Set-Jetting Through Wales: A Girlfriend Road Trip

Set-jetting turned our girlfriend road trip through Wales into a journey through places made familiar by television and film. But Welsh food, history, language, coastal scenery and the moments between filming locations became just as memorable as the screen connections.

Wales feels cinematic, historic and deeply rooted in place. The mix of film and TV locations, dramatic coastlines, Welsh food, castles, villages and cultural connections made our girlfriend road trip about much more than set-jetting.

Wales Girlfriend Trip Highlights

• Visit Wrexham and stop at The Turf
• Snap a photo beneath Wales’ famously long place name
• Stay overnight inside colorful Portmeirion
• Ride a historic steam train through Wales’ slate landscape
• Follow The Crown, Harry Potter and Welsh screen stories south
• End in Cardiff, one of Wales’ major production hubs

Editor’s note: The writer was hosted.

Let us inspire your travels! Sign up for our newsletter now.

Wrexham: From TV Fame to Welsh Pride

The Turf

Address: Mold Road, Wrexham LL11 2AH
Hours: Monday–Thursday noon–11 p.m.; Friday–Sunday noon–midnight

• WHY GO? Welcome to Wrexham turned this North Wales city into an international television star, but the real appeal is the community behind the show.
• GIRLS GETAWAY FACTOR: Meeting Wayne Jones and spending time inside The Turf made the television story feel much more personal.
• WHAT WE LOVED: Wrexham quickly showed us that the series is as much about local pride and community as football.
• ALSO WORTH SEEING: We walked through the city center to St. Giles’ Church, adding history and a broader sense of place to our Wrexham stop.
• WHY IT MATTERS: Our guide also pointed out something we noticed throughout the trip: Welsh isn’t simply preserved on road signs. It remains a living language, including in education.

SheBuysTravel Tip: Don’t treat Wrexham as only a football stop. Pair The Turf with a walk through the city center to better understand the community behind the television series.

Only in Wales: The Longest Place Name

• WHY GO? On Anglesey, we stopped at Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, home to the longest place name in Wales.
• GIRLS GETAWAY FACTOR: The station sign practically demands a photo. Pronouncing the name correctly is another matter.
• SCREEN CONNECTION: Anglesey adds another set-jetting connection. Its coastline, including Llanddwyn, Beaumaris and Penmon, has been used in House of the Dragon.
• WHAT WE LOVED: It was a quick stop but one of the most fun photo moments of our first day.

Portmeirion: Wales Set-Jetting Before It Had a Name

Hotel Portmeirion

Address: Portmeirion, Minffordd, Penrhyndeudraeth, Gwynedd LL48 6ER
Phone: +44 1766 772440
Check In/Out: 3 p.m./11 a.m.

• WHY GO? Long before set-jetting became a travel trend, Portmeirion drew television fans as “The Village” in the 1960s cult series The Prisoner.
• GIRLS GETAWAY FACTOR: We wandered colorful lanes, woodland paths and photogenic corners that looked more like the Mediterranean than North Wales.
• WHAT WE LOVED: Spending the night inside the village gave us time to experience Portmeirion when it felt quieter and even more atmospheric.

SheBuysTravel Tip: Stay overnight if you can. Portmeirion changes character after the day visitors leave.

Talyllyn Railway: Steam Trains and a Storybook Connection

Talyllyn Railway

Address: Wharf Station, Tywyn, Gwynedd LL36 9EY
Phone: +44 1654 710472
Hours: Trains run daily from April 1; shop, café and museum generally open 9 a.m.–3 p.m.

• WHY GO? Riding a historic steam train through the Welsh countryside was one of the most unexpectedly fun experiences of the trip.
• SCREEN CONNECTION: Rev. W. Awdry’s experiences with the Talyllyn Railway helped inspire the fictional Skarloey Railway in The Railway Series, later familiar to generations of Thomas & Friends viewers.
• HERITAGE CONNECTION: The Talyllyn Railway and nearby Bryn Eglwys quarry form part of The Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales, designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2021.
• GIRLS GETAWAY FACTOR: Even if nobody in your group considers herself a train enthusiast, there is something about a real steam locomotive that brings out the kid in everyone.

