Last Updated on 16 March 2026 by Colette
This post features a hosted stay
I always leave Wales with a feeling that we should be visiting more often and that was exactly the case after our long weekend in Conwy particularly as its only a 90 minute drive from our home in Manchester making it easily accessible for a short break or even a day out!
I think it’s easy to write off coastal trips and adventures as a summer thing but there’s loads to do around Conwy at this time of year and if I’m honest, I love a grey blustery beach day just as much as a sunny one!
I’ve got lots to tell you about our trip with Visit Conwy so I’ve broken it down into three main sections – where we stayed, what we ate and what we did. All our accommodation, food and activities were planned for us and the costs covered as part of the trip.
Where we stayed
Our accommodation for the weekend was the super cosy Platform 13 Railway Cottage which is within easy walking distance of Llandundo Junction train station and Lidl and about 20 minutes walk into the town of Conwy. We had driven so appreciated the free roadside parking.
Railway Cottage comfortably sleeps six in three bedrooms – two doubles and a twin (which can also be made into a king-size). The stairs in the cottage are narrow but have handrails on both sides. The stairs up to the loft room are even narrower still and Amy was a bit nervous of them at first (I only went up once myself to check out the room and the stunning view of Conwy Castle) but she soon got used to them.
Our only niggle with the cottage was the bathroom – the effect of the lovely free standing bath was sort of spoiled by the shower hanging over it surrounded by a shower curtain. Personally I would never use the bath in a holiday cottage so would much rather just have a decent enclosed shower (shower curtains give me the ick!). The shower itself was a bit hit and miss, not great in terms of water pressure and on our last morning just wasn’t pulling any hot water through at all despite the taps all letting hot through but for the sake of a few days it was manageable.
The neat garden backs straight onto the railway line which felt a little strange at first as it feels like the trains are really close and Poppy definitely wasn’t keen however Ben commented that he had thought the train noise would be really annoying but was surprised to find it wasn’t at all. The trains aren’t going past especially quickly and we hardly noticed them in all honesty.
All in, Platform 13 Railway Cottage was a great base for our weekend adventures!
What we ate
Food was a fairly big part of our Conwy adventures – and we weren’t sad about that! In fact it was such a big part that I started to write this section and realised it was so big it probably needed it’s own post so you’ll find that here; What we ate in Conwy but below is a list of the venues we ate at during our stay.
- Archway Fish & Chips, 12-14 Bangor Rd, Conwy LL32 8NH
- Hangin’ Pizzeria, 1 Station Rd, Betws-y-Coed LL24 0AE – Hangin’ Pizzeria don’t take bookings
- The Erskine Arms, Rose Hill St, Conwy LL32 8LD – Check out the menu and book at table at The Erskine Arms
- Cantîn, Canolfan Ddiwylliant Conwy Culture Centre – Check out the Cantîn menu and opening times.
- Benjamin Lee Bakery and Sandwich Bar, 4 Market St, Llandudno LL30 2SR
- The Groes Inn, Llanrwst Rd, Conwy LL32 8TN – Check out the menu and book at table at The Groes Inn
- The Toad, West Promenade, Colwyn Bay LL28 4BU – Check out the menu and book a table at The Toad.
What we did
Explored the Quayside
Conwy is only about a 90 minute drive from home so Dave took the afternoon off and we arrived at our cottage for about 3.30pm. Of course with the clocks having gone back, we didn’t have long to explore before it got dark so we made a beeline for the quayside where we caught the last of the sunset, visited The Smallest House and laughed at the idea of any of us managing to live in there before heading to Archway Fish and Chip Shop for tea.
Zip World Fforest Coaster at Zip World Betws-y-Coed, A470, Betws-y-Coed LL24 0HX
The FForest Coaster is the UK’s only alpine coaster covering 1km of track through the trees. Your sledge can reach up to 25mph but you are in control of the brakes if you want a slightly more sedate ride. Your ticket gets your three goes on the Fforest Coaster so you can take it steadier on your first go while you get a feel for things – none of us did, full speed for us thanks!
I had been worried that seats of the sledge would be too narrow for my ample backside but I fit in comfortably and neither Dave or I had a problem with leg room. Each sledge can hold two people up to a maximum of 150kg (you are weighed on arrival) so the girls both had a turn with Ben and Amy also rode with Dave before finally having a go on her own.
Obviously you can’t take photos or film on the ride but they do attach a camera to your sledge which films your reactions – you get a slip for this at the end and can purchase your video (at a spendy £8.50 a pop!). We chose to buy the videos from the first ride of each and I must admit Ben and Chloe’s is hilarious so I’m glad I did. The mic on Amy and Dave’s is a bit dodgy unfortunately so whilst you can see she’s really enjoying it, there’s a lot of excess noise which spoils the video a bit.
As well as the Zip World Fforest Coaster, Zip World Betws-Y-Coed has zip wires, treetop nets, a five-seater swing called “Sky Ride” and a drop-experience called “Plummet” – that would be a no from me! Zip World is the sort of place my kids could happily spend all day. Ben is now eyeing up Velocity at Penrhyn Quarry.
Swallow Falls, Betws-y-Coed, LL24 0DW
Swallow Falls is an area of outstanding natural beauty and designated a site of special scientific interest. The river Llugwy floes through a natural chasm creating a spectacular waterfall amongst a background of beech, conifer and birch trees.
