+44 (0)1633 869700

WALES BORDER EXPLORER

 Staged

Every Thursday all-year-round

 Prices

Adult £45.00

Concession £40.00 over 60s & students

Children £25.00 under 16 years 

Great British Pound

 Inclusive

Qualifed coach driver, transport, local guide and admissions

 Exclusive

Lunch & Refreshments

 Times

Start 9am l Return 5:30pm (approx)

 Start Point

National Museum Cardiff, central location

Escorted guided tour and live commentary en route . . .

Blaenavon, a town which played a vital part in the Industrial Revolution which transformed the landscape, culture and society of Wales.  Situated at the head of the Afon Valley on the slopes of the Coity and Blorenge mountains is Big Pit, (Pwll Mawr) the National Mining Museum of Wales.  A real colliery where for over 200 years was once the workplace for hundreds of men, women and children.  Discover what life was like on an underground guided tour led by real miners.  Later your guide will show you 18th century furnished stone cottages where you will witness how difficult life was for working families at Stack Square.

Cross the ancient and narrow arched bridge to Crickhowell, a picturesque market town, built on the edge of a hill looking towards the Sugar Loaf Mountain and Table Mountain.  Above the town on the hillside is Crug Hwyel, where the first settlement was made over 2000 years ago, and where the name Crickhowell comes from. The town has small independent shops, bustling atmosphere, and one of the richest areas in Wales for 17th-century architecture. Lunch stop at a charming 16th century coaching inn with private garden overlooking the river, simply a perfect location.  

The tour offers the opportunity to see two medieval buildings.  The ruins of the four-storey 12th Tretower Castle and the 14th Tretower Court, a manor house with recreated  medieval gardens and orchard.  Cadw, the Welsh Governments heritage authority, has recently undertaken major restoration of the opulent interiors of the 15th and 17th century.  The medieval buildings are located on flat meadowland, hugging the northern bank of a small tributary of the river Rhiangoll and separated by 'The Castell Greene' - the place where the manor courts were held.  A stunning location overlooked by the Black Mountains.

Brecon Beacons National Park over 519-square miles of stunning countryside, the tour explores the eastern side of the park near Wales's only land border.  Quaint villages, and  the 18th century Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal, considered by many to be Britain's most picturesque canal.  We journey to the village of Talybont-on-Usk to see the park's largest  reservoir, set in a charming wooded valley and surrounded by splendid hills.  

 

Images courtesy of © Crown copyright (2008) Visit Wales.