It's very nice. The places this side of it (ie the East) are a bit run-down and I presume those that have compared it to Blackpool are getting muddled with Prestatyn and/or Rhyll which are pretty grim.
The places the other side of it (ie to the West) are all lovely. It's a great base for the fabulous NW of Wales area.
Make sure you pronounce it correctly. Most English people don't.
That's so true. English people always pronounce it as "Landudno", they can't seem to get the hang of the two LL's. It should sound "llch".
It's a nice place though yes, not at all like Blackpool, can't believe anyone would say that. The pier is nice, when you get to the end and look back at the town on a clear day you can see the Snowdonia mountains.
I live just outside LLandudno and what members have said is all true. However I would add one thing about the seagulls. The advice not to feed them is right but if you are eating sandwiches or anything else near them put the food away because they will literally swoop down making a dreadful noise and take the food out of your hands before you have realised what has happened as it happens so quickly. It is a very unpleasant experience and unfortunately it has happened to me on a number of occasions.
It's OK if your older than 80 and like sitting and enjoying an ice cream whilst looking at a nice view with all the other pensioners.
Personally I find it very boring. Beach is shingle not sand and it's a total rip off to go up the orme only to be highly disappointed when I got there. Don't bother Conwy is far nicer. Go there insted.
I went there three years ago for a few days. It depends what you want, really. The Orme is beautiful and there is a relaxed, genteel pace to life. It's 'top heavy' on older people too. However, there is very little indeed in the way of night life and the whole town seems to go to bed at 9pm. There's not even anywhere to have a coffee and I can't recall seeing that many pubs either.
It's a nice, quiet place that's very popular with the older generation. Watch out for the Seagulls though, they are particularly hostile there; Me and my partner got attacked by one trying to get at our sandwiches and it succeeded.
You can catch a glimpse of Llandudno in the latest Volkswagen advert on TV.
It's a lovely town perhaps more suitable for the older generation. A smashing pier with a few shops on it, cafe, slot palace pool table and children's rides at the end.
A theatre with a few good shows, usually Ken Dodd, sixties and seventies groups and the like.
There is a tram or a cable car up the Great Orme with a cafe and souvenir shop at the summit. Great views there too.
There's a copper mine tourist attraction on the way up. It's cold down there even on a hot summer day.
The main beach on the east shore is a bit shingly and the offshore windfarm is a disgrace. There is a much better beach at the west shore however, which is about three quarters of a mile away.
It is a great resort, certainly my favourite in Britain
How about Colwyn? Are there buses available from Llandudno?
There are regular buses and trains to Colwyn from Llandudno. However, like the other resorts to the east there isn't much there except for a small zoo hidden in the trees above the town (there is a shuttle bus from the station).
There are nicer places to visit like Conwy, Snowdonia, and Anglesey.
It's very nice. The places this side of it (ie the East) are a bit run-down and I presume those that have compared it to Blackpool are getting muddled with Prestatyn and/or Rhyll which are pretty grim.
The places the other side of it (ie to the West) are all lovely. It's a great base for the fabulous NW of Wales area.
You presume wrongly. Prestatyn is NOTHING like Blackpool.
Rhyl is grim, but I do wish people wouldn't lump the two towns together.
Llandudno is a great place to visit - plenty of things to do in the surrounding area. Electric Mountain, Ffestiniog Railway and the Slate Mine - Llanberis Railway is only 20 mins from Llandudno and worth a visit and Snowdonia National Park.
Plenty of restaurants, bars and shops and great Hotels and B&B's. Lovely restaurant at Bodnant Farm shop if you don't mind a car ride out of Llandudno.
Any yes, please don't feed the seagulls - they make a right mess on the car.:eek::eek::eek:
I went there three years ago for a few days. It depends what you want, really. The Orme is beautiful and there is a relaxed, genteel pace to life. It's 'top heavy' on older people too. However, there is very little indeed in the way of night life and the whole town seems to go to bed at 9pm. There's not even anywhere to have a coffee and I can't recall seeing that many pubs either.
I can think of 5 within a short walking distance of where we stay.
It's OK if your older than 80 and like sitting and enjoying an ice cream whilst looking at a nice view with all the other pensioners.
Personally I find it very boring. Beach is shingle not sand and it's a total rip off to go up the orme only to be highly disappointed when I got there. Don't bother Conwy is far nicer. Go there insted.
Multiquote not working
What would be a couple of days itinerary on your none boring holiday?
It's OK if your older than 80 and like sitting and enjoying an ice cream whilst looking at a nice view with all the other pensioners.
Personally I find it very boring. Beach is shingle not sand and it's a total rip off to go up the orme only to be highly disappointed when I got there. Don't bother Conwy is far nicer. Go there insted.
Yes, because Conwy is a hive of bustling activity isn't it.?...
Llandudno is the nicest of the resorts on the North Wales Coast. Colwyn Bay is quite pleasant as well with the Zoo and Dinosaur World, but when they built the A55 they went straight through the middle of the town and cut the beach and pier off from the town centre, which I can't help but feel has spoiled it a bit.
