Accessible Brecon Beacons
Stunning and varied in landscape, Bannau Brycheiniog (formerly the Brecon Beacons) National Park welcomes and values visitors as diverse as itself. On this page, we showcase the park’s commitment to improving access wherever possible: paths are generally well maintained, many of the major visitor attractions are accessible, and there are accessible places to stay – from grand hotels to rural campsites – with facilities for disabled guests. Read on for Pitchup’s suggestions for accessible hiking and cycling routes, sights to see, and practical advice for visitors with mobility challenges.
Accessible outdoor activities
Having a disability should not be a barrier to exercise and enjoyment of the spectacular landscapes of Bannau Brycheiniog. Here’s how to get out into the countryside in the bracing fresh air.
Good to know: Walking routes are all graded in the national park, so you can decide what’s right for you in terms of ability. Grade 1 walks have gentle gradients and compacted terrain, and are barrier-free with no stiles or cattle grids. Seating is placed along these routes too.
Brecon Canal Basin to Brynich Lock
Length: 2 miles/3.3 km each way
Difficulty: Grade 1: easy
Time: 2 hours there and back
Start: Brecon Canal Basin car park (pay and display)
A gentle meander along the flat Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal towpath accompanied by birdsong has to be good for the soul, as does the sight of brightly decorated barges moored against the canal banks. You can stop off in pubs and cafés at both ends of the route, and there are benches for rests and/or snack stops, or to while away a balmy afternoon watching the boats go through Brynich Lock.
Sychryd Accessible Trail
Length: 0.5 miles/0.7 km out and back
Difficulty: Grade 1: easy
Time: 30 minutes
Start: Dinas Rock car park (free)
Three-tiered Sychryd may be one of the lesser-known cascades in the Brecon Beacons' gorgeous Waterfall Country but it's also one of its most accessible. The flat gravel path down to the lower waterfall has a handrail and leads through tree-lined Sychryd Gorge, with impressive rock faces on one side and the River Hepste on the other. It's worth noting that the route can get muddy after rainfall.
Canal cruises
If you fancy getting out on the water, several boating companies run narrowboat cruises on the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal as it hugs the route of the River Usk. Based at Brecon Canal Basin, Dragonfly Cruises has a boat lift for wheelchair users, while the voluntary Monmouthshire, Brecon and Abergavenny Canals Trust runs trips from Goytre Wharf near Llanover on a barge with two spaces allocated for wheelchair users. Both services operate between March and October.
Talybont Reservoir bird hide
With several seats and space for one wheelchair, the hide at the southern end of tree-lined Talybont Reservoir is near the car park and approached by a wide, level path. Keen birders should spot herons, egrets and woodcock feeding on the protected marshy wetlands during autumn and winter months.
Adaptive adventure sports
If you're keen to participate in some more robust outdoor activity, here is Pitchup’s pick of activities for visitors looking for adaptive sports experiences.
Watersports
There are several accredited Paddleability providers in the Brecon Beacons for anyone looking to go paddleboarding, kayaking or canoeing on the park’s rivers, canals and reservoirs.
Activity days
Visitors with physical disabilities, learning disabilities or who are neurodiverse can have a go at caving, climbing, cycling, archery and zipwiring – among other sports – as day guests at the Bendrigg Trust adult activity centre.
Good to know: Consider hiring a tramper if you’re looking to head off-road over rough terrain.
Visitor centres and attractions
Most of the major attractions in the national park – including the National Botanic Garden of Wales and Brecon Mountain Railway – are well set up for disabled visitors. The following all go the extra miles with their facilities, which include free scooter hire, designated walks and guided tours.
Bannau Brycheiniog National Park Visitor Centre
The park’s biggest information hub caters well for visitors needing a bit of extra help, with dedicated parking for Blue Badge holders, accessible loos and a café large enough for wheelchair users to negotiate. There are easy paths on Mynydd Illtud Common next to the centre, and you can use all-terrain mobility scooters for free (booking necessary and donations appreciated) to see sheep and ponies grazing as well as stunning views of the Central Beacons.
