July kicks off with Hay Summer Food Festival on the 2nd. This one-day gourmet 
gathering is well worth a visit. It’s limited to a relatively small number of local food, cider and whisky producers to ensure the quality is the best, and there’s entertainment from local brass bands, male voice choirs and folk musicians. As it's an outdoor event, the atmosphere is particularly festive in good weather.
Also in Hay On Wye this month is Hay Does Vintage, Hay Craft Festival, and Hay
From the 9th until the 17th of July is Llandeilo Fawr Festival of Music. Beautiful Music Performed By Great Artists In An Idyllic Hill-Top Setting. Arrangements for 2016 are well underway, with the welcome return of some of the wonderful artists who have performed in previous years.
Go along to one of this months many shows. Cwmdu show is on the 9th July, with the Royal Welsh Agricultural Show on the 18th, with Trapp Show ending the month on the 23rd of July. Read our blog about this Summer of Country shows here.
Head to one of our many pubs, there are plenty to choose from! Click here to view some of the wide range of pubs in the Brecon Beacons, where you can head to their gardens for a relaxed drink.
Events at the National Park Visitor Centre this month include a Finding your way-OS Basic Skills Course, on the 23rd of July, where you will have the chance to take a walk in the Brecon Beacons National Park in the company of one of our qualified instructors, info here. Or why not go along to one of there art events? They include a Papercraft workshop held on the 25th of July, a Take pART pottery course on the 26th and a Take pART felt picture workshop on the 27th. Make your own unique noticeboard using reclaimed and recycled material, be inspired by the natural environment around you and create your own pottery masterpiece and make and decorate your own felt.
The end of the month sees the beginning of Wales' leading festival, the National Eisteddfod. It will visit Monmouthshire and the surrounding areas from 29 July to 6 August 2016 with the 
Maes situated on Castle Meadows, a minute or two from the centre of town, so the town is a natural base for visitors. The history of the Eisteddfod in Wales can be traced back to 1176, with the modern history of the organisation dating back to 1861. The festival has been held every year, other than 1914, when the outbreak of the First World War saw it postponed for a year. More info here