Hedd Wyn: Welsh Film, Poetry and Culture

Yr Ysgwrn

Address: Trawsfynydd, Gwynedd LL41 4UW
Phone: Yr Ysgwrn: +44 1766 772508
Hours: Open Tuesday–Sunday with four guided farmhouse tours daily; booking recommended.

• WHY GO? The Welsh-language Hedd Wyn, based on poet Ellis Humphrey Evans, was nominated for an Academy Award.
• GIRLS GETAWAY FACTOR: At his family farmhouse, the film connection quickly became a lesson in poetry, language and Welsh memory.
• WHAT WE LOVED: Inside the farmhouse, film gave way to a much more personal story about rural Welsh life and a young poet lost during World War I.
• WHY IT MATTERS: Welsh schoolchildren still visit Yr Ysgwrn, reflecting Hedd Wyn’s continuing place in the country’s cultural memory.

Following Screen Stories Through West Wales

• WHY GO? Aberystwyth gave us another connection to The Crown.
• SCREEN CONNECTION: In 1969, 20-year-old Prince Charles came to Aberystwyth University to study Welsh before his investiture as Prince of Wales. Decades later, Old College became one of the locations tied to that storyline.
• WHAT WE LOVED: We didn’t have long to explore, but the seafront setting made me wish we did.

Harry Potter at Dobby’s Beach

• WHY GO? Harry Potter fans know Freshwater West as the beach associated with Dobby’s burial scene.
• GIRLS GETAWAY FACTOR: Visitors leave painted stones, messages and, appropriately, socks near the unofficial memorial.
• WHAT WE LOVED: Even non-Potter fans can appreciate the wild Pembrokeshire coastline.

SheBuysTravel Tip: Freshwater West is exposed and windy. Bring layers and shoes that can handle sand.

St. Davids: An Unscripted Wales Favorite

St. Davids Cathedral

Address: St. Davids, Haverfordwest SA62 6RD
Phone: +44 1437 720202
Hours: Monday–Saturday 10 a.m.–4 p.m.; Sunday 1–3 p.m.

• WHY GO? Britain’s smallest city combines an ancient cathedral with a compact, walkable setting surrounded by the Pembrokeshire coast.
• GIRLS GETAWAY FACTOR: St. Davids became one of my favorite stops even without a blockbuster screen connection, although the cathedral has appeared in The Hollow Crown.

Twr y Felin Hotel

Address: Caerfai Road, St. Davids SA62 6QT
Phone: +44 1437 725555
Check In/Out: 4 p.m./11 a.m.

• WHAT WE LOVED: The contemporary art, polished accommodations and walkable location made Twr y Felin especially well suited to a girlfriend getaway.
• BEST FOR: Travelers who want to slow down, browse shops, visit the cathedral and linger over dinner.

Welsh Food Along the Road Trip

• WHY GO? Film locations weren’t the only way we experienced Welsh culture. Food became another way to understand the landscape and traditions around us.

• MUST TRY RECOMMENDATION: If you eat lamb, order it in Wales. At Tŷ Glyn near Aberaeron , my Welsh lamb rump came with potato terrine, pea curry, pea and asparagus fricassee, baby onions and whipped goat curd. The meat was tender, succulent and mild, without the gaminess some people expect.
• WHY WELSH LAMB STANDS OUT: Wales has roughly three sheep for every person, and Welsh lamb has protected geographical status. One distinctive variety, Gower Salt Marsh Lamb, develops its flavor from the coastal plants the sheep graze. I can’t say whether either of my meals came from those salt marshes, but I would order Welsh lamb again in a heartbeat.
• ALSO TRY: I enjoyed lamb again at The Welsh House in Cardiff, then warm Welsh cakes at Cardiff Market.
• GIRLS GETAWAY FACTOR: Cardiff Market mixes traditional food vendors with newer stalls, making it easy to browse and sample together.

