On way to London through Holyhead

karltimber

Hi,

Plan on driving - with no time constraints to Legoland London.
Arriving in Holyhead - 3 kids in tow.

So, whats to do on the way - in Wales and Eng. Not traveling by motorway if at all possible so looking for places to visit, nice towns to stay in, scenic routes etc.

thx

k

biko

Go through Snowdonia and Brecon Beacons (google them).
Instead of 5 hours To London it takes 7 but is worth it imo. Also you avoid Birmingham.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=Holyhead,+Gwynedd,+UK&daddr=51.886664,-3.186035+to:London,+United+Kingdom&hl=en&geocode=FWZtLQMdNE-5_yntDxxstjRkSDFvI_uM0JyOJA%3B%3BFXjUEQMd5BL-_yl13iGvC6DYRzGZKtXdWjqWUg&mra=dpe&mrcr=0&mrsp=1&sz=8&via=1&sll=51.879882,-2.15332&sspn=2.014317,5.817261&ie=UTF8&z=8

annieoburns

That is interesting route Biko. I dread the busy motorways and have elderly relatives near Bristol and would suit me fine. There seem a lot of junctions etc are they well sign posted? Can you suggest a couple of 'stop places' en route? Could you describe a bit more? small villages and lot of mountain scenery?

The alternative route is to go via Rosslare and then the less crowded road/motorway up to London. But whenever I look, the Rosslare ferry departure times seem very early in the morning. Also that sea route can be more 'rough'.

chilloutman

trust me this journey is a right balls

karltimber

thx bilko,
don't even want to do the full journey in 1 day - 2 or 3 will do.
will check that out - thx- any nice places/towns to stay in ?

Will probably do a different route back alright.

Chillout - care to expand on your insightful comment

k

FarmerGreen

Portmeirion village (where they filmed The Prisoner) is not far from Holyhead.
http://www.portmeirion-village.com

karltimber

any good castles to visit - ones that can be entered with dungoens/passways etc. or guided tours ??

K

LiamMc

ON the train the northern coastline route until Rhyl is lovely.
I don't know how close the road gets to the coastline (Birkenhead or LIVERPOOL!) can be pointed out on the far side of the River Dee/Estuary. Conway castle is in the middle of a small town, it goes up rather than down, has a double wall. The trainline runs inside the outer wall.

Edward I built alot of defensive castles after he conquered Wales (11C or 12C?). There should be a route to pick up on some of them.

FarmerGreen

I went to North Wales once, on the way back from Scotland.
Porthmeirion was just amazing.
Caernarfon castle is just next door.
For you, its just off the boat, hours from here tho.
There are places to stay in Portmadoc to break your trip.
I think your kids would love the village.

karltimber

Ok,

Have a 2 night stay in Llundudno (amazing that most hotels don't have family rooms for 5 people) and Legoland & chessington park booked.

So will break up journey from Wales to London - halfway is Birmingham area.
Would prefer a smaller town than Birmingham city to stay - so what ideas have ye got for Coventry/Worchester areas ??

Might stay around here on way back too.

thanks

K

bluenose1956

Depending on the age of the children, Ironbridge in Shropshire is interesting. I think there are a couple of museums which exhibit the industrial revolution.

RainyDay

I'll be doing the Holyhead-London trip by road in August, both directions. Google Maps is recommending A55 and the M40 as the best route. I'm looking for suggestions as to where to break the journey. I'd really prefer something more interesting than a soulless motorway service station, but I don't want to spend a lot of time travelling to/from. Is there anywhere good to stop for a bit of lunch near the M40 to break the journey, maybe somewhere around Crewe, Stoke or Birmingham?

Dub_Jim_Royle

Sorry for resurrecting this thread but it's exactly the question that I have, just wondering if either RainyDay or karltimber have any feedback or suggestions?
We have plenty of time and would rather get through Wales before stopping.
Will be stopping in Drayton Manor, Birmingham for a night or 2 on one of the trips, probably the return journey.

Thanks

RainyDay

We ended up stopping in Chester - probably a bit earlier in the journey than I'd have liked, but it suited our lunch schedule. Lots of nice places to eat and little shops. Parked in some shopping centre. Easy enough to get in and out of the town.

We ended up needing another loo stop before we got to London mind you.