Glan Ceirw Caravan Park

Bala Lake, the old village of Betws-y-Coed, Coed Llandegla Forest and Snowdonia National Park are all nearby, providing enough sporty activity, family days out and history and heritage to keep you going for weeks.

Start off among the shops, cafés and the Conwy Valley Railway Museum’s miniature railway at Betws-y-Coed, then take a riverside walk along the River Llugwy and on to the spectacular Swallow Falls via the River Conwy; if you don’t fancy the walk, the Pont-y-Pair Falls are in the centre of the village and have picnic areas overlooking them.

As this is an active area, you’ll find activity centres scattered about within easy driving distance, like the one at Wales’s biggest body of water, Bala Lake, which has a huge range of outdoor options including whitewater rafting, zorbing and canoeing.

On land, horse-riding, quad biking and dry slope skiing are all available, or you could follow in the footsteps of thousands (millions?) and scale some of the peaks of Snowdonia (promise yourself a picnic and a Glan Ceirw ale at the top).

Coed Llandegla Forest in the heart of Snowdonia National Park is where mountain bikers go; it has trails for all abilities, even apprehensive beginners, as well as walking trails for the slower-paced.

Both the Llyn Brenig and Alwen reservoirs are top trails for walking too, and Llyn Brenig’s visitor centre has info on other activities around the reservoir such as sailing, windsurfing and fishing (Llyn Brenig hosts the World Fly Fishing Championships each year).

Archaeologists might also rock out at the Llyn Brenig Archaeological Trail around Brenig’s Bronze Age burial and historical sites: it’s only two and a half miles long but has eight or nine cairns, several medieval dwellings and Maen Cleddau, the Sword’s Stone, where a giant is said to have sliced a large section off a local boulder.

If it’s more heritage (and a rest) you’re after, two vintage steam railways are nearby – one at Bala and one at Llangollen – while in the national park the kids can dig into Welsh mining history with trips to Blaenau Ffestiniog’s Llechwedd Slate Cavern and the National Slate Museum.