So, we took our little camper out for it’s first trial run a couple of weeks ago to North Wales. We did a mini road trip around the Snowdonia National Park area, and over to Anglesey. We always love taking the van out while it’s still a work in progress, mostly so that we can get use out of it, but we also come back with so many ideas on things that we need, want to change or what to do on the conversion next!
Day 1 – Portmeirion
The first day was mostly spent driving there, but the afternoon was spent at the little tourist village of Portmeirion. It was started in the 1920’s, and over the course of 50 years, was made into the colourful village that it is today. You’d be fooled for thinking you were somewhere in the mediterranean with the palm trees, architecture and views over the sandy estuary.
We explored the village (the colourful buildings are actually let out as holiday homes), then took a walk along the ‘quayside’ by the hotel and down to the beach. There’s a lot more than just the village there with huge gardens hidden around the back and some nice little beaches – though be careful of the tide as the currents are very strong in the estuary!
After spending a few hours exploring, we headed to our first campsite for the night and settled down with some dinner and Netflix – the perfect start to our weekend. Portmeirion is a 10 minute drive from Porthmadog, open everyday from 9.30am-7.30pm (though the shops all close at 5pm) and costs £12 for adults and children up to 15yrs are £8.
Day 2 – Ynys Llanddwyn and Tŵr Mawr Lighthouse
On day two we headed over to Anglesey with no plans. I was scrolling through instagram and came across someone who visits Anglesey a lot as she’s got family there, and she recommended a visit to Ynys Llanddwyn on her guide to Anglesey so we thought we’d check it out.
It poured down with rain just as we arrived, but after a while of chilling in the van it stopped so we made our move. There’s a whole little woodland area with loads of walks through, and then you reach the sand dunes to the beach. We took a walk along the beach, admiring the crystal clear water, over to the tidal island of Ynys Llanddwyn.
The views over the beaches were just amazing – huge rocks everywhere that you could climb for a nice viewpoint and trails along the island to stunning secluded beaches. We eventually made it to the lighthouse on the island, that was thought to have once been an anglesey windmill due to the design of it. We just couldn’t get over the views of Snowdonia National Park in the distance. It turned out to be our favourite day of the trip, and we definitely recommend a stop here if you’re ever visiting Anglesey or the Snowdonia NP area!
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