Wales (2025)

After seeing Hafren Forest on Tiktok, I decided that I wanted to go, so my boyfriend and I decided to make a road trip of it and spent the August bank holiday in Wales together. 

Thursday

We left London at 5:30am, aiming to arrive to Stratford-upon-Avon before the work day started. We ended up making excellent time and kept furthering the destination until we eventually settled on Shrewsbury, arriving at around 8:30am. This gave us plenty of time to grab some breakfast and coffee and get our work setups prepared in the café before starting work at 9am. 

We spent the entire morning working away, which was slightly stressful as the café had fairly loud music and my team decided to have various calls, so I was nervous they'd hear the music. On top of that, the Wi-Fi was patchy at best, so I had to hotspot and just hope for the best. Despite a lot of frozen images during the calls, I got through it, and it worked out fairly well. 

We had booked an Airbnb in mid-Wales, and our Airbnb host very kindly allowed us to check-in early, so at lunch we headed towards a town called Llanidloes, the first town on the River Severn. We went via a supermarket and, as my boyfriend had written a shopping list for everything we'd need for the rest of the week, it was a quick job, despite being a big shop.

Although I wasn't fully relaxed as I was aware that work was very busy, I must say I was absolutely loving the Welsh country roads, especially as the weather was gorgeous. The roads were very fun to drive along and really showcased the best of Wales. I'm a big fan of the country and have been a few times, but it was my boyfriend's first time and boy was he getting the best of what it has to offer. 

Eventually, we arrived at the Airbnb; the host was very welcoming and the Airbnb was perfect, with everything we could need, including a hot tub and a barbecue. The host had clearly thought of everything and the little touches were much appreciated, from the coffee and Welsh cake on the counter, to the eggs and milk in the fridge, to the bathrobe and slippers in the bedroom. The place was spacious and had everything we needed to cook for ourselves (which was perfect as my boyfriend loves cooking) and I couldn't wait to make the most of it. But first, work.

I quickly pitched myself up and got back to work, whilst my boyfriend very kindly made us some picky bits for lunch and put away the food shop. The afternoon flew by and once I'd finished with work, we decided to go on a little hike since the sun was shining. My boyfriend loves a hike and had found one nearby with gorgeous views. We drove five minutes away, parking by the Clywedog Reservoir, and then headed up Bryn y Fan Summit. Although steep in sections, the hike was well worth it; we passed cows, horses and sheep (the three barnyard animals I always look out for in the countryside), and at the top enjoyed stunning 360° views. 

Once we reached the summit, we got out some wine and snacks that we'd brought with us and enjoyed a serene moment whilst overlooking the reservoir and the surrounding countryside. It was absolutely perfect and despite the hike being a calf-killer, it was one of my favourite parts of the entire trip and took less than two hours. Once we'd soaked in the views (and wine), we headed back down the hill and then to the Clywedog Reservoir Viewpoint, which offered a different view of the gorgeous reservoir and was where we were planning on spending some time the following evening. 

We then headed back to the Airbnb, where we'd initially planned to enjoy the hot tub, but our early wake up had caught up with us and instead we just pulled together more picky bits for dinner (as we weren't very hungry and it was getting late) and then retired for the night. 

Friday

I decided to start work very early this morning since we'd gone to bed early the previous night and I knew that work was going to be very stressful. My boyfriend made us fried eggs on toast with coffee for breakfast, which was delicious, and after several hours of focusing on work, he made us a yummy chicken cacciatore pasta for lunch. I was absolutely stuffed that afternoon but had a lot of work to be getting on with and it was topped off by the news that I'd have to work over the weekend too. Luckily, it would only be for a few hours, but since I'd already worked 47 hours that week, I was needing a break from it.

We treated ourselves to tea and a cookie to get through the remainder of the afternoon and as soon as it hit 5:30pm, I called it on work (as I'd already put in ten hours that day) and we decided to make the most of the sun with a walk through Hafren Forest. We packed some food and then made the 20-minute drive along some very fun roads to the forest. The roads were windy and narrow for the most part and we were lucky that we only met one other car on a wider section of road. 

Despite the small parking lot, we found a space easily as it seems most people don't visit on Friday evenings, and parking was free, which was a nice change from London! We ended up doing two walks: Severn-Breaks-its-Neck trail, which is a circular walk to a pretty waterfall and takes about one hour, and the Cascades walk, which is a stunning walk along a boardwalk and takes about half an hour. Both walks were beautiful, and a great way to relax after a very stressful week at work. We enjoyed our packed lunches at the end of the boardwalk, comprising sandwiches, capri suns, penguin bar, grapes, satsumas, and nuts, which was delightful, and then headed back home. 

