Crickhowell and The Brecon Beacons

Merryfields Barn is set in grounds of two acres in a small hamlet of about 30 houses in an area called Ffawyddog, meaning ‘beech grove’. It is a haven for birdwatchers, with buzzards, red kites, peregrine falcons and sparrow hawks regularly flying over the property and our resident family of Tawny Owls.

A short walk takes you to the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal, with its newly-refurbished footpaths, narrow boats, kingfishers and bluebells. Further down the road is a restaurant with bar and 9-hole golf course in the pretty village of Llangattock, voted the ‘UK’s greenest village’, with its narrow alleyways, 13^th century church and excellent village pub.

Less than a mile away, across The River Usk bridge, is the charming Georgian market town of Crickhowell, renowned for its high-quality independent shops, art galleries, pubs, restaurants and cafés. The town is a jewel in the crown of the Brecon Beacons National Park with its own Tourist Information Centre and is surrounded by The Black Mountains and Llangattock Escarpment.

Things to do and see near Crickhowell:

For active guests

• a boating lake, climbing centre and outside zip wire course at Llangorse
• many excellent mountain bike routes including at BikePark Wales, the UK’s first full scale mountain bike park, Cwmcarn Trails and many numerous traffic-free back lanes
• several horse riding and pony trekking centres, catering for all abilities
• hang gliding, paragliding and gliding
• tennis courts at Crickhowell
• golf courses at nearby Llangattock, Abergavenny and Brecon
• canoeing and fishing on the canal and the Usk and Wye rivers
• numerous walking routes (the National Park has over 1,000 miles of public footpaths)
• the beautiful Gower peninsula with fabulous beaches and bays
• the Black Mountains and Breacon Beacons including Pen-y-fan, highest mountain in South Wales
• some of the best caving in the UK at Llangattock Escarpment.

For those who want a more leisurely holiday

• the Brecon Mountain Railway at Pontsticill
• several impressive castles at Raglan, Skenfrith, Grosmont and Chepstow and wonderful abbeys at Llanthony, Abbey Dore and Tintern
• a wealth of industrial heritage in the Welsh valleys including the Ironworks and Big Pit National Coal Museum (voted UK Museum of the Year in 2005) at the Blaenavon UNESCO World Heritage Site
• attractive market towns with cafés and shops to explore, including Usk, Brecon (home to a cathedral and the famous jazz festival), Abergavenny, Hereford, Monmouth and Hay-on-Wye, famous for its Literary Festival and the world’s second-hand bookshop capital
• Cardiff, capital city of Wales
• RSPB Red Kite feeding centre at Rhayader.