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HOME AT FIRST's
Wales
TRAVEL TO DREAM
DESTINATIONS WITH ALL THE COMFORTS OF HOME |
—WALES—
BRITAIN'S BEST-KEPT SECRET INVITES
DISCOVERY
CAERNARFON CASTLE, NORTHWESTERN WALES, SITE OF THE
INVESTITURE OF THE PRINCE OF WALES |
Like Castles? Find more
medieval castles per square
mile in Wales than anywhere in the British Isles.
Like walking? Like
mountains? Like golf? Like trains?
Wales is a great destination for you.
Like horses, food,
fishing, antiques, history, mystery?
Yep — Wales should top your bucket list.
HOME AT FIRST HELPS YOU DISCOVER THE
WALES OF YOUR
DREAMS. |
INTRODUCTION: WHY WE GO TO WALES—
Much
more than great scenery,
hearty food, and legendary castles. |
Probably the most overlooked British travel |
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destination,
Wales offers some of the best food in the U.K. as well as its own
distinct music, art, history, and language. Rarely noted is the superb
variety of unspoiled scenery of Wales, including three distinct regions
worthy of national park status, the highest mountains south of Scotland,
and cozy, undiscovered villages.
Wales is
closest to England geographically. Perhaps because of this proximity the
Welsh are the most nationalistic and culturally separatist of all the
British. The Welsh identity is tied to its history as a Celtic
population under siege by their neighbors in England. These original
Britons were forced into hiding by invading waves of Angles, Saxons,
Vikings, and Normans. They retreated into the rugged, mystical mountains
and vales that dominate the Welsh landscape.
Today the Welsh
variety of Gaelic is alive and growing while most other Gaelic languages
are disappearing. Welsh cuisine,
custom,
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AUTUMN IN SNOWDONIA:
Llanrwst Bridge over the River Conwy
Photo ©
Home At First |
religion, music, and mentality all can be said to
be more than just dialectical versions of their English, Scottish and Irish relatives, and each is
maintained with the prideful
caring due national treasures.
(For more on this theme, see:
ST.
DAVID.) |
In our customers' own words—
"We received a number of
'strange but interested' looks and comments from people when we
mentioned Wales as our vacation destination. We have certainly
been touting its superior vacation qualities since our return.
There is so much to do and see —
we still have a list
— but, by the same token, it
was very relaxing. Most days we were out of our lodgings at a
leisurely 10AM and back around 6PM. It was a pleasant pace."
— K. & D. Attenborough, Massachusetts
"Wales was beautiful with masses of
daffodils everywhere. The roads were narrow and twisty but
surfaces were good. Very different from when I was last there
just after the war when it was looking very run down and uncared
for."
— M. Still,
Virginia
"One lady was giving us directions and we had to
go through a little toll bridge. She offered to give us 50 pence
for the toll if we didn't have it. What friendly people!"
— B.
Crandall, Ohio |
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HOME AT FIRST
offers travel programs to two regions of Wales: (CLICK
ON EACH DESTINATION TITLE TO GET FULL TRAVEL PROGRAM DETAILS & PRICES) |
SNOWDONIA
— NORTHWESTERN WALES —
Home At First's northwestern
Wales cottages are in or near Snowdonia National Park, where Britain's
highest mountains south of Scotland rise sharply from the sea.
Snowdonia's folded landscape offers rugged hiking, expansive beaches,
great little steam trains, challenging seaside golf courses, impregnable
medieval castles (like
Caernarfon,
pictured here), and friendly villages with unpronounceable names.
GO TO:
SNOWDONIA
(NORTHWESTERN WALES)
TRAVEL PROGRAM
PAGE
NOTE: For those not wishing to drive
themselves in NW Wales, we offer drivers and driver/guides available for
hire at most times of year.
DRIVER/GUIDES AVAILABLE IN WALES |
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Several great castles —
including all
four of
the U.N. listed
World Heritage
Site — are
within
easy day-trip reach
of Home At
First's
cottages
in
Snowdonia,
Northwestern Wales.
Photo ©
Home At First |
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MID-WALES
— NEAR THE ENGLISH BORDER —
Home
At First's Mid-Wales cottages are in the midst
of superb scenery between the mountains of Brecon Beacons National Park
and the English border. Nearby is scenic wilderness inviting discovery
on foot, on horseback, or by car. Search for King Arthur and Merlin
here. Cross the border into Shakespeare country and the Cotswolds
— easy days away. Another secret
— the Welsh may be the friendliest
people in Britain.
GO TO: MID-WALES
TRAVEL PROGRAM PAGE
NOTE: For those not wishing to drive
themselves in Mid-Wales, we offer drivers and driver/guides available
for hire at most times of year.
DRIVER/GUIDES AVAILABLE IN WALES |
Hay-on-Wye is home to more
than two
dozen second-hand
book shops. Like all
our Mid-
Wales villages, Hay-on-Wye is
just minutes from the rugged
mountain
and white water
streams of Wales as
well as
much of Western England.
Photo ©
Home At First |
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