Mid Wales

Llywelyn Mural Photo - Eirian Evans CCL

This one-time spa town on the banks of the River Wye in Powys provides the perfect setting for the annual Welsh Show and is an ideal base for exploring the lovely Wye Valley.




South of the town in the village of Cilmeri marks the spot where Llywelyn ap Gruffydd - one of the last leaders of independent Wales – was killed by Edward 1’s troops in 1282.
 

A large village in Powys, Caersws lies in the beautiful Upper Severn Valley and offers many walks over nearby hills and moorland.





Its name comes from the legendary Queen Susan but Caersws grew out of an old Roman military settlement.





At one time it was an important railway centre. Maes-Mawr is a superb half-timbered house dating to the 16th century.

Caersws Photo - John Lucas CCL

Guildhall Photo - Garth Newton CCL

Birthplace of the National Eisteddfod, this ancient Welsh seaside town lies at the mouth of the River Teifi and boasts a galaxy of atmospheric old buildings as well as the remains of a picturesque 12th century castle, around which the town grew in the Middle Ages.

The ‘capital of Ceredigion’, Cardigan is surrounded by stunning scenery. The Teifi Valley is a paradise for walkers and anglers. 

Although the village of Carno is famous as the headquarters of the Laura Ashley fashion empire, in Wales it is associated with a number of important battles.





Gruffydd ap Cynan won the Welsh crown here in the 12th century after temporarily halting the advancing Normans.

Church of St. John the Baptist
Photo - Peter Standing CCL

Crickhowell Bridge
Photo - Gordon Hatton CCL

This picturesque town on the banks of the River Usk in Powys lies within easy reach of the spectacular Brecon Beacons National Park and has been dubbed ‘The Glittering Jewel of the Vale’.



The river is spanned by a 13-arch bridge dating from the 16th century while nearby Table Mountain was the site of an Iron Age fort.  

A few miles distant are the Agen Allwedd caves - one of the longest caves with a single entrance in the British Isles. Crickhowell’s most famous son was the mapping expert Sir George Everest, Surveyor-General of India, after whom Mount Everest was named.

A small village near Machynlleth, Furnace is named after a real-life furnace that still stands on the Einion River.


The first building here was used to power the refining of silver but it was replaced by blast furnace to smelt iron.


The village’s bucolic surroundings include ‘Artists Valley’, a nature reserve run by the RSPB and the lakes of Llyn Conach and Llyn Dwfn.

Dyfi Furnace Photo - Nigel Callaghan CCL

Offa's Dyke path -
Photo: John Spivey CCL

The setting for Offa's Dyke Centre, Knighton is a busy market town which annually attracts thousands of walkers.

Situated in Powys, it lies on the England-Wales border halfway along Offa’s Dyke, an earthwork built in the 8th century by the Mercian king Offa.

It employed natural boundaries such as rivers and hills.

The long-distance Offa’s footpath, which passes through Knighton, runs from Prestatyn for 177 miles to Chepstow.

Home to St David’s University College - the oldest university in Wales – genteel Lampeter is an important market town and the venue of an annual horse fair.





It lies on the banks of the River Teifi and boasts numerous Georgian and Victorian properties, including a museum and old coaching inns.  

University of Wales - Photo: John Darch CCL

Llandewi Brefi - Photo: Rog Frost CCL

Known as the setting for a famous sketch from the TV comedy series ‘Little Britain’, this village is closely associated with the life of the patron saint of Wales, St. David.



He is said to have performed a minor miracle here in the 5th century, when a hill rose beneath him, so a large crowd during a sermon could see him.



A statue in the town’s 12th century church immortalizes the saint. 

A modest village with a church built on the site of an ancient hillfort, Llandinam spawned one of Britain’s most far-sighted 19th century industrialists.

It was the modest birthplace of Lord David Davies who made his fortune by building bridges, the Newtown and Llanidloes Railway and Barry Docks.

In doing so he pioneered the exploitation of coal in the Welsh valleys.

His mansion, Broneirion, still survives and has a 90ft iron bridge leading to it.  

Llandinam churchyard -
Photo: Katherine Oakeshot CCL

The Lindens - Photo: Mark Savage CCL

The county town of Powys, Llandrindod is a former spa town which once attracted thousands of Victorians desperate to ‘take the waters’ and restore their health.

Its architecture and general demeanour suggest that such Victorian splendour still survives.

Not far from the centre are the remains of an old Roman fort known as Castell Collen.

A good place from which to explore the wider Teifi Valley, this former Welsh woollen centre is an attractive market town known today as a centre for both canoeing and river fishing. 

Llandysul - Photo: Nevin Arrow CCL

Llanfair Caereinion -
Photo: Roger Gilbertson CCL

Lying near Welshpool in Montgomeryshire's Banwy Valley, this is one of the smallest towns in Powys.


A former woollen centre it now attracts tourists wishing to climb on board the narrow-gauge Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway.


Nearby stands the Church of St Mary at Llangulan. Dating to the 6th century, it boasts a 15th century stained glass window.  

This quietly charming village lies where two rivers named the Cain and Abel meet.


Legend has it that visitors must hug a tree above Y Dolydd workhouse.


The road towards Llanraeadr-ym-Mochnant rises to nearly 900 feet, affording fabulous views over the surrounding countryside and local mountains. 

St. Mylin's Church - Photo: J M Briscoe CCL

Church Llangurig -
Photo: Angella Streluk CCL

This mellow village in Powys is set amid tall mountains in the valley of the River Wye.




