Snowdonia is best known for its mountains, but just beyond the peaks lie some of the finest gardens to visit in North Wales. Grand estates, wild valleys and colourful village squares sit within easy striking distance of Betws-y-Coed, and each one tells a different story about how people have shaped this landscape over the centuries. Whether you fancy a gentle stroll among rhododendrons or an afternoon exploring an Italianate fantasy village, these four gardens make for a memorable day out from Bryn Bella.
Bodnant Garden: Colour Through the Seasons
Bodnant Garden, now cared for by the National Trust, spreads across eighty acres above the Conwy Valley, only a short drive from Betws-y-Coed. The upper terraces sit around Bodnant Hall, while the wilder Dell below follows the course of the River Hiraethlyn through towering conifers. Consequently, visitors get two very different gardens in one visit: formal and structured above, lush and untamed below.
Spring brings camellias, magnolias and drifts of daffodils, and by April the rhododendron collection is in full colour. The laburnum arch, roughly fifty-five metres of golden blooms, usually peaks in late May and early June and remains one of the most photographed sights in Welsh horticulture. Later in summer, hydrangeas line the riverbanks in the Dell, offering shade and cool air on warmer days. A tea room and family-friendly facilities make it easy to turn the visit into a full afternoon. For more information click here
Portmeirion: A Village Built as a Garden
Portmeirion is unlike anywhere else in Wales. Sir Clough Williams-Ellis designed and built this Italianate village between 1925 and 1975, and its pastel buildings, campanile and formal terraces still feel like a stage set. The grounds slope down to the Dwyryd estuary, so mountains, water and architecture all appear in the same view.
Beyond the famous buildings, Portmeirion offers restaurants, cafes and a spa, plus self-catering cottages and a hotel for those who want to stay longer. Because the whole site was designed as a single composition, even a short walk through the gardens reveals fresh perspectives at every turn. It also works well for weddings and celebrations, thanks to its dramatic backdrop of estuary and hills.
Plas Newydd: Sunset Walks on the Menai Strait
On the shores of the Menai Strait, Plas Newydd combines an elegant eighteenth-century house with gardens that reach their best in spring. James Wyatt redesigned the house, and its 1930s interior still houses Rex Whistler’s largest surviving painting. Meanwhile, the grounds hold an Australasian arboretum underplanted with shrubs and wildflowers, so there is always something in flower.
A summer terrace, softened by masses of hydrangeas, leads down to a woodland walk and a marine path along the Strait itself. Consequently, many visitors save this garden for late afternoon, when the light over the water turns golden and Anglesey’s coastline glows across the channel.
Plas Brondanw: Clough’s Own Garden
Before Portmeirion made him famous, Clough Williams-Ellis shaped the gardens at his own home, Plas Brondanw, within the Snowdonia National Park. He later protected the wider estate through a charitable trust after buying adjoining land threatened by mining. An outlook tower on the hillside greets visitors before they even reach the main gates, framing views across Snowdonia to the sea beyond.
The gardens themselves are widely considered his finest achievement: tightly clipped hedges form green architecture around statues and vistas, creating rooms within the landscape. A small cafe serves food made with local produce, and a shop nearby sells Welsh woodwork, pottery and jewellery. Admission stays modest, and proceeds go directly towards maintaining the garden.
Planning Your Garden Day Trips from Bryn Bella
All four gardens sit within roughly an hour’s drive of Betws-y-Coed, which makes them easy to combine with a relaxed morning in the village or an early return for dinner. Bodnant lies closest, just north along the Conwy Valley, while Portmeirion and Plas Brondanw sit toward Porthmadog to the south west. Plas Newydd is the furthest, out on Anglesey, though the drive itself takes in some of the best coastal scenery in the region.
If you’re planning a stay built around gardens, walking or simply slowing down among mountain scenery, we’d love to help you put an itinerary together. Get in touch with the team at Bryn Bella, and we’ll happily point you toward the routes, timings and seasonal highlights that suit your visit best.