Welcome to Wales. This proud Celtic nation has always had a separate identity from the rest of the UK, and nowhere is this more evident by the widespread use of the Welsh language. Similar to the lesser spoken Cornish language, all Britons would have once spoken a similar dialect, certainly up to and including the first few decades of Anglo-Saxon rule at which point it was gradually replaced by Old English. Today, over half a million people still speak the Welsh language.
Visitors to Wales should definitely check out our full list of castles in Wales; at last count there were over 100! There are also some fabulous Roman sites to visit including Isca Augusta in Caeleon and Sarn Helen Roman road in the Brecon Beacons, one of the best preserved Roman roads in the whole country.
Finally, any trip to Wales wouldn’t be complete without visiting the smallest city in the UK, St David’s, also known for being one of the most important sites in medieval Christendom.
Explore the Welsh Regions
In terms of natural scenery, the south of Wales is full of sandy beaches and rolling hills, whilst mid Wales is renowned for being one of the most sparsely populated regions in the UK full of mountains, forests, moorlands and coastline… as well as the university town of Aberystwyth. North Wales is home to the Snowdonia National Park as well as the highest mountain in Wales and England; Snowdon.
Also in the north of the country is the island of Anglesey. Once the mysterious home of the Druids and subsequently a major military base for the Romans, this small island was also run by a group of Irish pirates until 470AD! It was subsequently the capital of the Kingdom of Gwynedd until the English invasion of Wales in the 13th century.
