We're thrilled that four businesses from the Brecon Beacons have scooped the Attraction Accolades for 2016 – for attractions that achieve excellence for their facilities and customer service and one business who won the Told Story Accolade - for attractions that achieve excellence in conveying their story. Congratulations to you all!
Spectacularly set in the beautiful Tywi valley of Carmarthenshire, Aberglasney House features one of the finest gardens in Wales. Aberglasney Gardens have been an inspiration to poets since 1477. The story of Aberglasney spans many centuries, but, the house's origins are still shrouded in obscurity.
National Nature Reserve, historic house and 18th-century landscape park, enclosing a medieval deer park
A magical land of power and influence for more than 2,000 years, Dinefwr is an iconic place in the history of Wales. Two forts are evidence of a dominant Roman presence. The powerful Lord Rhys held court at Dinefwr and influenced decisions in Wales.
The visionaries, George and Cecil Rice designed the superb 18th-century landscape that you see today.
The 'hands-on' Newton House gives visitors an atmospheric circa 1912 experience. Exhibitions on the first floor tell Dinefwr's story and inspire visitors to explore the castle and park.
Penderyn Distillery is the only commercial whisky distillery in Wales and one of the smallest distilleries in the world. One of the few remaining independent distilleries, Penderyn takes its name from the old Welsh village in which it is located and nestles in the foothills of the ancient Brecon Beacons mountain range. The Brecon Beacons National Park is an area of outstanding natural beauty famed for its breath-taking scenery, open moorland, clear rivers and tumultuous waterfalls. We produce small quantities of the finest malted barley spirit, which, when matured, is recognised worldwide as one of the smoothest malt whiskies.
Members of the public can enjoy a distillery tour, take a journey through the history of single malt whisky making in Wales, and explore the distilling process at first hand
The National Botanic Gardens of Wales covers 568 acres of Carmarthenshire countryside and includes a nature reserve as well as a formal garden, with Lord Foster’s Great Glasshouse as its centrepiece. It hosts a wide range of events throughout the year.
Discover Wales's rich mining heritage in this amazing award-winning interactive museum complete with underground tour. Experience the sights, sounds, smells and atmosphere of an authentic coal mine.
In its heyday Big Pit employed 1,300 workers. Now you can follow in their footsteps through award-winning interactive exhibits, and of course, our world-famous underground tour. Led by a real mine, it will give you a living, breathing taste of what life was like for those who made their living at the coal face.
Deputy Minister for Culture Sport and Tourism, Ken Skates announced the winners of Visit Wales’ new attraction accolades earlier this week, praising those who have been honoured for making an exceptional effort to create an enjoyable and memorable experience for their visitors.
The Deputy Minister, said: “Wales has such a wealth and range of attractions and things to do, our visitors are spoilt for choice. This new scheme will both reward those attractions which go the extra mile and also give visitors more information on what makes some of our attractions extra special and will also highlight some less well known gems. I’d like to congratulate all the 2016 winners and we hope that these accolades will drive further improvements in visitor experience throughout Wales.”
The winners were selected through a scoring system based on a biennial assessment by Visit Wales.
There are four different categories, which are: Gold – for attractions that achieve excellence for their facilities and customer service; Best Told Story – for attractions that achieve excellence in conveying their ‘story’; Quality Café – for attractions that achieve excellence for their food; and Hidden Gem – quality attractions/places of interest with visitor numbers under 20,000 visitors per year
