It is what seems like an age ago where the skies were blue, the sun was out and summer was in full bloom. No, this is not going to be a post of me complaining that it is no longer summer, but rather one that is long overdue.
Back in August, I took a road trip to North Wales with my boyfriend. We crammed a lot in to the small amount of time we were there, even managing to go tobogganing. If you have read either of these posts, you may remember my enthusiasm over a glorious little village called Beddgelert, which also happens to be one of the prettiest places in the UK, at least according to me.
A tiny but thriving village in the heart of Snowdonia, Beddgelert has an apparent population of under 500 people. Stone fronted houses and beer gardens line the banks of the Afon Colwyn, the excited sound of chattering ramblers fills the air punctuated only by the sounds of buzzing bees or the clank of a tardy tractor weaving its way along the Postman Pat style roads.
A short walk south of the village leads to its most famous landmark; Gelert’s Grave. Now as you may expect this stone is the resting place of ‘Gelert’ but what is more surprising is that this stone actually marks the resting place of a dog. Yes, according to legend, Gelert was the hound of the medieval Welsh Prince Llewelyn the Great.
Basically, back in the 13th century, the prince had a palace in Beddgelert and one day he went out without his faithful pooch. When the prince got back home his dog came to greet him all covered in blood. Horrified, the prince saw that his son’s crib was empty and blood was covering the sheets. The angry prince stuck his sword into the hound’s side thinking that the pup had killed his heir. As legend has it, the dogs dying yelp was answered by the child’s cry. The distressed daddy was said to be so remorseful that he never smiled again and buried the dog in the field that still bares the stone. Chilling.
I didn’t actually learn about this until it was too late to visit, but if you are passing through, I am certain it would make for a lovely picture. The town is often said to be named after the dog, which did make me wonder if before this time was the place simply called Bedd?
After all of this and a quick look in the little independent stores in the village, we stopped for a snack; the biggest plate of cheesy chips you ever did see and a drink of something cold. I also tried to get a piece of cake from one of the bakers but they, rather strangely, did not offer any confectionery to take away, simply telling me when I asked for it to go that the cake would become awfully smushed if they put it in a bag. “Do you have no boxes?” I gabbed back, but when I was informed they did not do this, I left the bakery without anything feeling rather sad.
They say everything happens for a reason though and my glumness did not last long. Crossing the road on the way back to the car was a super fine looking ice cream shop with a plethora of flavours. Eventually settling for the caramel and honeycomb option on a crispy cone I felt more content with this on the warm summer day than I think I would have with the cake.
As tradition dictates, I did stop to pick up a magnet in the small village which I ensured was stereotypically Welsh. Beddgelert is one of what I am sure are several hundred, charming, little villages across Northern Wales and with this one in my mind, I would love to explore more of them.
Have you ever been to Northern Wales, or even Beddgelert? What are your favourite places to see? Let me know in the comments below.
Ellies London 
That was such a lovely trip. I’m definitely down for it again next summer 😃😍
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It was so nice and so unplanned and unexpected which makes these things even better. I hope that next year we have the capability and capacity to he able to travel 🤭😂
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I’ve never heard of that place but it looks beautiful! Our favourite town in North Wales is Talacre, where our dog used to love visiting the beach and we would have chips and ice-cream, and visit the amusement arcade. 🙂
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I had never heard of the place either but as soon as I arrived I was like *buys a magnet* ♥ It was so beautiful. Talacre sounds so lovely as well – i think i will give it a google. I love a good walk along a beach with some chips 😀
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Sounds a lot like the picture perfect villages in Devon and Cornwall too….have to say bad customer service not to offer cake to go though…..🙄🙄🙄🙄
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I haven’t been to Devon and Cornwall yet – maybe that will be one for next summer ♥ It was so bad – I mean I was happy enough to go and get the ice cream because it turned out so lovely ♥
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We stopped here on the way back from Anglesey and I absolutely fell in love!
We did walk round to the grave site in the pouring rain dodging sheep poo! But it was worth it.
I found the locals to be a little lacking shall we say but I second that it is simply the most beautiful place!
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Oh, the grave site does not sound too good in the rain, but you have to expect it when in Wales I guess! It is such a beautiful little place and so busy for being so tiny. I completely agree with you in regards to the locals, maybe they are mad at all of the people that pass through visiting, but on the other hand there is a lot business brought to them through the tourists ♥
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Exactly my thoughts x
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It is such a popular little village – it literally looks like the places printed on jigsaws! I definitely want to return to more of Wales in the future 😀 I think it might be really lovely in the snow as well 🤔
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Looks really lovely & on the bucket list it goes -Jenni at I on Image
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🤭 Oh wow, that’s amazing that you have added it to your list! It’s definitely somewhere to see – so beautiful! Thank you for reading my post ♥️
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You are welcome! My husband is British and we are always looking for nice places to show to our dual-citizen boys 🙂
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That’s so amazing 😍 it’s so important to show kids this stuff if possible 🙂 There’s so many lovely little places like this all throughout the UK! I myself am Keen to see more x
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It seems a lovely town, I’ve never heard of it and the fact it was named after an animal.
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It’s such a little place – it’s so cute! It’s literally the most picturesque place! Thank you so much for reading :)) x
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You are going to all the places I want to see! I love that you share your experiences and photos so that people like me can get a glimpse they can hold onto until the time warrants a physical experience.
The 13th century story adds flavor to the place! 🙂
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♥️ You are seriously very kind to me – that is a lovely thing to say! Thank you so much for reading my post. I’m so glad you found it useful – I try really hard to show the true colours of somewhere 🙂 x
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How picturesque does this village look! There’s some truly beautiful hidden gems in the UK. I’d love to pay a visit to somewhere like this
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Doesn’t it just look amazing?! It’s so pretty and great to experience since so many visitors to the UK stay in London x
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Just a bit! I know, there’s so many hidden gems that no one knows about! Love the peak and Lake District to x
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Beddgelert looks so stunning! I love exploring the countryside and stopping off in small towns, would love to visit Wales as it is a beautiful part of the UK and I haven’t been there since I was little (if my memory is accurate, otherwise I’ve actually never been there before haha). Sounds like you had a lovely time! It’s so interesting hearing about the origins of the name as well. x
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It’s such a beautiful little place – truly charming and was super bustling. I’d never been to Wales before so I was impressed. I’d love to go back, for sure! Thank you so much for reading ♥️
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Despite living in South Wales I’ve never actually been up North, this looks so beautiful! I love little traditional Welsh villages, I think we learned about the story of Gelert in school too. That magnet is very stereotypically Welsh haha, they always have those kinds of shops in touristy places! x
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I try to get a “typical” magnet from wherever I visit, for my collection 😂🙈 It’s such a lovely story about the town for sure! I’d love to see more of Wales – it seems so pretty. I’m working hard on seeing more of the whole of the UK and I’ve had a couple of trips to places this year so not too bad! I’d definitely recommend the icecream in Beddgelert! ♥️
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So beautiful! I really wish I’d explored Wales (as I used to live fairly close at one point) before I moved abroad! Thanks so much for sharing!
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It seems so lovely – so much of it is very pretty. I got very lucky indeed with the weather – it could have been a different story if it had been raining! Thank you for reading my post ♥️
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Oooh the peak district and lake district are still sitting on my list for sure! I think I’d need to go in summer though 😬 x
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Cheesy chips look scrumptious. This for sure, must have been a fun trip! Will plan this summer.
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I love a good plate (or in this case, huge bowl) of cheesy chips! They are surprisingly hard to find in London! x
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