Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(
www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/roman
;
High St; 10am-5pm Mon-Sat, 2-5pm Sun)
Put your Caerleon
explorations into context at this excellent museum, which paints a vivid picture of what
life was like for soldiers in one of the most remote corners of the Empire. It displays a
host of intriguing Roman artefacts uncovered locally, from jewellery to armour and from
teeth to tombstones.
Caerleon Roman Fortress Baths
(
www.cadw.wales.gov.uk
;
High St;
RUIN
9.30am-5pm Apr-Oct, 9.30am-5pm Mon-Sat, 11am-4pm Sun Nov-Mar;
)
Like any good Roman town, Caerleon had a grand public baths complex. Parts of
the outdoor swimming pool, apodyterium (changing room) and frigidarium (cold room)
remain under a protective roof, and give some idea of the scale of the place. Projections of
bathers splashing through shimmering water help bring it to life.
Roman Amphitheatre
(The Broadway; 9.30am-5pm)
The side street opposite the museum leads to a park on
the left where you'll find the turf-covered terraces of the only fully excavated Roman am-
phitheatre in Britain; it lay just outside the old Roman fortress walls. Follow the signs on
the other side of the Broadway to see the foundations of the Barracks.
RUIN
Sleeping & Eating
Old Rectory
( 01633-430700;
www.the-oldrectory.co.uk
;
Christchurch Rd; s/d £50/75; )
One mile south of Caer-
leon, in the village of Christ-church, the Old Rectory offers a warm welcome and three
luxurious rooms with views over the Severn Estuary to England.
B&B
££
The Stuffed Dormouse
( 01633-430142;
www.thestuffeddormouse.co.uk
; Ponthir Rd; mains £13-16; noon-2pm & 6-9pm Mon-Sat,
noon-2pm Sun)
While its name references a Roman delicacy, you won't find any dormice on
the menu - but you will find ostrich, kangaroo, crocodile, llama, squirrel, snake and zebra.
It's located about a mile north of the main part of Caerleon in the Roman Lodge Hotel.
BRASSERIE
££
Getting There & Away