A Coastal Pause at Mwnt

• WHAT WE LOVED: Not every memorable stop needed a screen connection. Mwnt gave us one of those unscripted Wales moments: a tiny historic church surrounded by green hills and open countryside.

Matthew Rhys and Dylan Thomas Country

• WHY GO? Proud Welsh actor Matthew Rhys gives us another link between screen stories and Welsh identity.
• SCREEN CONNECTION: Rhys played Dylan Thomas in The Edge of Love, and we visited Laugharne, the coastal town linked to the poet and used as a filming location.
• WHAT WE LOVED: Here, set-jetting expanded naturally into literature, coastal scenery and Welsh culture.
• WELSH WORD WE LOVED: Rhys has spoken about cwtch, a Welsh word suggesting a cuddle, comfort and belonging. On a girlfriend road trip through Wales, that felt exactly right.

Mr. Burton: Following Richard Burton’s Wales

• WHY GO? I watched Mr. Burton before the trip, so visiting Pontrhydyfen, where Richard Burton was born, gave the film new meaning.
• GIRLS GETAWAY FACTOR: Our guide showed us the mining landscape and places connected to Burton’s childhood and mentor, P.H. Burton.

• WHAT WE LOVED: Seeing the valley, the river and the house where Burton was born gave Mr. Burton a real-world setting. Suddenly, the movie had geography.
• WHY IT MATTERS: Burton became less a Hollywood legend and more a boy from a Welsh mining family whose extraordinary journey began in this valley.

Cardiff Film and TV Locations

• WHY GO? Wales’ capital made a fitting finale, combining recognizable filming locations with one of the country’s major television production centers.
• SCREEN CONNECTION: Doctor Who fans can spot familiar locations at Cardiff Castle, National Museum Cardiff and around Cardiff Bay.

Behind the Scenes at BBC Cymru Wales

BBC Cymru Wales Tour

Address: Central Square, Cardiff CF10 1FT
Phone: +44 29 2063 6464
Hours: Tours available Wednesday–Sunday; advance booking required; tours last about 90 minutes.

• WHAT WE LOVED: Our tour took us into television and radio studios, production areas and one of the BBC’s major newsrooms.
• GIRLS GETAWAY FACTOR: Sitting behind the news desk for a photo gave us another playful moment on a trip filled with serious screen history.
• MUST KNOW: Adult visitors need photo ID, and large bags are not permitted on the tour.

Stay at The Parkgate Hotel

The Parkgate Hotel

Address: Westgate Street, Cardiff CF10 1DA
Phone: +44 29 2274 5595
Check In/Out: 4 p.m./11 a.m.

• WHY STAY: The luxury hotel occupies Cardiff’s restored former main post office and sits near Principality Stadium, Cardiff Castle and the city center.
• GIRLS GETAWAY FACTOR: After days on the road, this was an easy place to settle in and explore Cardiff on foot.

SheBuysTravel Tip: Stay centrally so you can combine BBC Cymru Wales, Cardiff Castle, Cardiff Market and the shopping arcades without spending much of your day getting from place to place.

Finding the Hwyl in Wales

Another Welsh word sums up the trip: hwyl — joy, enthusiasm, fun or the feeling of being completely caught up in a moment.

• WHAT WE LOVED: Film and television gave us the route, but some of our best memories happened between the locations: pub conversations, Welsh lamb, cathedral bells, rainy lanes and coastal views shared with friends.

Set-jetting provides the itinerary. The hwyl is what you find along the way.

Read More:

• Walking the West Highland Way – Wee Hikes in Scotland
• 14 Unforgettable Things to Do in Cork City, Ireland
• The Must-See Square Mile of London, Where History Touches the Sky
• Your Guide to a Solo Weekend in London: Wandering, Exploring, and Relaxing