Big Pit National Coal Museum
There’s step-free access to parking, loos, all catering outlets and the gift shop, but it’s the fact that wheelchair users can join the underground colliery tour that makes a visit exceptional. A little forward planning is involved, however; you’ll need to get in touch ahead of time (02920 573 650 or bigpitemail@museumwales.ac.uk) to organise your visit. Another point to bear in mind: although assistance dogs are welcome at Big Pit, they cannot be taken underground.
Craig-y-Nos Country Park
In the grounds of a mock-Gothic castle, this 40-acre garden is criss-crossed with well-surfaced tracks, so you can wander through beech woodlands and meadows (the latter get soft underfoot after rain) edging the banks of the River Tawe. Along the way there are picnic spots and resting places shaded by trees. There’s free space in the pay-and-display car park for disabled visitors, and tactile information boards at the start of the walks.
Garwnant Visitor Centre
Accessible facilities at this woodland spot overlooking Llwyn-on Reservoir include Blue Badge parking spaces, easy access to the Forest Café and a ramp up to spacious Changing Places toilets – please ask in the café for the key. With a tarmac surface and taking around 45 minutes to complete, the Willow Walk starts by the car park and is accessible to all as it winds through woodland, crosses three bridges over streams and finally passes through a willow tunnel.
Cultural experiences
Needing a little help with accessibility is thankfully no longer a bar to enjoying cultural experiences in the national park.
Abergavenny Castle and Museum
The ruins of a Norman castle and a museum housed in an early 19th-century hunting lodge –where better to learn about the heritage of the lively market town of Abergavenny and its surroundings? The grounds are mainly level with gravel paths for wheelchair access, but you might be best with a carer if you want to explore the forbidding defence towers and gatehouse as some slopes are steep. A ramp leads up into the museum for entrance to the ever-changing exhibitions in the Keep Gallery, and assistance dogs are welcomed.
Brecon Cathedral
A photogenic mash-up of Norman and Victorian architecture showcasing fine stained-glass windows, Brecon Cathedral is accessible to all visitors. There’s accessible parking in the neighbouring pay-and-display car park, and access into the cathedral is by lift at the south-west door. Once inside, there are no steps to negotiate so you can join guided tours of the religious treasures, or take part in a host of social events including music festivals and poetry readings. There’s an on-site café too.
Theatr Brycheiniog
The leading arts venue in the park has an inspiring schedule of events and performances, along with facilities to ensure that everyone can enjoy their visit. As well as space for wheelchair users in the stalls and balcony, the theatre has accessible parking, accessible ground-floor loos, and lifts to all three levels, including – most importantly – the bar and café.
Other disability friendly amenities at Theatr Brycheiniog include seating with extra space for assistance dogs, hearing loops and ‘relaxed performances’ with low lighting and little noise for neurodiverse individuals. The theatre is also part of the hynt scheme, if you’d like to attend a show with your carer.
Practical tips for visitors
Here’s how to plan your accessible trip to the national park, taking in transport, specialist equipment hire and weather considerations.
Travelling by train
All Transport for Wales (TfW) rail services and stations are accessible. While no mainline trains run through the park, there are stops on its fringes, at Llandeilo and Llandovery to the west, and Pontypool and Abergavenny in the east. If you need extra help when travelling by train, you can request assistance from TfW up to two hours before you leave home.
Travelling by bus
Most local bus companies offer low-level accessible vehicles to make your life easier. To see the glorious landscapes of the Brecon Beacons without stirring from your priority seat/wheelchair, take the TrawsCymru T4 bus route as it makes its way across the park between Cardiff and Newtown.
When to visit
The park is an all-year destination, with each season having its one unique beauty – wildflowers and grazing lambs in spring and summer, the display of autumn leaves, frost and snow dusting the peaks in winter. However, the weather is unpredictable all year around, with most rainfall falling in winter. If you’re out and about on accessible paths, please bear in mind that they can get muddy and slippery after rain.
Accessible accommodation
Here at Pitchup, we think the Brecon Beacons is the ideal destination for your next accessible holiday, and to prove our point, many of our campsites in the national park – which come in all styles for all budgets – have accessible facilities.
Accessible campsites in the Brecon Beacons
Campsites with accessible facilities across the whole of Wales