Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Direct trains head to/from Holyhead (£7.70, 38 minutes), Rhosneigr (£5.80, 18 minutes),
Bangor (£2.80, six minutes), Conwy (£7.60, 26 minutes) and Shrewsbury (£36, 2¾
hours).
TOP OF CHAPTER
Menai Bridge
POP 3380
It's a testimony to his genius that not only does engineer extraordinaire Thomas Telford
have a large town in Shropshire named after him, this small town is named after one of his
creations. The industrial age arrived in Anglesey in 1826 when Telford established the
first permanent link to the mainland with his innovative 174m Menai Suspension Bridge
across the Menai Strait - the first bridge of its kind in the world. The central span is 30m
high, allowing for the passage of tall ships. It was joined in 1850 by Robert Stephenson's
Britannia Bridge, further south, which carried the newly laid railway.
To learn more about these feats of Victorian engineering and about the ecology of the
Menai Straits, visit the
Thomas Telford Centre
(
www.menaibridges.co.uk
;
Mona Rd; adult/child £3/free;
10am-5pm Sun-Thu Jul-Sep)
. The friendly volunteers regularly arrange talks, tours and family
activities.
Sleeping
Plas Rhianfa
( 01248-713656;
www.plasrhianfa.com
; Beaumaris Rd, Glyngarth; r from £155; )
Would-be Prince
Charmings can indulge their fantasies in this remarkable turreted Victorian mansion,
styled after a French renaissance chateau. Some rooms are chic and contemporary, while
others are old-fashioned and romantic. The Duchess Suite - a massive room with a sleigh
bed and a freestanding bath on a dais by the window - is popular with princess brides.
HOTEL
£££
Getting There & Away
Menai Bridge is Anglesey's bus hub. Destinations include Holyhead (X4; 1¼ hours),
Llanfair PG (4A/41/43/44A/X4; five minutes), Beaumaris (53-58; 17 minutes), Bangor
(4A/41/43/44A/53-58/X4; 11 minutes) and Llanberis (41; 35 minutes).
