads are clear and the light is long, although the mountains are beautiful in every season.

Swallow Falls, Llanrwst and the Conwy Valley

On the way back, the tour stops at Swallow Falls near Betws-y-Coed, where the River Llugwy tumbles over rocky ledges into a deep wooded gorge. It is one of the most visited waterfalls in Wales and especially powerful after rain, when the spray rises through the trees. A short path leads down to viewing platforms above the gorge, so wear shoes with good grip.

Next comes Llanrwst, where an ivy-clad fifteenth-century stone cottage stands beside a graceful seventeenth-century bridge over the River Conwy. In autumn its leaves turn deep red, and it is one of the most photographed and painted scenes in Snowdonia. Finally, the road follows the green Conwy Valley through traditional Welsh villages back to Llandudno, where the tour ends after about nine hours.