Guides · Family days out
Days out,
already planned.
Whole days worked out for you: where to start, when to stop for lunch, how to get between places and what to do if it rains. Every stop links to its own page with opening times, prices and a map.
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WalesSteam trains, slate caverns and the Meirionnydd coast: a weekend at Llanfendigaid
Stable Cottage, Llanfendigaid Estate, Rhoslefain (near Tywyn)
A weekend based at a cottage on the Llanfendigaid Estate, between Tywyn and Fairbourne, with a heated indoor pool to come back to. Break the drive with a boat ride into King Arthur's Labyrinth and a beach stop at Aberdyfi, then spend Sunday on the Talyllyn steam railway and Tywyn's beach.
King Arthur's Labyrinth → Corris Café, Corris Craft Centre → Stable Cottage, Llanfendigaid Estate → Talyllyn Railway + 1 more
WeekendAll agesCost ££
WalesA wet day in Cardiff: dinosaurs, then a castle
Cardiff city centre
Start under cover at the national museum, where natural history and Welsh art sit side by side and entry costs nothing. After lunch, cross the city centre to Cardiff Castle to explore its wartime tunnels, Victorian rooms and the Norman keep on its mound.
National Museum Cardiff → Cardiff Castle
One dayAll agesRainy dayCost ££
WalesOld Wales for free: St Fagans and a Llandaff mansion
West Cardiff
Spend the morning wandering between farmhouses, a school and a row of miners' cottages rebuilt at the open-air museum of Welsh life. Then head to a Victorian mansion in Llandaff for a café lunch and a run around its free gardens.
St Fagans National Museum of History → The Potting Shed Café, Insole Court → Insole Court
One dayAll agesCost £
WalesLakes, ducks and a pier for little ones in Penarth
Penarth
A gentle morning on the flat lakeside paths at Cosmeston, with a café break before toddlers flag. Finish on the Victorian pier on Penarth's seafront for sea air and a look back at the bay.
Cosmeston Lakes Country Park café → Penarth Pier
Half dayToddlersSunny dayFree
WalesSwansea in the rain: industry, history and a rainforest
Swansea city centre / Maritime Quarter
Two free museums a few minutes apart cover Welsh industry and Swansea's own past, from trams to an Egyptian mummy. The afternoon is spent in the warm under glass at Plantasia among reptiles, monkeys and tropical plants.
National Waterfront Museum → Swansea Museum → Plantasia Tropical Zoo
One dayAges 3–7Rainy dayCost £
WalesGower bays: a heritage mill, Three Cliffs and Rhossili
Gower (Parkmill)
Begin at a working water mill in Parkmill, then walk down to the dramatic river-cut bay at Three Cliffs. End the day on the long sweep of Rhossili beach below the downs, with Worm's Head out at the tip.
Gower Heritage Centre → Three Cliffs Coffee Shop
One dayAges 8–12Sunny dayCost ££
WalesTwo days around Tenby: farm zoo, then three castles
Tenby
Day one is spent at a big farm park and zoo near Kilgetty with animals, rides and plenty of indoor space. Day two follows the medieval trail west: Pembroke's great round keep, a ruined bishop's palace at Lamphey, then lunch and a tidal mill at Carew.
Folly Farm Adventure Park and Zoo → Pembroke Castle → Lamphey Bishop's Palace → Nest Tearoom, Carew Castle + 1 more
WeekendAges 3–7Cost £££
WalesSt Davids: a palace, a gallery and a farm of bugs
St Davids
Britain's smallest city is easy to do on foot: start at the National Park's gallery and visitor centre, then explore the roofless bishop's palace beside the cathedral. After lunch, head just out of town to a farm dedicated to insects and creepy-crawlies.
Oriel y Parc → St Davids Bishop's Palace → The Brunch House at Oriel y Parc
One dayAll agesCost ££
WalesUnderground at Big Pit and the Blaenavon ironworks
Blaenavon
Put on a helmet and lamp and go down a real coal mine with a former miner as your guide, then explore the surface buildings for free. In the afternoon, visit the furnaces and workers' cottages of the nearby ironworks that made this valley a World Heritage Site.
Big Pit National Coal Museum → Blaenavon Ironworks
One dayTeensCost £
WalesElan Valley dams and red kite feeding
Rhayader
Walk or cycle beside the reservoirs and Victorian dams of the Elan Valley in the morning. After lunch, sit in the hides at a hill farm near Rhayader as hundreds of red kites swoop down for the afternoon feed.
Elan Valley Visitor Centre → Elan Valley Visitor Centre Café → Gigrin Farm
One dayAges 8–12Sunny dayCost £
WalesTwo days in Eryri: Snowdon by train and Portmeirion
Llanberis, then Porthmadog
Ride the rack railway up Yr Wyddfa, then wander to a lakeside Welsh castle tower and the woods of Padarn Country Park. Day two takes in the Italianate village of Portmeirion, lunch at Porthmadog harbour station and a run on the wide Black Rock Sands.
Snowdon Mountain Railway → Dolbadarn Castle → Padarn Country Park → Portmeirion + 2 more
WeekendAges 8–12Cost £££
WalesConwy's walled town and the mountain zoo
Conwy
Climb the towers of Conwy's medieval castle and look down on the harbour, then step into an Elizabethan townhouse a few streets away. After lunch, drive to the hillside zoo above Colwyn Bay for sea lions, big cats and views over the coast.
Conwy Castle → Plas Mawr → Welsh Mountain Zoo
One dayAges 3–7Cost ££
WalesAnglesey for almost nothing: a burial mound and Newborough
Anglesey (south-west)
Crawl into a 5,000-year-old passage tomb in a quiet field, then spend the rest of the day in the pine forest and dunes at Newborough. The beach looks across to Eryri and, at low tide, out to Llanddwyn island and its lighthouse.
Bryn Celli Ddu Burial Chamber → Llanddwyn Bay
One dayAll agesSunny dayFree
Written by Tumble from each place's own published information, checked October 2026. Times are suggestions, not bookings. Opening hours and prices change, so check each place's page before you set off.