After a series of two industrial WHS, it was nice to see a more traditional WHS in the form of the Gwynedd Castles. These are 13th century castles built over a relatively short time period. Their purpose was to pacify the area after the recent English conquest by King Edward I.

Of the castles I managed to see two: Beaumaris and Conwy. Conwy as pointed out by previous reviewers is a walled city with a castle towering the town. Beaumaris meanwhile is the last one in the series of castles. It was never finished. Personally, I preferred the seaside charm and the larger scale of Beaumaris castle over Conwy town and castle. The tourist masses tended to go the other way. To me this was another advantage of Beaumaris.

On a more general note, I find it interesting, that WHS sites often tend to be sites on the periphery that fell out of fashion and were stuck in one time period. In the case of the Gwynedd castles Edward I attention wandered North as he had to deal with the Scots. He also ran out of money. While there were rebellions for the next centuries Wales has been British ever since.

Getting There and Around

I found the information on google maps for the area correct and very helpful. Please cross check before you go.

There is a direct train line from Birmingham to Holyhead with stops in Conwy and Bangor. You will actually pass right below Conwy Castle.

Via Chester you can also connect by train to Manchester and Liverpool, so you have ample options to travel on. As stated in my previous reviews, Pontcysllete Aqueduct and Ironbridge Gorge are well within reach and can be combined into a nice weekend trip.

Bangor probably is the best base to explore the area. Due to high season and many weekend guests, I had to stay in Menai Bridge as Bangor was fully booked.

Both Conwy and Caernafon have regularly served train stations. To get to Caernafon you have to change in Bangor. In Conwy it may make sense to cross over to nearby Llandudno Junction as it’s served by both Arriva and Virgin trains and connections are more frequent. For travelling between Bangor and Conwy I would recommend the bus as you get nice views of the coastline and the slopes of Snowdonia. It may also be cheaper.

Beaumaris is served by bus from Bangor (bihourly on Sundays, not sure about the rest of the week). The trip to Beaumaris is fairly straightforward. The return journey, meanwhile, was marked by multiple loops all across Anglesay Island and another one in Bangor, so it took twice the time (45min).

While You Are There

Three of the four castles lie on the slopes of Snowdonia and the little I saw looked amazing. Sadly, my tight schedule wouldn’t allow me to venture into the mountains.

Anglesay Island itself was also pleasant and scenic, especially at low tide. There are also boat rides to Puffin Island from Beaumaris and Conwy. If you are into those cute little suckers, but who wouldn’t be?.

Note on Hotels

I am generally a late hotel booker (previous night, same day). While my strategy generally works (and sometimes fails miserably), a weekend trip in high season to Bangor is not the proper area to apply it. This is a popular British weekend getaway, very deservedly so, so book in advance.