Inspiration
May Bank Holiday in Aberdovey | Late Deal
Some of our guests have been forced to cancel their stay with us this bank holiday. So Aweldyfi is now free from Friday the 4th of May for a short break or a full week if you can make it. This is one of our nicest properties, it would be a real shame if it was standing empty over the bank holiday. Use the voucher below to get a 10% discount off the prices shown. [Property details..] Voucher Code: AWEL10
Mothers Day Special
If you fancy spoiling your mum this weekend why not book the family into Llys Bennar -sleeps 8, one of our self catering cottages down by Bennar Beach here in Snowdonia. We’ll throw in a free voucher for an aromatic hand spa and manicure at the wonderful Portmeirion Mermaid Spa. £500.00 Book online Use the following voucher code when placing your booking: MotheringSunday
New Downhill Mountain Biking Trails Comeing to Snowdonia
I visited the people at Antur Stiniog today. It was the usual bad coffee and powerpoint type affair. But I’ll forgive them, as the project really is an exciting one. And they’ve got some proper money to spend, £1.5 million being one of the few bullet points I remember. As part of the ‘Snowdonia, One Big Adventure’ initiative, work is well underway to develop a world class Downhill Mountain Biking centre at Llechwedd Slate Caverns in Blaenau Ffestiniog. This is a specialist type of mountain biking where nutters, sorry, I mean ‘enthusiasts’, are ferried up to the top of a steep mountain so they can then throw them selves back down on the back of a bike. A walk along one of the easier trails highlighted the fact that this was proper hard core stuff. Not for the light harted or uninitiated. The riders are skilled and the bikes are highly specialised machines. The five ridiculously…
Easter Break Still Available
Don’t tell too many people but spring is one of the best times to visit our little part of North Wales. Daffodills, fresh pasture, spring lambs and not too many tourists to spoil it all. Some cottages are still available for the Easter Hols. Book now to avoid disappointment! (Is that two cheesy do you think?) Bwthyn-Bach – sleeps 2 Arrive: Fri 06 Apr 2012 Depart: Fri 13 Apr 2012 (7 nights) Bwthyn Bach is a lovely little studio cottage on the outskirts of Dyffryn Ardudwy. A perfect retreat for couples wanting to explore this part of rural Snowdonia.. [Read more..] £370.00 Book online Becws – sleeps 2 Arrive: Sat 07 Apr 2012 Depart: Sat 14 Apr 2012 (7 nights) Becws used to be and old bakery but don’t worry you wont be expected to wake up at the crack of dawn to bake any bread. [Read more…] £410.00 Book online Llwyncelyn – sleeps 3 Arrive:…
WiFi | Our list of self catering cottages with WiFi is growing
Our list of cottages with WiFi is growing. Tan Y Wenallt, Llys Bennar, Ysgubor, Bwthyn and Stabal can now be included in that category. So no more Angry Bird withdrawal symptoms. Let me know if you have any handy links for our guests while on holiday. You can find the full list of Internet enabled cottages here. https://dioni.co.uk/category/internet-wifi/
Farm Stay, Group Accommodation
I’ve added some more categories to the list to try and group similar cottages together. I’m hoping this will help our guests to browse through cottages that fit what their looking for. ‘Farm Stay’ includes cottages based on working farms. ‘Group Accommodation’ has been included to help people that are organising a break for a large group of people. Finally I’ve included a list of locations such as Tal Y Bont or Harlech which naturally group cottages in that area. The full list should be visable on the right hand side of this page.
