As the Brecon Beacons turns golden this Autumn, it's time to reach for your wellies grab your camera and explore our wonderful National Park at one of the most beautiful times of the year!
Have a go at one of our 16 things to do in the Brecon Beacons and share your Autumnal snaps with us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook using #VisitBreconBeacons. Happy exploring!
Little can match the enjoyment of striding along our open ridges, strolling along our peaceful towpaths or exploring our beautiful, sun-dappled woods this Autumn. The Brecon Beacons National Park is full of wonderful places, guaranteed to give you a sense of exhilaration and freedom. Click here for all our wonderful walking routes.
The sound of water rushing, gurgling and dripping over stone fills the ears. This is a place of movement, colour and sound, our Celtic rainforest. Nestled into the southern slopes of the Fforest Fawr massif, west of Merthyr Tydfil, Waterfall Country is one of the most beautiful and popular parts of the Brecon Beacons National Park and the Fforest Fawr Geopark, with steep, tree-lined gorges and an abundance of tumbling water. The most famous waterfall is Sgwd-y-Eira, the Snow Waterfall, on the River Hepste, where a natural path leads right behind the curtain of water. Click here for more.
There are six recommended moderate, traffic-free cycle touring routes in the Brecon Beacons National Park. They're perfect for a half day or full day cycle ride and a great way for you and your family or friends to get out into our beautiful countryside. Check out the routes here
How better to enjoy the autumn colours and the changing of the seasons than to head to the sky and have a go at something new. Talgarth airfield is home to a small and very active gliding club, 970 feet above sea level in the stunning scenery of the Black Mountains. With soarable conditions on most days, our average flight times are amongst the longest in the UK. Find out more here
Give your legs a break from walking, hiking and cycling and check out the spectacular views from the water. The Brecon Beacons National Park offers an array range of options for paddlesports, from the tranquillity of canals, reservoirs, lakes and rivers to extreme kayaking over jaw-dropping waterfalls. Find out more here
Credit: Castle Hotel, Llandovery
Our National Park is ringed with characterful market towns while, further inside our Park, the River Usk, the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal and the shores of Llangorse Lake are dotted with pleasant country villages and sleepy hamlets. Together, our towns and villages reflect our history and heritage as a mining, quarrying and farming region and our role as custodians of a beautiful region of hills, valleys, lakes and waterways. Some are notable historic centres with classic Welsh architecture, interesting museums and ancient churches. Find out more here.
The Brecon Beacons is home to Wales only Whisky producer, Penderyn Distillery. 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. Enjoy a distillery tour and take a journey through the history of single malt whisky-making in Wales, and explore the distilling process at first hand.Take a bottle away with you from the gift shop!
Situated at the end of the picturesque Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal in the pretty market town of Brecon on the edge of Brecon Beacons National Park, Theatr Brycheiniog offers a popular and acclaimed programme of performing arts and entertainment throughout the year.
With ten attractions all covered on the one entry ticket – there is plenty to see and do for all ages at Dan Yr Ogof Showcaves. There are 3 different caves Dan-yr-Ogof, Cathedral Cave and Bone Cave each offering a unique underground experience. They also have one of the world’s largest collections of life-sized dinosaur models, a shire horse centre, Iron Age village, museum, and stone circles.
There's nowhere better to admire the changing seasons than in our woodlands. They stimulate the senses, from the beautiful songs of the birds and the smell of wildflowers, to the crunch of leaves underfoot. Click here for woodlands to visit.
Have a day out exploring the many bookshops in the Brecon Brecons, with bookshops being the local speciality in Hay-on-Wye! Visit Book-ish in Crickhowell, the quirky Hours Cafe and Bookshop in Brecon or Richard Booths Boookshop in Hay-its Europe's largest secondhand bookshop! More here.
Pubs are very much a key part of community life to most villages and towns in the Brecon Beacons National Park. Visitors can quite easily stumble across a pub that offers a unique experience along with a fine selection of local food and drink, that makes the Autumn just that little bit better! Click here for some of our best pubs and inns.
It's the little treats, like a fresh pot of tea with sandwiches, Welshcakes or scones, jam and cream, that make holidays in Wales really special. Here in the National Park, we have lots of lovely cafés, tea shops and tea rooms. As a bonus, some of them double as galleries and gift shops. Check out our Cafe Guide here
As our National Park is situated close to the border between Wales and England, many a territorial struggle has taken place on our doorstep. Magnificent ruins such as those at Brecon, Crickhowell, Llandovery and Tretower bear witness to a turbulent past, while grand mansions such as Cyfarthfa Castle, Newton House at Dinefwr and Tretower Court remind us that castles were once mighty symbols of power and wealth. Visit our most romantic Carreg Cennen-originally a medieval hill fort- it was a favourite of painter JMW Turner. More information about all the Castles in the Brecon Beacons can be found here.
Set in the beautiful Carmarthenshire countryside, just on the outskirts of the Brecon Beacons, the National Botanic Gardens of Wales are a fascinating blend of the modern and historic. Here you’ll find an inspiring range of themed gardens, the world’s largest single-span glasshouse, our new tropical Butterfly House, play areas and a national nature reserve, all set in a Regency landscape which provides the stage for a packed programme of events and courses throughout the year! Click here to find out what events they have on this Autumn.
Visit one of Wales’ most haunted pubs, The Skirrid Mountain Inn, standing for over 900 years & located in the beautiful Brecon Beacons, it’s steeped in legends of revolutions, ghosts & built on a mountain that once “shivered” – you will have to go a very long way to find an Inn with such history or character! Or dare yourself this Halloween with loads of events to scare you silly! Find them here.
