Beaches in Llandudno, Clwyd
The beach guide has 5 beaches listed in and around the town of Llandudno.
About Llandudno
Llandudno is a coastal town in the Conwy County Borough of Wales, known as the "Queen of the Welsh Resorts" and is now the largest seaside resort in Wales. It is located on the flat land of the Creuddyn Peninsula between two headlines, the Great Orme and the Little Orme, with the esturary of the River Conwy on one side and the Irish Sea on the other. It is with these two headlands and the North Shore and West Shore that makes up the bay around Llandudno.
The beach is a wide sweep of sand, shingle and rock, and stretches for two miles between these two headlands. On the North Shore sits the award winning Llandudno Pier which was built in 1878 and is grade II listed and the longest in Wales at 700 metres. From the end of the pier you are able to see the mountains of Snowdonia soaring above the town on a clear day. On the pier you will find amusement arcades, cafe, bar, fairgrounds and various shops, and during the summer months the traditional Punch and Judy show has been hosted at the entrance to the pier since 1860.
On the West Shore is a much quieter beach that sits on the estuary of the River Conwy and is known for its connections to Alice Liddel (of Alice in Wonderland) who spent childhood holidays between 1862 and 1871 here.
The town was built specifically as a Victorian holiday resort during the 1800s and much of Llandudno was developed when the railway line opened in 1858 bringing wealthy visitors to the area. The promenade, known as The Parade, was built during this time and is the main focus of the town; it is wide and curving and stretches the length of the North Shore separated from the road by a strip of garden. The Venue Cymru, the North Wales Theatre, sits in the centre of the promenade and was built in 1994 and extended in 2006. It is used to host various concerts, opera, ballet, circus, ice shows and music theatre. On one end of the promenade is a large padding pool before it reaches the lower slopes of the Little Orme.
Another Victorian feature is Marine Drive; a four mile carriage drive that spans the perimeter of the Great Orme giving access to the more remote parts of the headland and offers panoramic views. In the town is the Great Orme Tramway which runs through the streets; it was built in 1902 and is one of only three of its kind still in existence in the world.
A popular attraction is the Happy Valley, a sheltered and dry valley that was formally a quarry, and is was developed to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887. It has landscapes gardens, putting green, open air theatre, and a toboggan run and artificial ski slope.