Family Fun this Christmas
Here are five suggestions for family-friendly activities and events taking place in Meirionnydd during the 2011 Christmas holidays. 1. See a pantomime Pantomime is a lovely Christmas tradition that can be enjoyed by all members of the family, from tots to grandparents. The pantomime at the Dragon Theatre in Barmouth this year, on 28th and 29th December, is Sleeping Beauty. The performance comes courtesy of the Ardudwy Youth and Community Theatre, and tickets – which are available at the door, though it’s advisable to call the theatre to check performance times if the weather is especially bad – cost just £5 for adults, £4 concessions and £15 for a family ticket, which covers two adults and two children. 2. Full steam ahead It may not be quite the Polar Express – you won’t see waiters cartwheeling down the aisles, at any rate – but a trip aboard one of the Talyllyn Railway’s steam trains at Christmas…
October Half Term Holiday
Were discounting the price of the few cottages that we have left for the half term week. So if you fancy a break away with the children this October, have a look at the cottages listed below. I’ve listed the weekly prices, but let me know if you can only manage a short break via our [Enquiry Form..] and I’ll quote accordingly. Cornel-Glyd 2 bedroom cottage near the beach. £404.10 for 7 nights from 21st October 2011 https://dioni.co.uk/cornel-glyd/ Maes Y Llan 4 bedroom 5 star home in village location. £900 for 7 nights from 21st October 2011 https://dioni.co.uk/maes-y-llan/ Moelwyn 3 bedroom house with panoramic views over Cardigan Bay £693 for 7 nights from 21st October 2011 https://dioni.co.uk/moelwyn/ Nant 2 bedroom house on a working welsh hill farm (breakfast included) £610 for 7 nights from 22nd October 2011 https://dioni.co.uk/nant/ Stabal Small studio cottage down by the beach £423 for 7 nights from 21st of October 2011 https://dioni.co.uk/stabal/
Pet Friendly Cottages, Real Fire etc.
Now that we’re beginning to get a bit more choice of holiday cottages on the website I’ve tried to set up some categories to group similar cottages
Newborn Foal at Bwthyn-Bach
[iframe src=”http://player.vimeo.com/video/27494495?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0&autoplay=0″ width=”100%” height=”338″ frameborder=”0″] To the delight of our recent guests a new foal was born born in the field near Bwthyn-Bach and Bwthyn-Clyd, two of our self catering cottages here in Dyffryn Ardudwy, Snowdonia.
Horse whisperer tames Carneddau ponies in Snowdonia
This story really caught my eye. I’ve been fascinated by the wild horses of the Carneddau mountains in Snowdonia since I was a little boy. I was lucky enough to see three of the ponies whilst walking with an elderly aunt near Sychnant. We came upon them unexpectedly one cloudy morning. The encounter caught us and them by surprise. The horses stopped to look at us for half second before charging off across the fields into the mist. My auntie went on to explain how they had never been tamed and how the English king, Henry the VIII, had failed in his attempt to have the horses “exterminated”. They were truly magical and lived in the imagination of this 9 year old boy for a long time afterwards. But as ever, their future in our modern world is far from certain. So, in an effort to make the breed more commercially viable for Snowdonia farmers, efforts…
Late Availability Seaside Cottage Deals
I’ve added a couple of Late Availability Deals on the properties we have down by the beach. We’re famous for our mountains here in Snowdonia of course but in this little corner of the National Park we have some great long runs of sandy beaches for you to enjoy as well. The weather’s great here at the moment so bring some sun cream and flip flops with you. Socks optional. August 10, 2011 We’ve only got the one week remaining now: Bwthyn Goronwy (Sleeps 2 ) Late Deal: Fri 19 – Fri 26 August 2011, Was £550 £495 per week, save £55
Beware of the Alpaca
Two alpacas have been introduced at a farm in Nant Gwynant here in Snowdonia. The theory is that they help protect the new born lambs from foxes and other predators. They bond quickly with other grazing animals, have excellent eyesight and their protective instincts are well documented. Cases have been recorded in Australia of alpacas bravely standing in front of females and their young in the corner of a paddock fending off multiple animal attacks. More locally I’ve heard how a donkey will protect lambs and chickens from foxes. I guess south American alpacas are probably more suited to our rugged terrain. So why not. Arwyn Owen, the farmer responsible, certainly seems convinced. [Read more…]
Beach Bargain
We have some last minute availability in Bwthyn, which is one of our nicest cottages down by Bennar Beach. We’ve added a little discount to try and make sure it gets booked. 7 nights from Friday the 13th of May will cost £355. This price includes heating and linen and some of Sue’s famous home made cakes for when you arrive. (It’s worth booking just for the cakes.) [Read more about this property..]
