Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
DON'T MISS
BODNANT ESTATE
Whether you're a lover of gardens or fine food, the publicly accessible attractions on this privately owned agri-
cultural estate ( www.bodnant-estate.co.uk ) should not be missed. While many large country estates fell on hard
times in the 20th century, the McLaren family (holders of the title Baron Aberconway) have managed to keep
hold of theirs. The 2nd Baron Aberconway, a keen horticulturist, donated Bodnant Garden (NT;
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/bodnant-garden ; adult/child £5/2.50 Jan & Feb, £8.45/4.22 Mar-Oct;
11am-3pm
Jan & Feb, 10am-5pm Mar-Oct;
) to the National Trust in 1949, although the family continue to maintain it
on the trust's behalf.
Bodnant is one of Wales's most beautiful gardens. Laid out in 1875, its 32 lush hectares unfurl around pictur-
esque Bodnant Hall, the McLaren's gracious late-18th-century pile, which the family continue to own and live in.
Formal Italianate terraces and rectangular ponds creep down from the house into orderly disorder, transforming
themselves into a picturesque wooded valley and wild garden, complete with rushing stream. Key features are the
55m laburnum tunnel, a hair-raising howl of yellow when it blooms in late May/early June; fragrant rose gardens;
great banks of azaleas and rhododendrons; and some of the tallest giant redwoods in Britain. Spring is probably
the best time to visit but there's something to see in every season.
On the other side of the vast estate, a disused collection of 18th-century stone farm buildings has been
painstakingly restored (at a cost of £6 million) and opened in 2012 as Bodnant Welsh Food ( 01492-651100;
www.bodnant-welshfood.co.uk ; Furnace Farm, Tal-y-Cafn; admission free; farm shop 10am-6pm Mon-Sat,
10am-4pm Sun; ) . One of the big attractions here is the wonderful Farm Shop, which includes a deli counter
laden with Welsh cheese, a bakery, fresh produce, chocolate, ale and the kind of butchery that practically knows
the names of each animal that passes over the counter. The estate even bottles and sells its own water. At present
75% of the shop's wares are made in Wales, but the plan is to increase that to 100%.
However, this is only part of Bodnant's gastronomic offering. There's also the Furnace Tea Room (mains
£5-9; 9am-5.30pm) in the former cowsheds, the Hayloft Restaurant ( 01492-651102; mains £9-10;
noon-3pm Sun-Wed, to 9pm Thu-Sat) above the shop, and a cookery school (lessons from £50) with an impress-
ive group kitchen classroom - all of which make the most of the farm's homegrown and homemade products. On
Thursday nights the restaurant hosts live Welsh folk music and harpists.
The centre is also home to the National Beekeeping Centre Wales ( www.beeswales.co.uk ; tours adult/child
£7/3.50; 10am-4pm Wed-Sun) , a nonprofit organisation dedicated to encouraging people to take up beekeep-
ing. Its corner of the complex has interesting displays about the plight of the honey bee, a live hive-cam, and lots
of bee-produced products to sample and purchase. In warm weather it runs apiary tours (minimum two people).
If you want to settle in to gorge yourself to the point of immobility, there are five attractive little B&B rooms
available in the farmhouse (s/d from £50/80; ) . The estate also rents self-contained cottages.
The estate is located east of the River Conwy, 4 miles south of Conwy. Bodnant Welsh Food is on the A470,
while the garden is accessed by a well-signposted side road.
Shopping
The Potter's Gallery
OFFLINE MAP
ARTS & CRAFTS
GOOGLE MAP
 
 
 
 
Search WWH ::




Custom Search