Porthmadog

Porthmadog's hotels and guesthouses make the most of its unusual position, wedged between the peaks of Eryri National Park and the wide sands of Tremadog Bay, so it is easy to find a room with a view of one or the other, and sometimes both. The town centre has a handful of traditional coaching inns and pubs with rooms, ideal for visitors who want to be within walking distance of the harbour station where the Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railways depart. These tend to be simple, good-value options rather than boutique stays, with a proper local-pub atmosphere downstairs.

For something quieter, the nearby village of Borth-y-Gest offers guesthouses overlooking its small, sheltered harbour, a short walk or drive from Porthmadog itself, while the countryside inland and towards Criccieth has a good choice of farmhouse B&Bs and small country hotels set among the hills. Families and walkers heading into the mountains often prefer to base themselves slightly further out, towards Beddgelert or Tremadog, where hotels sit closer to the trailheads for Snowdon and the Moelwyn range but remain within easy reach of Porthmadog for a day trip to the shops, railways and harbour.

For a genuinely distinctive stay, the village of Portmeirion itself, a short drive around the estuary, offers hotel rooms in its main building overlooking the Dwyryd estuary as well as self-catering cottages scattered through its Italianate gardens, though these are popular and worth booking well ahead, particularly for summer weekends. Whichever option is chosen, Porthmadog's compact size means most hotels are within a few minutes of the harbour, the railway stations and the town's restaurants.

Porthmadog rewards a slow visit. Between the railways, the harbour, and the surrounding coast and mountains, there is enough here to fill several days without ever driving very far.

• Ffestiniog Railway — One of the oldest railway companies in the world, dating to 1832, the narrow-gauge Ffestiniog Railway runs steam trains over 13-and-a-bit miles of dramatic Snowdonian valley from Porthmadog Harbour up to the old slate-quarrying town of Blaenau Ffestiniog.
• Welsh Highland Railway — Sharing Porthmadog's harbour station, this sister line runs in the opposite direction, looping around the base of Snowdon to Caernarfon on one of the longest heritage railway journeys in Britain, with views of the mountains for almost the entire route.
• Welsh Highland Heritage Railway — A separate, shorter heritage operation running family-friendly trips from its own station near the town centre, with engine sheds and workshops that visitors can wander through to see steam locomotives being restored.
• Portmeirion — A short drive around the estuary, this Italianate village was designed from 1925 onwards by the architect Sir Clough Williams-Ellis and later became famous as the setting for the 1960s television series The Prisoner; its pastel buildings, gardens and coastal setting make it one of the most photographed spots in Wales.
• The Cob — The mile-long embankment built by William Madocks in 1811 to reclaim the estuary and create the land Porthmadog now stands on; walking or driving across it gives sweeping views of the mountains and the Glaslyn estuary and remains the town's defining feature.
• Porthmadog Maritime Museum — Housed in one of the last surviving slate sheds on the harbourside, this small museum tells the story of the town's slate-shipping heyday, when Porthmadog-built schooners carried Welsh slate to ports across the world.
• Black Rock Sands — A few minutes' drive from town at Morfa Bychan, this vast, flat sandy beach is one of the few in Wales where cars can still be driven and parked directly on the sand, backed by dunes and framed by views towards the Llŷn Peninsula.
• Snowdonia gateway walks — Porthmadog sits right at the southern edge of Eryri National Park, making it a practical base for tackling Cnicht (sometimes called the "Welsh Matterhorn"), the Moelwyn range, or the gentler paths around the Vale of Ffestiniog.

Porthmadog's High Street and harbourside have a decent spread of independent cafes, pubs and restaurants serving everything from Welsh classics to fresh local seafood. Castle Fish and Chips is a long-standing local favourite for a straightforward chippy tea, while Poachers Restaurant and Dylan's Restaurant (part of a small North Wales group known for showcasing Welsh produce) offer more formal dining with an emphasis on local ingredients. The Blue China Tearooms is a popular stop for a traditional Welsh cream tea, and down at Black Rock Sands itself, the Black Rock Beach Club combines a bar, restaurant and coffee shop with a wood-fired pizza oven and a large beer garden looking straight out over the dunes. A short walk around the headland, the village of Borth-y-Gest has its own cluster of cafes making the most of its sheltered harbour setting.

The countryside around Porthmadog, from the foothills of Eryri to the dunes behind Black Rock Sands, offers some of the most scenic camping in North Wales, but as everywhere in Wales, wild camping remains illegal without the explicit permission of the landowner, so it is worth sticking to established sites unless you have arranged access directly. Fortunately there is no shortage of choice: campsites cluster along the coast towards Criccieth and Morfa Bychan, inland towards Beddgelert and the Aberglaslyn Pass, and up around the Vale of Ffestiniog, many of them making the most of views towards Snowdon, Cnicht or the Moelwyn range.

Coastal sites near Black Rock Sands and Morfa Bychan suit families who want easy beach access alongside pitches for tents, campervans and caravans, with several offering direct or near-direct access onto the sand. Inland, sites around Beddgelert and the Aberglaslyn Pass put walkers within easy striking distance of Snowdon's quieter southern approaches, as well as the wooded riverside paths through the pass itself, one of the most attractive short walks in the area. The terrain here is a genuine mix, from flat, sheltered estuary-side pitches to more exposed hillside fields with big mountain views, so it is worth checking a site's setting carefully if shelter or a view matters to you.

Spring through early autumn is the most reliable camping season, with long daylight hours in June and July making the most of the steam railways and mountain walks, though North Wales weather can turn quickly at any time of year, so a good waterproof tent or awning is essential. For those who would rather skip the tent-pitching, glamping options in the area range from simple wooden pods and shepherd's huts to fully-equipped safari tents, many positioned to catch sunset views over the Glaslyn estuary or towards the peaks. Whichever way you choose to camp, Porthmadog's harbour, railways and beaches are rarely more than a short drive away.