Day 4: Snowdon and Snowdonia
The mountains of Snowdonia aren’t far from Anglesey. And highest mountain in Snowdonia, Snowdon, is close to Anglesey and worth a visit. You can take the train to the top, to enjoy all the great views without the effort! But try to visit on a fairly clear, sunny day for the best views. And you’ll need to book the train in advance as it gets fully booked quickly.
Llyn Padarn
Start your day with a walk around the lake Llyn Padarn. This lake is right next to the town of Llanberis, which is where the train to Snowdon departs from. So it’s the perfect place to spend a few hours before it’s time to catch your train.
The views across the lake are lovely, even on the slightly cloudy day that I visited.
Snowdon Mountain Railway
The Snowdon Mountain Railway was one of my highlights from my week in North Wales. The whole train trip takes about 2.5 hours. It’s about an hour on the train up, and then you get 30 minutes to get off the train and look around and take photos. And then you need to get the same train back down.
I visited Snowdonia in May, when the train was going three-quarters up the mountain to the station called Clogwyn. At first I was a little disappointed not to get to the top of Snowdon, but it was definitely still worth taking the train and the views were still amazing.
Try to sit on the right-hand side of the train going up for the best views. On this side, you can see the views down to the valley below you. And keep a look out for sheep and lambs as well!
At the top, you have 30 minutes to get off the train and take photos. This felt like an ok amount of time, especially as it was a lot colder at the top than it had been next to the lake.
The views were just amazing. I loved seeing the small mountain lake, and also looking across at the high peaks.
The views on the way down were just as beautiful. I took so many photos from the train. You can also see a waterfall from the train as well. It’s a really enjoyable trip, and definitely worth doing.
Dolbadarn Castle
For the final stop on your day in Snowdonia, it’s worth walking 10 minutes from the Snowdon Mountain Railway to Dolbadarn Castle. This isn’t a huge castle like Beaumaris and Caernarfon – it’s just a small ruined tower. There’s no entry cost to go in. But it’s definitely worth visiting for the views.
I loved the views from this castle across the lake and also to the mountains. It just felt like such a classic Welsh view, with the castle and the mountains. It doesn’t take long to look around, but I felt like it was definitely worthwhile, and a lovely ending to the day in Snowdonia.
Day 5: West Anglesey coastal walk to Church Bay
Back on the island of Anglesey for Day 5 of your ultimate itinerary for one week in Anglesey, North Wales. I’d recommend spending today walking another stretch of the coast path. I chose to walk the section of coast path in West Angelsey to and around Church Bay.
My favourite part of this walk was the wildlife watching. The coast path was very quiet – I hardly saw any other walkers. And that meant that there were loads of birds. It was a great place to take my binoculars and camera. I got photos of birds including Stonechat, Whitethroat, Linnet and more.
There was a cute bunny rabbit as well! And some really cute baby cows in some of the fields next to the path.
This section of coast path is dotted with little coves as well. These small beaches are a great place to stop to relax for a while and enjoy the views over towards Holyhead.
It’s a lovely part of the Wales coast path, especially in the spring when the flowers add even more colour to the views.
Keep reading on the next page for the final two days of great things to do in Anglesey, Wales.