It's a glorious seaside spot to visit 90 minutes from Manchester, with a brilliant cafe, beach, play areas and a free paddling pool, with a quirky place to stay too as we discovered.
It's a glorious seaside spot to visit 90 minutes from Manchester, with a brilliant cafe, beach, play areas and a free paddling pool, with a quirky place to stay too as we discovered.
The journey to North Wales is one well-travelled by tourists and day-trippers from the north west. With the A55 providing a fairly easy route to the beautiful Welsh coastline from the north west, resorts like Llandudno and Colwyn Bay have long been popular hotspots for families. But the seaside village of Llanfairfechan is one I have to say I've never stopped in over the years, despite it being just off the A55, between Llandudno and Bangor.
Now that I have two young sons to entertain, it was time to rectify that, and what a treat we had in store at this beautiful little spot. It feels like a bit of a hidden gem in many ways, as it was lovely and quiet on our weekend visit and it's a place I never hear mentioned when people talk about great seaside towns and villages in Wales. Slipping under the radar has its perks though.
Indeed, it was so peaceful, we found that we had the stretch of beach all to ourselves a lot of the time. We enjoyed long walks splashing in the waves while admiring the glorious views out to Puffin Island and Anglesey, and over to the Great Orme and Llandudno. Llanfairfechan grew as a resort town in Victorian times, and was a favourite spot of Prime Minister William Gladstone.
It features a lengthy promenade next to the sea, as well as a beautiful row of pastel-coloured villas, with the spectacular Penmaenmawr mountain as the backdrop giving it a picture postcard feel. When the sun is shining, as it did across our weekend stay, it's just the most perfect place for a family visit. Ever likely locals jokily call it "Llanfairote" .
The town itself boasts two free play areas, skate park, a boating lake and from May across the summer a really adorable free community paddling pool opens daily too from 10am to 7pm. And with that vast expanse of beach to explore there's loads to do without even having to spend a penny. The beach offers glorious views along the Welsh coast too, and if you look closely enough you can even see the shape of Beaumaris Castle and as far as Penrhyn. While we found there was plenty to entertain us in Llanfairfechan itself it also offers the perfect base for wider explorations in this gorgeous part of Wales.
We headed up for a walk to Aber Falls on one day, while we also made the short journey to the historic town of Conwy to visit the castle there which, again, my kids absolutely loved. We were fortunate enough to stay in one of the colourful seafront villas in Llanfairfechan during our visit, at the pretty pink Claremont with glorious views right next to the beach.
The family-owned home has been passed down through several generations, and has recently become a very chic holiday let thanks to the interiors inspiration of owner Kate. The family spent three years renovating the property with an eclectic mix of stylish furnishings. Kate said: "This house is very special to us and has been in my family for over 80 years.
"It’s been a real labour of love, we have been letting the house out for coming up to 4 years now and it is really rewarding having other families fall in love with the house and area and getting lots of lovely reviews and return visits. "It's easy to see why families fall in love with this place.
It boasts wonderful airy rooms spread across three floors, with bed accommodation for up to eight people, including one room with bunk beds for children. There's also a private back garden that gets the sun in the mornings, and the long stretch of garden at the front looking out to the sea.
On the ground floor is the very stylish kitchen and dining room, while upstairs is the main living room - both of these making the most of the spectacular bay front windows with views out across the beach and the sea on to Puffin Island and Anglesey. I cannot begin to explain how glorious it was to sit in these windows and watch the sun set over the islands each evening during our stay, and then see the bright lights of Llandudno prickle to life on the coast as night fell.
You can feel its warmth as a family home, and the owners have also kindly left some board games available for use during your stay. Monopoly went down a treat with my two boys which we played while gazing out of those windows. My kids totally fell in love with this place and were fighting back tears when we had to pack up to head home after our sunny weekend.
I'm already plotting a return, as it would be a great place to bring other family members with us too next time. Another joy of this village is the brilliant local cafe and takeaway Seagrass. This was recommended to us by Claremont's owner Kate, who suggested we book our Friday night takeaway ahead of arriving that day to ensure we had a slot as it gets busy. We are so glad we did.
We had the most epic fish and chips, with a really unusual light batter, and chips in the traditional "like my gran used to make" style. We also ordered some of the weekly specials includng a spicy fried chicken with salad, while the kids enjoyed their chicken and chips. They were also doing pizzas on the night we visited that seemed to be very popular by the amount of requests we saw being whipped out when heading in to collect.
With the weather being so glorious, we were able to sit out on the beach to eat our food from the takeaway boxes too. The cafe itself then opens up in the day where you can sit in or takeaway. They cook up some epic brunch dishes, while there's also an array of freshly-baked cakes and traybakes, as well as a cabinet of ice creams too.
For those wanting something more casual, there's also a traditonal beachside cafe right on the Promenade where you can get hot and cold food too. Again, on the recommendation of Kate, we also booked a visit to Johnny Dough's pizzas in Conwy on our day out there. They serve up giant fresh wood-fired pizzas, and if you head there before 6pm kids can do a "make their own pizza" too.
Dianne was a guest at Claremont on The Promenade in Llanfairfechan. It is a full house holiday let which can sleep up to 8 people, with four bedrooms and three bathrooms. Minimum break is 3 night stays, while four day short breaks start from £645. There is still good availability for bookings in June and September in 2026.
All bookings are via the Llanfairfechan is just off the North Wales Expressway between Llandudno and Bangor. It is around a 90 minute drive from Greater Manchester via the M56 and A55. There is also a train station right in the centre of Llanfairfechan, which you can get to from Manchester via a stop in Llandudno, in around 2 and a half hours.
Dianne has written for the Manchester Evening News for almost 20 years across a variety of subjects. Formerly Diary Editor covering showbiz and events in Manchester, Dianne is now Lifestyle Editor, covering travel reviews, food and drink news and reviews and attending many of the biggest gigs across Manchester. Dianne loves a farm shop, and writing about all the great places for families to take children across the North West and beyond.
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