After making fun of the name before we got there, we were really pleasantly surprised by Happy…read moreValley- we just kind of walked into it heading up to the Orme on foot, and were hit by the scent of lemon balm, and the other thickly planted bushy herbs that were between the rocks. Little sculptures, a sun trap of a lawn that would be great for a picnic (with suncream, of course), winding paths and plenty of benches- it's a really nice, well kept little area, and with really lovely views down to llandudno and across the bay, framed by blossom heavy branches it's rather nice.

This is much more than a park area on the Orme. It has gardens, a camera obscura, cafe and shop…read more The cable cars start from here and higher up it has the Alpine ski centre dry slope and also has a long metal tobbagan run. Now I don't ski or snowboard but I love the tobbagon run - its great fun. The swiss style lodge has a bar for beer and lager, tea and coffee or hot chocolate for cold days. You can sit in or out and enjoy a pint or hot drink whilst watching the activities below. What a lovely way to spend an hour or two.

I was really pleasantly surprised with the Great Orme…read more We did a seaside jaunt on the train to avoid bank holiday traffic, and I was a little concerned that all there would be to do was eat hot seaside doughnuts until I landed myself in a sugar coma, but the GO came to our aid. We walked up, starting in "Happy Valley", although there is a toll road, cable car (adults £10 single, £10.50 return- daft, £8 for children), and tramway. We timed it perfectly heading out of the sea mist, which cleared in time for fantastic views. It's clearly signed to get to the caves, mines, adorable churches and the summit, which has quite a packed complex of bars, cafes, kids play, fish and chips and ice cream. Quite frankly, I want to own one of the pretty farm houses on the Orme, and there was surprisingly little litter- we picked up the two bits we saw, but it made such a difference- just clean green and blue. I'd advise walking, maybe taking a picnic and grabbing a blackcurrant cheesecake ice cream at the top. We took the cablecar down, which was a long queue but lovely views- also, the longest cable car system in Great Britain, apparently!

A wonderful circular walk - especially on a cracking late September day with the sun baking down!…read more Walked up from the town, past the bottom tramway station - it was such a lovely morning decided to skip the tram and walk up. It is a goodly walk (some 120m climb to the midway tramway station - staring along the road and then you come to a footpath just before the tramway station). You are rewarded with wonderful views on the way overlooking the bay - and also plenty of sheep and dogs. Atop the Great Orme splendid views await , both for nature and historical interest such as the medieval church of St. Tudno (who gave his name to Llandudno, an information board tells you).. In addition to a wonderful walk we cam across an artificial slop for skiing, snowboarding and tobogganing. A one way toll road, the marine drive goes all the way around the bottom of Orme and is a popular route for drivers, as the views from it are impressive. There is also a cable car that can transport you to the top around the Happy Valley gardens near the pier. Views from the summit are impressive - on a very clear day it's possible to see all the way over to the lake district. At the summit there's a car park, visitor centre, a couple of cafes and a play area for little ones. Despite the Orme's popularity, even in the height of summer it's possible to find plenty of quiet spots for walking or relaxing with a picnic. In short - a beautiful walk! After you head down - choices. Whether to go to Fish Tram Chips for award winning scrumptiousness, or the King's Head pub where, they say, the origins of Llandudno as a resort town were established. A win, either way!

The West Shore is the less popular of the two beaches in Llandudno which is a bit of a shame. It is…read morelocated on the opposite side of town to most of the hotels and shops which means it tends to get overlooked. Unlike the North Shore (the other beach) this is an exposed and sometimes windswept place and being on the Conwy estuary there are strong tidal currents if you go too far out to sea. You should also be aware that when the tide goes out there are large expanses of sandbanks which can be quickly cut off when the tide turns. The liftboat is called out regularly to rescue people who get caught out by this. So if it's that bad why would anyone go there? Well firstly it's much easier to park here. The area is largely residential with a few hotels mixed in so there is quite a bit of free, unrestricted on-street parking. There is also a large pay and display car park right next to the beach. There are adequate facilities including the Beach Cafe which is a traditional seaside cafe selling snacks, ice creams, cups of tea etc or if you'd prefer something stronger then there's the bar of the Sandringham Hotel just over the road. There are a couple of convenience stores nearby for crisps, drinks, newspapers and so on. There are breakwaters along the beach which are part of the flood defence system but they create small, sheltered beaches which are great for sunbathing or paddling (just don't go too far out). On a hot, sunny day you can't go wrong so long as the tide's in. Because the beach is quite exposed it attracts wind surfers and kite surfers when the wind gets up. It's also a popular beach with locals and dog walkers as there is plenty of space. The views along the coast and of Anglesey and Puffin Island are also worth seeing. All in all a great beach to visit if the weather's good. STOP PRESS - The Sandringham Hotel is now called 'The Lilly' and is apparently a 'restaurant with rooms'. I'm not sure if there will still be a public bar.

I agree with other reviewers. Much easier to park, one of the hotels serves beer to non guests,…read morethere is a cafe too. So, yes - perhaps better left to those in the know and dog walkers. One visit I watched windsurfers struggling in very rough conditions, so be careful.