Rhyl is awful. Avoid it like the plague, as it manages to make Blackpool look like St Tropez.
Prestatyn might not be a grim as Rhyl, but it's still a dump. Ffrith beach is nice though.
Yes, because Conwy is a hive of bustling activity isn't it.?...
Llandudno is the nicest of the resorts on the North Wales Coast. Colwyn Bay is quite pleasant as well with the Zoo and Dinosaur World, but when they built the A55 they went straight through the middle of the town and cut the beach and pier off from the town centre, which I can't help but feel has spoiled it a bit.
Rhyl is awful. Avoid it like the plague, as it manages to make Blackpool look like St Tropez.
Prestatyn might not be a grim as Rhyl, but it's still a dump. Ffrith beach is nice though.
It most certainly is not!
There are two 'touristy' parts of Prestatyn - Barkby Beach (wish they'd just go ahead and bulldoze Pontins) and Ffrith Beach, which is just a huge car park with a bowling alley and 'amusements' which are closed most of the year. If people judged Prestatyn based purely on its appeal as a tourist destination, they'd be unimpressed. Luckily us locals know to avoid the tourist destinations. As somewhere to live, it's great - clean, low crime, good shops, good amenities, nice people. I'd 1000x rather live there than some ugly industrial town like Holywell, Flint or Wrexham.
My old tortoise went to live in Colwyn Bay zoo - he was lonely and kept escaping and trying to play with large stones. He went to live in the zoo where they had a big breeding programme. Apparently he was very happy there!
Yes, because Conwy is a hive of bustling activity isn't it.?...
Llandudno is the nicest of the resorts on the North Wales Coast. Colwyn Bay is quite pleasant as well with the Zoo and Dinosaur World, but when they built the A55 they went straight through the middle of the town and cut the beach and pier off from the town centre, which I can't help but feel has spoiled it a bit.
Rhyl is awful. Avoid it like the plague, as it manages to make Blackpool look like St Tropez.
Prestatyn might not be a grim as Rhyl, but it's still a dump. Ffrith beach is nice though.
We went to Rhyl to buy something for a friend and only stayed there for half an hour - what an awful place full of caravan parks and town centre beggars. The seafront has had a refurbishment but what a waste of money
There are two 'touristy' parts of Prestatyn - Barkby Beach (wish they'd just go ahead and bulldoze Pontins) and Ffrith Beach, which is just a huge car park with a bowling alley and 'amusements' which are closed most of the year. If people judged Prestatyn based purely on its appeal as a tourist destination, they'd be unimpressed. Luckily us locals know to avoid the tourist destinations. As somewhere to live, it's great - clean, low crime, good shops, good amenities, nice people. I'd 1000x rather live there than some ugly industrial town like Holywell, Flint or Wrexham.
Our friends live in Prestatyn and we have lovely week-ends there with them and enjoy visiting. Like eluf38 they have a great quality of life.
Victor Mel - when are you planning on going, that is to say will it be 'in season' or 'out of season' ?
I have found that it can make quite a difference, especially if you are relying on public transport.
Assuming you are going in season, check out the hoardings on the sea front near the pier entrance and you will see the details for an assortment of bus trips to different attractions (such as those mentioned by other posters - Blaenau, Snowdonia etc) as well as the bus trip around the Marine Drive (which is one of the many ways to see round the Great Orme).
The tram up the Orme is a must if you are staying in Llandudno - granted, there isn't a whole lot at the top but the scenery is beautiful and there are endless walks that can be done (walking up the Orme is very hard on the calf muscles as some of it is very steep !!).
When I was growing up we went every year for about 5 years in the mid 70's and loved it. I now live about 1 1/2 hrs drive away so have been back loads of times just for day trips and nostalgic 'tours'.
Obviously everyone has different tastes, so one person's ideal seaside town is not someone else's, but I think it is a great destination and a great base for travelling to other places. I can always be assured that when I tell my family (who still live in the South of England) that I have been to Llandudno for the day they are always jealous and will be sure to comment 'I love it there'.
In some ways it is a bit 'stuck in the past', and in other ways I miss some of the things that were there in the 70's. I think it is fair to say it is probably more geared towards older people, but that is not to say that there are not attractions for younger people - there always seems to be a complete mix when I go.
I have to say, as others have, that I cannot think of any way at all in which it is like Blackpool - apart from the fact it has a seafront !
Comments
The places the other side of it (ie to the West) are all lovely. It's a great base for the fabulous NW of Wales area.
That's so true. English people always pronounce it as "Landudno", they can't seem to get the hang of the two LL's. It should sound "llch".
It's a nice place though yes, not at all like Blackpool, can't believe anyone would say that. The pier is nice, when you get to the end and look back at the town on a clear day you can see the Snowdonia mountains.
"Have you seen the bloke in bed 2? He's got 'Ludo' tattooed on his dick"
"No he hasn't, it's 'Llandudno'" <cough>
It's not so much that which sounds so out of place, as the people who mispronounce the 'dud' part. 'Landidno' is far less wrong than 'LLanDUDno'.
