Discovering Conwy: The Medieval Walled Town on a Waterfront

(42 reviews)

Conwy audio tour: Discovering Conwy: The Medieval Walled Town on a Waterfront

This is a 1.3mi walking tour

It takes an average of 60 mins to complete.

Conwy

The United Kingdom

$9.99

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About the Tour

Conwy is much more than a cute little town. On this walking tour, we’ll retrace its medieval history back to its roots as a Norman settlement. I’ll tell you stories about the castle, the town’s fishing industry, and its modern bridges as we pass by locally-owned shops where artisanal butchers, bakers and chocolatiers sell their wares.

You’ll journey down cobbled alleys and back streets while learning about the mighty Conwy Castle and town walls which were given World Heritage status in 1986 for being one of the most complete circuits in Britain. We'll tour the outskirts of Plas Mawr, justifiably known as the finest Elizabethan town house in Wales, and Aberconwy House which dates back to 1400. You'll also have a chance to photograph yourself against the Guinness Book of Records’ Smallest House in Britain, and to walk across the Conwy Suspension Bridge, a masterpiece of Victorian engineering built by celebrated engineer Thomas Telford.

Come along – it'll be the best hour you can spend in Conwy!

Tour Producer

Amanda Whitehead

4 tours

Hi there, I've been working as a guide in North Wales for 40 years and hold official Blue Badge Guide qualifications. I live in the medieval town of Conwy and love it so much. I have a History degree but the best thing about working on local tours is rooting out the stories of the past and present characters and events that haven't made the guide books and wikipedia!. Look forward to sharing them with you.

Preview Location

Location 3

Conwy Castle

Stop here and face the castle - the best viewing is from the corner near the town wall.

Your first thought will be how huge it is. Imagine being a Welsh peasant living in a shack, looking at these massive walls. Impressive hey? The Castle - like the others in the iron ring... Stop here and face the castle - the best viewing is from the corner near the town wall.

Your first thought will be how huge it is. Imagine being a Welsh peasant living in a shack, looking at these massive walls. Impressive hey? The Castle - like the others in the iron ring - Caernarfon, Harlech, Beaumaris etc. - is a world heritage site for two reasons.

The first is because they were the cutting edge military design of the period and the man responsible was James of St. George from Savoy in Northern France. The second reason is that, once Wales was conquered it became unimportant so, unlike say Windsor castle that was lived in and had bedrooms and bathrooms inserted, these castles were relatively untouched and so we can see what the original builders intended.

Let's look a little further at the design. Like all Edward's castles it is built on the sea and between two rivers. A rock ditch was extracted on the land side- look below where the road runs along it now. Also there are a myriad of defences built in, meaning the castle could be held by as few as 25 men.

Let's take a closer look at these.

Firstly, to the left you see a gap that the modern walkway runs through. Bridging this gap was the first defence, a drawbridge reached by a sloping ramp you can still see the remains of the the left of the gap. We'll see where the winding mechanism was later on this tour.

However, it takes a while to crank up the bridge and - you've seen those old Erol Flynn movies, there's always someone who grabs hold of the edge and hauls themselves in - so behind this there are several other barriers.

First of all you'd have to pass through a few portcullises - the grid like gates that is the Westminster parliament's logo. They look metal but they were usually made of wood with lead covering. They were wedged up and someone would knock the wedges out when the attack started. Bang, Bang, the gates fall in their grooves and trap any early incomers in a killing zone. Above this would be murder holes where all sorts of nasties would be dropped on your head.

But, even if you survive that - and the arrows being fired from the slots - , you are still not in the Castle. The wall between the smaller towers in front of you surrounds a barbican. A barbican is a defended gateway and part of the defence to the main gate would be hoarding - boards placed between the buttresses you can see peeking out above the main door. These enabled defenders to lean over and attack anyone trying to burn or batter their way through the main gate.

I really recommend a visit to the castle - it's a lot easier to get in now - you just need a ticket!

Now turn with your back to the castle and walk with the walls on your left, down to the end of the carpark. Read More

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Major Landmarks

Conwy Castle
Plas Mawr
Conwy Quay
The Smallest House In Great Britain
National Trust - Conwy Suspension Bridge

Getting There

Route Overview

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Start location
Muriau Buildings, Rose Hill St, Conwy LL32 8LD, UK
Total distance

2km
Final location
Conwy LL32 8BD, UK
Distance back to start location

160.75m

Directions to Starting Point

Conwy Tourist Information Building. Do not confuse with Conwy Visitor Centre. The TIC is shared with the Post Office and is red brick building opposite Vicarage Lane carpark

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Tips

Places to stop along the way

The World Heritage Castle, the medieval church, the High Street's artisan shops, the quayside and the Smallest House in Britain

Best time of day

Before 10am or after 5pm

Precautions

The route is safe. Take care to look out for traffic.

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App Store Review

“Great app. walk around at your own pace, stop where you want, move on or speed up when you want. Read the script before you go or during the commentary, speed it up or replay it. Repeat the tour whenever you like.”