Eirias Park has always been a popular attraction in Colwyn Bay but it isn't what it once was…read more The top part is made up of some very good sporting facilities. The most popular of these is the leisure centre which incorporates a leisure swimming pool, sports hall, gym and squash courts. Attached to the leisure centre is a very well equipped and grossly under used athletics stadium. Opposite the athletics stadium are some all weather hockey pitches which can be used for five a side football. If you wear baggy shorts and have facial piercings then there's also a stakeboard park. Futher down the park the most obvious feature is the large boating lake. A bored looking man ocassionally drags a couple of pedalos out of the shed but it's nowhere near as busy as it used to be. Close to the boating lake is a decent kids play park with a popular rope slide and for the older generation there are a couple of bowling pitches (I suspect they aren't called pitches but I don't know the correct term - sorry!). There's adequate parking available, a cafe in the leisure centre, toilets and a kiosk selling ice creams and drinks (in the summer). What is a bit disappointing as a local is the fact that a number of attractions have disappeared. These include Dinosaur World, the pitch and putt golf course and the old amusement arcade. I remember a long ago seeing Ed Stewart present a Radio 1 roadshow in the park (yes, I'm that old) and nothing like that happens any more. It's still a nice place to go on a sunny day but not what it was.

erias park has a large amount of space for activities such as riding bikes, playing football etc…read more they have a good leisure centre with most of the things you would expect to find; a good pool, gym, sports hall. the pool can be quite warm which isnt a complaint unless you are a propper swimmer. there has been a bit of decline there in the past few years, its a bit neglected especially towards the bottom area where the tennis courts and play area are. the pool cafe serves meals like burger and chips which are good.

The former Prime Minister William Gladstone was a huge fan of the resort of Penmaenmawr. After…read morefirst visiting the town in 1855 he paid eleven further visits over the following forty years. He's fondly remembered by the locals who erected a bust in the town and there's also a local gastro-pub named after him! If you visit the beach you can understand the attraction. This is a huge, flat and sandy beach (at least when the tide's out) and offers spectacular views of Llandudno and the Great Orme to the East and the Isle of Anglesey to the West. It's also reasonably easy to get to these days. Just off the A55, the main road between Chester and Holyhead and also close to the railway station which lies on the London to Holyhead line. There's a cafe, public toilets and an outdoor shower to wash off the sand after a day of building sandcastles and swimming in the Irish Sea. It's also always very quiet so you'll have no trouble finding space for the deckchairs. It's a shame really but the town has very little tourist accommodation available to attract holiday makers. So while ten miles along the coast Llandudno attracts thousands of tourists despite not having much of beach over in Pen a fantastic beach remains underused.

Back in the Summer of 1993 an unusually heavy rainstorm, coupled with an exceptionally high tide,…read morelead to serious flooding in the Colwyn Bay and Llandudno areas. This resulted in a beefing up of local sea defences. This has had a detrimental effect in most places, in particular in Llandudno where the North Shore has disappeared under a pile of pebbles. One area that seems to have benefitted though is Rhos-on-Sea. The offshore breakwater has created a safe and sheltered little beach. Admittedly it's a little stoney and the sandy areas are covered in millions of tiny shards of crushed shells which aren't all that comfortable to walk on. However the sea is sheltered so it's safe for paddling. In addition the village of Rhos-on-Sea is just across the road so you don't have far to go to buy an ice cream or a cup of tea and there are also toilets nearby which can come in handy.

The breakwater at Rhos dates back to the early 1980s, Andy! They were building it when I was…read morestarting High School, so must have been 1982/3.

Greenwood forest park is a great place to go for fun but the only reason i'm rating this a 3 stars…read moreis because of these reasons 1. Queue lines are massive 2. Food is expensive 3. LOTS OF KARENS (not the name)

GreenWood Forest Park is a rather unlikely find in the North Wales countryside. It's an eco-theme…read morepark which tries to show that you can have fun without using much power (other than that which you provide yourself). It's NOT a park that pushes the green message at you at every opportunity and this I like. It's that fact that it's understated that makes you think about it. Home to Europe's largest Green roller coaster this place is well worth a visit. The coaster itself works alomg similar principles to the mines, power is generated by people being carried down as the coaster is lifted back up to the start. The coaster then runs down and the next group of people can be taken. Other self-powered rides include a boat ride (where you paddle/pull yourself along with ropes) and a great toboggan run. The other major attraction is the bare-foot walk where you can get back to nature via a barefoot walk through various types of ground including sand, cobbles, mud, water and straw. Immense fun and strangely refreshing. Wash facilities are provided (cold!). Toilets are clean and there is a cafe offering good value basic meals. Wait times were not too bad. I liked the fact that this was a simple park and suited to children from toddlers to about 13 years old. I suspect the optimum age range is about 3-8 years. Unlike the traditional theme parkes queues are minimal (no more than a 2 minute wait for anything) despite our visit being on a May bank Holiday weekend in bright sunshine! Please note - do as the website suggests and if you are using a sat nav start to ignore it when you see the brown tourist signs - if you don't then you end up going through some very steep and narrow roads that are not suited to tourist traffic. It will take about 5 minutes more if you follow the tourist signs but you'll get there in one piece! Recommended.

Beautiful place to go and have a stroll. Ample space to take the kids to kick a football about with…read morethe dog in tow. Small park with enough play area for the kids to be kept enetrtained. The only down side is the price for the tennis courts which has rose drmatically in the last year.