Personally I find it very boring. Beach is shingle not sand and it's a total rip off to go up the orme only to be highly disappointed when I got there. Don't bother Conwy is far nicer. Go there insted.
What were they thinking, its scandalous.
It's a lovely town perhaps more suitable for the older generation. A smashing pier with a few shops on it, cafe, slot palace pool table and children's rides at the end.
A theatre with a few good shows, usually Ken Dodd, sixties and seventies groups and the like.
There is a tram or a cable car up the Great Orme with a cafe and souvenir shop at the summit. Great views there too.
There's a copper mine tourist attraction on the way up. It's cold down there even on a hot summer day.
The main beach on the east shore is a bit shingly and the offshore windfarm is a disgrace. There is a much better beach at the west shore however, which is about three quarters of a mile away.
It is a great resort, certainly my favourite in Britain
There are regular buses and trains to Colwyn from Llandudno. However, like the other resorts to the east there isn't much there except for a small zoo hidden in the trees above the town (there is a shuttle bus from the station).
There are nicer places to visit like Conwy, Snowdonia, and Anglesey.
Short train/ bus journey
However, colwyn bae is stick in the 1960s, just like Rhyl.
Avoid and go to Conwy instead.
You presume wrongly. Prestatyn is NOTHING like Blackpool.
Rhyl is grim, but I do wish people wouldn't lump the two towns together.
Old Colwyn and Colwyn Bay are mainly residential. There's a park, a nice seafront but not much else.
Conwy is more touristy, but aside from the castle and a few old buildings there's not much there. You could probably spend half a day there.
Plenty of restaurants, bars and shops and great Hotels and B&B's. Lovely restaurant at Bodnant Farm shop if you don't mind a car ride out of Llandudno.
Any yes, please don't feed the seagulls - they make a right mess on the car.:eek::eek::eek:
I can think of 5 within a short walking distance of where we stay.
Multiquote not working
What would be a couple of days itinerary on your none boring holiday?
Yes, because Conwy is a hive of bustling activity isn't it.?...
Llandudno is the nicest of the resorts on the North Wales Coast. Colwyn Bay is quite pleasant as well with the Zoo and Dinosaur World, but when they built the A55 they went straight through the middle of the town and cut the beach and pier off from the town centre, which I can't help but feel has spoiled it a bit.
Rhyl is awful. Avoid it like the plague, as it manages to make Blackpool look like St Tropez.
Prestatyn might not be a grim as Rhyl, but it's still a dump. Ffrith beach is nice though.
It most certainly is not!
There are two 'touristy' parts of Prestatyn - Barkby Beach (wish they'd just go ahead and bulldoze Pontins) and Ffrith Beach, which is just a huge car park with a bowling alley and 'amusements' which are closed most of the year. If people judged Prestatyn based purely on its appeal as a tourist destination, they'd be unimpressed. Luckily us locals know to avoid the tourist destinations. As somewhere to live, it's great - clean, low crime, good shops, good amenities, nice people. I'd 1000x rather live there than some ugly industrial town like Holywell, Flint or Wrexham.
Didn't that close down years ago?
My old tortoise went to live in Colwyn Bay zoo - he was lonely and kept escaping and trying to play with large stones. He went to live in the zoo where they had a big breeding programme. Apparently he was very happy there!
We went to Rhyl to buy something for a friend and only stayed there for half an hour - what an awful place full of caravan parks and town centre beggars. The seafront has had a refurbishment but what a waste of money
Our friends live in Prestatyn and we have lovely week-ends there with them and enjoy visiting. Like eluf38 they have a great quality of life.
I have found that it can make quite a difference, especially if you are relying on public transport.
Assuming you are going in season, check out the hoardings on the sea front near the pier entrance and you will see the details for an assortment of bus trips to different attractions (such as those mentioned by other posters - Blaenau, Snowdonia etc) as well as the bus trip around the Marine Drive (which is one of the many ways to see round the Great Orme).
The tram up the Orme is a must if you are staying in Llandudno - granted, there isn't a whole lot at the top but the scenery is beautiful and there are endless walks that can be done (walking up the Orme is very hard on the calf muscles as some of it is very steep !!).
When I was growing up we went every year for about 5 years in the mid 70's and loved it. I now live about 1 1/2 hrs drive away so have been back loads of times just for day trips and nostalgic 'tours'.
Obviously everyone has different tastes, so one person's ideal seaside town is not someone else's, but I think it is a great destination and a great base for travelling to other places. I can always be assured that when I tell my family (who still live in the South of England) that I have been to Llandudno for the day they are always jealous and will be sure to comment 'I love it there'.
In some ways it is a bit 'stuck in the past', and in other ways I miss some of the things that were there in the 70's. I think it is fair to say it is probably more geared towards older people, but that is not to say that there are not attractions for younger people - there always seems to be a complete mix when I go.
I have to say, as others have, that I cannot think of any way at all in which it is like Blackpool - apart from the fact it has a seafront !