On arrival, we poured ourselves some vino and went straight into the hot tub, where we relaxed for a while and had a proper catch-up. It was absolutely perfect, with the backdrop of an idyllic countryside view. We then showered and I finished my book, which I'd been meaning to get around to for a while. 

I'd mentioned to my boyfriend a couple of days beforehand that I'd never seen the Milky Way before, and he very sweetly looked up where we could see it, only to find that our surrounding area in Wales had very little light pollution and that the Milky Way would likely be visible on the Friday night between certain hours. He'd found a cute, little spot overlooking the reservoir which would be high enough and far enough from light pollution to allow us to stargaze, so we'd aimed to do that in the early hours of the morning. 

However, post-shower, he had another Google and realised that actually, the Milky Way would be visible for another hour or so, and instead of disrupting our sleep schedule and going at 2am, we could instead go straight away and then come back and head to bed for the night. This sounded wonderful to me, so I grabbed a blanket and off we headed to the Clywedog Reservoir Viewpoint where we sat on a bench overlooking the dam all snuggled up. 

As our eyes adjusted to the dark skies, more and more stars appeared until the entire sky was dotted with them. We stargazed for a while, waiting for shooting stars since it was the last days of the Perseids, and eventually I managed to spot the Milky Way for the first time (although it was fairly faint and mainly looked like clouds), as well as two big shooting stars, which felt truly magical. What we hadn't anticipated, however, was the group of caravaners nearby, one of whom was a porn star and was sharing all of his wildest stories with the rest of the group. It was not what we'd signed up for but was entertaining (and memorable!) nonetheless. 

Despite such a stressful week at work, after the walk through Hafren Forest, the hot tub, and the stargazing, I felt completely relaxed with a very filled cup and life honestly couldn't have been better. To quote a wise, young man, "we're living in the good old day". 

Saturday

We awoke early and enjoyed eggs on toast with coffee for breakfast, before driving a couple of hours to the north of Snowdonia. We wanted to beat the crowds, but ended up leaving later than anticipated, and our tardiness was exacerbated by our stop en route for diesel and souvenirs. This meant that we arrived just past 10am and couldn't find parking for a while, until we eventually spotted a camping site with a couple of empty spaces. 

I'd found a circular walk around a ribbon lake that was meant to take between one and two hours and was of moderate difficulty called Llyn Ogwen walk. Although the views of the lake and mountains were pretty and we passed a waterfall, it was quite cloudy and the walk was partially on the road, which wasn't as serene as I'd hoped. It was also much quicker and easier than anticipated, only taking about an hour, and I couldn't help but feel that it wasn't worth the two-hour drive out. That said, the drive was very fun and we passed by many cute towns, so perhaps it was worth it. Next time, I'd definitely prefer a slightly longer, more breath-taking hike. Saying that, the views in Snowdonia are quite striking and reminiscent of the Yorkshire Dales, and it was nice to eat our packed lunches with such a view.

Although it was fairly muggy and cloudy in Snowdonia, which we had expected from the weather forecast, in a surprising turn of events, as we drove away from the mountains along the coast, the sun made a striking appearance and we ended up geared up for a beach day! We'd contemplated a cold plunge in the morning so had our beach stuff with us so just had to decide where to go. I'd already been to Aberystwyth a couple of times and since that was a bit further afield, we instead decided to head to Morfa Dyffryn beach, passing the impressive Harlech Castle en route.

After two detours, we eventually arrived at Morfa Dyffryn, which is partly a nudist beach, and we headed straight into the sea. There's nothing I love more than being in the sea, so I was a very happy girly, and it was nowhere near as cold as I'd expected. My boyfriend was slightly less impressed, although the fact he felt something wriggling beneath his foot probably didn't help matters. We had a wonderful time and eventually we were ready to start heading home. 

Since the sun was out, we decided to have a barbecue so picked up some steaks and s'more ingredients, then headed back to the Airbnb to whip it up. While my boyfriend prepped the veg, I finished my blog post on Brussels, and then we got the barbecue going. Truth be told, we had nowhere near enough wood and no charcoal, so we were slightly apprehensive about how successful our barbecue would be, but with Welsh cider (and beer) in hand, we gave it a go. Lo and behold, the steaks, cavolo nero, and broccolini were cooked through and absolutely delicious. 