New Property
We’re very proud to add a new fantastic property to our website. Capel-Maentwrog is a converted 19th Century Calvinistic church. We can actually add the byline ‘as featured on tv’ to this. A welsh version of Grand Designs showed the property but it was only aired on S4C so you might have missed it if you’re on the wrong side of Offa’s Dyke. The Chapel has been converted into a 4 bedroom luxury holiday home. Complete with marble bathrooms and polished slate floors. Considering the luxurious interior and the great location, the price, especially during off peak times, is very reasonable. Have a look at let me know what you think. [Read more about this property..]
Easter in Aberdyfi
We still have some weeks remaining in our Aberdyfi property over Easter. (Which is strange as this is usually one of our most popular houses) So we’ve discounted the prices a little bit over that period. I always tell our regular guests that Easter is one of the nicest times to visit us here in Snowdonia. Fresh pasture, spring lambs, daffodils and best of all not too many tourists to spoil it all. [Read more ..]
Spring Breaks
We’ve released some of our cottages for short breaks over the Easter period to fill up the remaining gaps. So if you fancy a quick weekend away fill in our enquiry form and I’ll email you back with with some prices of what’s still available. Add a little note to say if you have any flexibility with your dates. [Enquiry Form..]
Surprise!
Some of our guests were lucky enough to be staying in Nant when Magldi, one of our Kune Kune pigs gave birth. A bit of a surprise as we didn’t know she was pregnant. We had borrowed Hafren, a pedigree Kune Kune boar from some friends before Christmas. His breeding abilities weren’t proven however and unfortunately he didn’t seem very interested in our girls. We tried playing a Barry White CD and introduced some soft lighting to the pig sty but eventually presumed that the ‘chemistry’ just wasn’t right. 3 months, 3 weeks and 3 days later (the length of a pigs pregnancy) and Hafrens credentials are irrefutable. And now that we’re paying a bit more attention our other sow also seems to be “in pig”. I’ll keep you posted. [nggallery id=31] Well our other pig, Pauline, did have piglets. This time luckily we were more prepared. A holding pen complete with warming lamp and clean bedding was all ready. They all…
Solar Panels
Lisa and Mark, the owners of Pant Golau have just finished installing solar panels on the roof of their pretty little cottage near Llanbedr. Mark was explaining that the system was capable of producing 2.2kw per hour on a sunny day. And that the government would now pay them just over 40p for each kw they produced. This is in addition to getting free electricity of course. With an installation cost of £9000 from Platinum Plumbing, Mark and Lisa hope the system will have paid for itself in 8 years. So as you sit in the sun on the raised patio, gin and tonic in hand and enjoying the views, you can be further comforted by the knowledge that you’re staying in a cottage which is just that little bit greener than most.
Glyder Fawr promoted to Super Mountain
G and J Surveys have been busy again. You might remember that they were checking to see if Tryfan qualified as one of the 14 peaks in Wales over 3000 feet. Well they must have bought a new tape measure as this time they’ve gone metric. Glyder Fawr, previously recorded as being 999m high has been measured at 1000.8m. The Guardian headline reads “Wales celebrates promotion of peak to ‘super-mountain’” and The Telegraph writes how this will lead to an increase of people climbing the mountain and that “..the famous Welsh 1000m Peaks Race will have to consider becoming a longer race with five peaks instead of four..”. It’s a nice news story, but it would be wrong to think that the mountain has changed, improved even. It’s just our perception that’s altered. I guess that’s what I like about mountains. They’re fixed, permanent, a reassuring constant in an ever-changing world. The five peaks over 1000m…
