The Valleys

The Valleys

If you want to experience Wales’s industrial heritage at first hand, warts and all, the valleys north of Cardiff are worth a visit. The valleys were created to house the miners whose coal powered the Industrial Revolution. Once one-third of the world's coal was produced here, it was the Kuwait of its day.

The valleys certainly aren't aesthetically beautiful in the traditional sense, and some areas are terribly deprived, but it is that untouched grittiness which creates the appeal. From the extraordinary Rhondda Valley in the west to Blaenavon in the east you will encounter a post-industrial environment unique in Britain.

Big Pit Mining Museum

If you want to go down a real coal mine you'll have to go to Big Pit mining museum in the World Heritage Site of Blaenavon. This is no theme park, this is a real colliery which produced coal for 200 years. Kitted-out in helmet and cap-lamp, you descend in the lift for 300 metres to the real coalface with an ex-miner as your guide.