We then made some s'mores (over the hob as the fire had long gone out), which were absolutely divine, and then headed into the hot tub with wine and melon to accompany us, which was our end to another wonderful day in Wales. 

Sunday

Since we'd managed to fit in everything we'd planned to do already, we had a very relaxed Sunday ahead. Nonetheless, I'm an early riser so I decided it would be worth getting my weekend work out of the way in order to be able to fully enjoy the rest of the bank holiday weekend. Although it wasn't fun, I did get a lot done and my boyfriend made me a delicious breakfast, which broke the work up nicely. 

Once I'd gotten to a good point, we decided to go on a scenic walk recommended by the Airbnb host, to the nearby town. Despite the cloudy forecasts, we had yet another beautiful day of sun, and the walk started along the woodlands, which was nice and tranquil, before crossing a bridge over the River Severn. Unfortunately, an older, local couple on their Sunday walk informed us that the bridge was closed and that there was no other bridge we could cross to continue along our desired route. We all went to check whether we could still access the bridge, but it was well and truly boarded up, so we had to go back on ourselves and make our way to Llanidloes along a less scenic route. That said, it was lovely speaking to the kind, Welsh couple, who recommended us a certain pub for a Sunday roast, and to get our steps in. 

Once we arrived in Llanidloes, we quickly noticed that many of the local shops were closed as it seemed the locals were also making the most of the August bank holiday, but we still managed to browse some of the shops, including a charity shop sporting a very friendly Golden Retriever and a cute bakehouse. Once the clocks struck twelve, we made our way to The Angel Inn for a roast and it's safe to say we were the first there. Nonetheless, the bartender was very welcoming and sorted us out with a nice table in the beer garden and our drinks of choice. My boyfriend was very excited to see Welsh lamb on the menu, while I was delighted by the pork. Although the roast itself was fairly average, the meat was delicious and the sides included cauliflower cheese, cabbage, and lots of gravy, which are some of my favourite components in a roast. The portions were also ideal as we were left satisfied but not overstuffed, and the service was very good. 

We then treated ourselves to some Welsh ice cream from The Little Bakeaway, which was decent, and then walked back to our Airbnb, which was uphill but much quicker (and less strenuous!) than expected. My boyfriend wanted to nap for a bit, so I finished a paint-by-numbers that I'd brought with me in the meantime, although by the end my neck felt very achy. 

We then decided to play some board games together since we'd brought them with us, namely 112B Baker Street and Tiny Towns, which we enjoyed with tortilla chips, dip and wine, although I did lose both games, which was unfortunate. We then relished our final night in Wales in the hot tub, and by the time we'd showered and made dinner it was already past 9pm, so instead of the salmon tagliatelle that we'd planned, we ended up having smoked salmon canapés and other picky bits, which did the trick. Truthfully, I was slightly sad to leave as we'd had an amazing weekend in Wales spending quality time together, but we still had a day left together, so it wasn't all bad.

Monday

We awoke early and enjoyed a final breakfast before packing our stuff and tidying up. It took much longer than expected, but we were hoping to still beat the major traffic. The weather was again very sunny, which was delightful, and the drive was equally as gorgeous on the way back as it had been on the way over. 

Some of my boyfriend's family live in Thame, and since it was on the way and I'd never been before, we decided to have lunch with his dad and sister at Candelo Lounge, a sister restaurant to Costero Lounge in Devon, where we'd been one week earlier by complete coincidence! The drive to Thame took about three-and-a-half hours, which was decent, and we arrived just past 12pm. The meal was very enjoyable, and the stop was win-win, as it meant that we could spend some time with my boyfriend's family, whilst also breaking up the drive quite nicely. 

After dropping my boyfriend's sister at her house, we continued our drive to London and managed to avoid the vast majority of the inbound traffic, which was dreamy. As we reached Clapham, it was 30°C so we parked up and got some gelato from Nardulli, which we ate in the common, and then we spent the rest of the evening watching the Night Manager, drinking cocktails, and making food together (including a spanakopita, which was my first time making it!). 

I love Wales and always have a great time there; the landscapes are gorgeous, the people are very friendly, and the roads are a lot of fun to drive along. This weekend was definitely a highlight of my year and I look forward to many more similar ones in the future.