The local church originated in the 12th century but was rebuilt in the 19th century, its name recalling the Dark Ages’ saint, Curig.




Its tower dates to the 14th century.




The area was once famous throughout Wales as a place where farmers employed a band of supernatural healers to protect their animals.     

Picturesque and ancient, this typically Welsh market town lies at the confluence of the rivers Severn and Clwedog and has remained largely unspoiled.






John Wesley preached fire and brimstone here in the 1800s and in 1839 the town was a focal point for Chartist rioters.

The John Wesley Stone - Photo: Eirian Evans CCL

The Old Market Hall -
Photo: firstjaytee CCL

The Old Market Hall is a timbered market hall dating from around 1600 while the town’s church has 13th century origins with a 15th century hammerbeam roof and a 14th century tower.





This is a good walking country. Nearby is the Clywedog Valley, the Llyn Clywedog reservoir - boasting one of Britain’s tallest dams - and the eerie hillfort of Dinas.    

Close to Tregaron on the River Irfon amid spectacular scenery, this old spa town has become a pony-trekking centre.

The town developed around a sulphur spring after a local cleric spotted a sprightly frog leaping from the ‘stinking well’.

Unusual features of the town are tall Victorian houses.

Nearby lies the remote Crychan Forest and the Mynydd Eppynt mountains in the Brecon Beacons.  

Llanwrtyd Wells - Photo: Nigel Davies CCL

Machynlleth -
Photo: Barry Jones CCL

Home to the Centre for Alternative Technology (or the ‘village of the future’) this is a welcoming town situated in the beautiful Dyfi Valley.

At its centre stands a remarkable 78ft clock tower.

The great Welsh patriot Owain Glyndwr named Machynlleth as capital of Wales in the 15th century and was proclaimed king.

The town is one of the stages on the National Trail known as Glyndwr's Way.     

A small, attractive Georgian town with some fine, half-timbered buildings, Montgomery is overlooked by the ruins of a 13th century castle and the slopes of dramatic hills.






Henry III built the castle in the mid-13th century. Nearby is a preserved section of Offa’s Dyke. 

Montgomery towards Long Mynd -
Photo: ceridwen  CCL

New Quay - Photo : Ruth Jowett CCL

A popular seaside resort with sheltered beaches and a picturesque harbour, New Quay was an important shipbuilding centre until the mid-19th century.





In the 1940’s it provided inspiration for the poet Dylan Thomas who regarded it as his favourite holiday destination.     

Strata Florida Abbey -
Photo : Patricia Steel CCL

A village on the banks of the River Teifi, Pontrhydfendigaid is notable for staging an annual Eisteddfod and lies close to the picturesque ruins of Strata Florida Abbey in the bucolic ‘Valley of the Flowers’; nestling in ideal walking country, the Cistercian building was founded in the 12th century and became one of Wales’ most important political centres.    

An ancient border market town, Presteigne stands on the banks of the River Lugg.


It boasts half-timbered buildings, a museum and an annual festival of music and theatre.


In the 13th century the Mortimers, powerful Marcher barons, controlled it. Much later it became a coaching town linking London and Aberystwyth.

Presteigne  -
Photo: Colin Smith CCL

A public park known as The Warden has been developed on the site of a Norman castle destroyed in the 13th century by Llewelyn the Last. The Jacobean Radnorshire Arms was originally the home of John Bradshaw (1602-59), one of the men who signed the death warrant of Charles I. Pony trekking is a popular pastime on nearby hills.

Rhayader  - Photo : Alan Rolfe CCL

This busy tourist town guards the entrance to the beautiful Elan Valley where, in the 19th century, great reservoirs were constructed to provide water to Birmingham.






The area is a place of deep ravines, dense woodland, and swooping red kites, pony trekkers and anglers.






The valley’s visitor centre can be found at Caban Loch. The Claerwen Reservoir has a dam 184ft high.    

A small market town in the Teifi Valley, Tregaron has a timeless air and was the birthplace in 1812 of non-conformist preacher Henry Richard, founder the Peace Union.


He is immortalised by a bronze statue sculpted by Albert Toft.


The town was once a meeting place for sheep drovers and is noted for its annual festival of harness racing.


Nearby lies the Cors Caron nature reserve, a wetland peat bog of international importance.


The Welsh version of Robin Hood - Twm Sion Cati – took his first breath in Tregaron and is reputed to have used local mountain caves as hideaways. 

Tregaron - Photo: Stephen McKay CCL

Tresaith - Photo : Oliver Dixon CCL

A small seaside village lying on Cardigan Bay, Tresaith is noted for its stunning beach on the Ceredigion coastline.



The area has a resident population of bottle-nosed dolphins and attracts both sailors and surfers.



A local feature is a waterfall on the River Saith.     

A thriving border town, Welshpool packs quite a punch, offering railway and canal exhibitions at the Powysland Museum, boat rides on the Montgomery Canal and trips on the Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway.  




The real treat, however, is Powis Castle, a magnificent Welsh fortress that has a stunning, terraced garden and a museum devoted to the life of Clive of India.

Montgomery Canal - Photo: John Hayes CCL

Powis Castle - Photo: David Barnes CCL

It was built in the reign of Edward I by the Gwenwynwyn family but later passed into the ownership of Edward Clive, son of Robert, 1st Lord Clive of India.

The eye-catching gardens contain a Douglas Fir over 185ft high, which was once considered to be the tallest recorded tree in Wales.

Nearby Long Mountain, which is crossed by Offa's Dyke, has an Iron Age hill fort dating to 300 BC on its summit.