Before I moved to the area, I had heard of the Ffestiniog Railway from my parents who had taken a ride on it during a holiday up here but had never been on it myself. I wish I had, or had at least taken my children as they were growing up. Whilst we lived close to the North Wales border in Flintshire, its incredible that we didn’t actually experience it. Hopefully I can put that right with the grown up kids and my grandchildren!
Anyway, with Glan Gors being just down the road from the main railway station, it seems silly not to write about this wonderful experience to encourage visitors to the area and hopefully if you come to stay with us, you will have a nice look around the town, try some of the local pubs and restaurant and take a trip on the railway.
The obvious thing to do first of all is to direct you to their main website as this can tell a much better story than I can but if you want a quick soundbite, a few of the main points are below:
- The Ffestiniog Railway is the world’s oldest narrow gauge railway with almost 200 years of history, taking you on a 13½-mile journey from the harbour in Porthmadog to the slate-quarrying town of Blaenau Ffestiniog.
- The historic trains climb over 700 feet from sea level into the mountains through tranquil pastures and magnificent forests, past lakes and waterfalls, round tight bends (even a complete spiral) clinging to the side of the mountain or tunnelling through it.
- Passengers ride in some of the most comfortable carriages on any heritage railway in the UK, including first class Pullman luxury and freshly-cooked food delivered to your seat.
Now if that’s not to like, I’m not sure what is.
The route map below has been copied from the website above to give you a quick overview of the route and hopefully as the restrictions are lifted we will be able to welcome guests for the night as a stop over if you are looking to enjoy this little bit of North Wales luxury.
