June 17, 2026

 June 17, 2026

June 17, 2026 – Caernarfon, Snowdonia, and Conwy, Wales

On the coach at 9:15 this morning. Susie and I continue to be teased by our fellow travelers about getting “breakfast in bed.” To be clear, it is really just coffee and a banana brought back to the room! Apparently, all the other wives go down to breakfast, while Steve and Jeff have become the regular morning couple in the dining room.

               This is a typical Welsh breakfast! 

One thing we’ve noticed is that Wales feels much less opulent than Scotland. The homes here are not built of stacked stone and slate. Instead, many are cement with wood trim, giving the towns a different character.

I need to make a correction to yesterday’s blog. The castle we see from our room is Conwy Castle. Caernarfon Castle is about an hour away.

The waterfront here has not been commercialized with rows of McMansions overtaking the shoreline. The scenery remains natural and beautiful, although we’re told the water stays very cold year-round.

Caernarfon Castle sits majestically in the middle of a busy town. It is quite remarkable. While I don’t fully understand all of the political history, our guide explained that the castle was built by the English during their rule over Wales. During Welsh uprisings, much of the castle was stripped of its building materials, which were used to construct homes and other buildings throughout the area. As a result, only the stone shell remains. Gone are the banquet halls, bedrooms, and common rooms that once filled the interior. Our local tour guide, Sue was very passionate about Welsh history and certainly made her opinions known!

Standing in the middle of the empty courtyard, it was easy to imagine what life might have been like centuries ago. We explored the remaining towers and climbed as high as we liked to enjoy the spectacular views.

Afterward, we had a quick lunch overlooking the castle and spent some time wandering through town before returning to the coach.

Our next destination was Snowdonia. The drive was absolutely beautiful. Because of the sunny weather, we were able to take the longer scenic route, passing by Electric Mountain. We were told that heavy cloud cover often obscures the views, but today the skies were crystal clear. The photographs simply do not do the landscape justice.

This is a fake picture. I learned how to add a sticker to a picture. Steve and I were not at the shore of the pond that sits in front of Electric Mountain!

We even stopped along the way to toast the beautiful countryside.

Our final stop was Conwy Castle, the very castle we can see from our hotel room. The town has a charming waterfront marina and lovely shopping streets, including several stores we had also seen in the Lake District. We also saw the smallest house in the UK. 

Back at the hotel, we enjoyed some time to relax before cocktails and dinner at Ebb & Flow. England is playing in the World Cup tonight, adding a little extra excitement to the evening.

Good night, Conwy, Wales