There is a £2 per person entrance fee which is paid for by contactless payment and access is through a turnstile gate – making it not especially accessible. Once you’re through the gate, access to the falls themselves is by a lot of stone steps so Swallow Falls is definitely not one for a pushchair or wheelchair. Of course despite this, Swallow Falls are definitely some of the more accessible waterfalls in Wales being as how there is now long hike or mountain climbing to be done to reach them!
Swallow Falls is absolutely stunning and Ben took great pleasure in schooling me on the formation of waterfalls. We found that we didn’t really hang around at particular points of the falls as there were other people who wanted to get to the platforms too. As we climbed up the steps to a higher point of the water fall we had expected to be able to walk further along the river but actually the section you have paid to access is relatively small – this is somewhere to go and be wowed by the waterfalls but not somewhere to go if you want a good walk, there’s nowhere to go – we walked about 0.8 miles and I think that included from where we’d parked the car.
Conwy Morfa Beach
Because we hadn’t spent anywhere near as long as we had expected at Swallow Falls, we took the opportunity to visit Conwy Morfa Beach on our way home so that Poppy could stretch her legs and because I would never turn down the chance to be near the sea.
Conwy Morfa is large sandy bay and exactly my favourite kind of beach – whilst I do appreciate the traditions of a promenade, a pier and a chippy, what I really love is wide open spaces, stunning views and the sea (which might seem like an odd thing to say but on the north west coast of England, the sea can be literally a mile or more out!)
Parking at the small car park is free of charge sand the beach is accessed directly from the car park.
Bodnant Garden, Bodnant Rd, Tal-y-cafn, Colwyn Bay LL28 5RE
It’s almost exactly ten years since we first visited Bodnant Garden and I wrote at the time that I planned to visit again soon… Well that didn’t happen, but it did mean I was really chuffed to spot it on our Visit Conwy itinerary for the weekend!
Last time we visited it was Christmas, so it was lovely to see this National Trust property in the full throes of autumn (though I desperately want to come see it in full bloom in the spring / summer too).
We found ourselves exploring all the same parts of Bodnant Gardens as we had last time we visited – we even tried to recreate a photo from our last visit! (Shout out to the lovely lady who helped us with that!)
There is a 150th birthday celebration trail to follow at the moment but none of the kids were feeling that vibe so we just set off wandering, enjoying the glorious autumn colours, admiring some incredibly well groomed bushes and appreciating the various plants and some humongous trees.
I honestly think Bodnant Garden might actually be my favourite National Trust property ever and I’m definitely not leaving it ten years before I visit again.
Dogs are welcome at Bodnant Garden from 1st October to 31st March and must be kept on a short lead.
Book a visit to Bodnant Garden (I have a National Trust membership that covers me and the kids but entrance for Dave was £16)
Llandudno
After a gorgeous autumnal morning at Bodnant Garden, we drove over to Llandudno for a wander down the Llandudno Pier (the longest pier in Wales and the 5th longest pier in the UK).
With it being early November, lots of the little shops down the sides of the pier were shut but there were plenty still open as well as rides (they were expensive!), arcades and food stalls selling cheese, seafood, pork pies and sausage rolls, and ice cream though none of us were actually hungry after our breakfast at Cantin earlier in the morning!
We walked all the way to the end of the pier, played the 2p machines for a bit and then on the way back the girls convinced me to take them on the big wheel – this cost £5 each or £4 for under 11s (which Amy scraped by a matter of days!). Chloe thinks it’s important I tell you that dogs are allowed on the wheel but we didn’t really think Poppy would be very impressed!
I love a grey day at the coast at this time of year so loved the walk down the pier and looking back the Llandudno Promenade which is just beautiful with its run of ice cream coloured buildings.
Dave and I had been keen to explore the town a little more – to check out the architecture and pop our head in one or two shops, however the kids were shattered and wanted nothing more than to head back to our holiday cottage for a bit of chill time before dinner.
We’ll definitely plan a return visit to Llandudno to explore some more as our brief visit was just a taster of this pretty coastal town.
The Welsh Mountain Zoo, Old Hwy, Colwyn Bay LL28 5UY
The last activity on our itinerary was a visit to The Welsh Mountain Zoo. I think an autumn / winter zoo trip can often be a bit tricky – it was quite a grey morning which gave the zoo a bit of a sad feel, I really think had the sun been shining it would have felt very different. We found lots of the enclosures were empty with some maintenance taking place which of course makes sense during the quieter season but this combined with some of the more exciting animals like the bear or the snow leopard snoozing in places where they couldn’t be seen meant we left feeling like we hadn’t really seen very much.
What I will say though is that the position of The Welsh Mountain Zoo meant you were treated to some stunning views and the kids were pretty impressed with the large park which was set over multiple levels.
Book a visit to Welsh Mountain Zoo
There is so much to do in and around Conwy that I feel we barely scratched the surface during our busy three night stay and we are already making plans for a return visit.
If you have enjoyed this post and found it helpful, here are a few ways you can say thanks and support We’re going on an adventure:
Click here to buy me a virtual coffee – it’s like a little tip jar but with caffeine!
I’d love for you to tag me in any photos of your adventures on Social Media if one of my posts has inspired you to visit
Share this post with your friends – you’ll be helping me and them!
Share this post with your friends – you’ll be helping me and them!
Follow We’re going on an adventure on Facebook or Instagram
