Powys

Powys is a principal area in Mid Wales. It consists of the historic counties of Brecknockshire (Welsh: Sir Frycheiniog), Montgomeryshire (Sir Drefaldwyn) and Radnorshire (Sir Faesyfed).

Towns and villages

Map of Powys

Towns

• 1 Brecon (Welsh: Aberhonddu) — a typical small Welsh town within the Brecon Beacons National Park, surrounded by stunning scenery
• 2 Builth Wells (Llanfair ym Muallt) — a market town lying at the confluence of rivers Wye and Irfon, in the upper part of the Wye Valley
• 3 Crickhowell (Crug Hywel) — a base for seeing the Black Mountains and the Brecon Beacons
• 4 Hay-on-Wye (Y Gelli Gandryl) — a "town of books", with at least 41 bookshops, best known as the location of a prestigious annual Hay Festival
• 5 Knighton (Tref-y-clawdd) — located on Offa's Dyke, an ancient earthwork
• 6 Llandrindod Wells (Llandrindod) — this 19th-century spa town has many buildings in ornate styles dating fromthe Victorian and Edwardian eras
• 7 Llanidloes — a charming small town with a number of interesting independent shops
• 8 Llanfair Caereinion — a terminus of the narrow-gauge, heritage Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway
• 9 Llanwrtyd Wells – (Llanwrtyd) reputedly Britain's smallest town.
• 10 Machynlleth — home of an internationally known centre for the development of alternative technology
• 11 Montgomery (Trefaldwyn) — it has an "unspoilt" feel, with some fine examples of Georgian and early Victorian architecture
• 12 Newtown (Y Drenewydd) — it was a new town when established in the 13th century; it has a traditional town centre of independent shops and many pubs and cafes
• 13 Presteigne (Llanandras) — it has been called one of Britain's top 10 small towns
• 14 Rhayader (Rhaeadr Gwy) — walkers and cyclists are drawn to Rhayader for the abundance of trails and bridleways surrounding the town
• 15 Welshpool (Y Trallwng) — home to the Powis Castle and Garden, and the other terminus of the Welshpool and Llanfair Light Railway

Villages

• 16 Pen y Cae — home of Craig y Nos Castle, a fairy-tale castle that was owned by an Italian opera diva
• 17 Trecastle (Trecastell) — at the heart of hiking and horse riding country

Other destinations

• 1 Elan Valley – famous for its rolling hills and the Elan Valley dam

Understand

Prior to the integration of Wales with England, Powys was one of the historic Welsh Kingdoms.

In 1974 Powys re-emerged as a political entity, as a county. Powys is one of the geographically largest local authorities in Britain. It makes up the bulk of Mid Wales. The area is sparsely populated, and despite its size it has one of the smallest populations in Wales. Powys has come into, and remained in being as an administrative necessity since smaller counties would not be viable due to the insufficient economies of scale they would offer.

One of the main north-south roads in Wales, (the A470) passes through its area, as does the famous Heart of Wales Railway Line, as does the east-west A458 trunk road and Cambrian Railway Line.

Get in

By train

All train services into and within the area are operated by Arriva Trains Wales.

Two lines serve the area, they don't connect with each other in Powys.

• Heart of Wales Line. Llandrindod Wells, and other Stations are served by trains from Carmarthenshire and Swansea in the south, and Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England in the north. (updated May 2022)
• Cambrian Line. Machynlleth, Newtown, Welshpool and other stations are served by trains from Ceredigion and Gwynedd in the West and Shrewsbury and Birmingham, England in the East. (updated May 2022)

See

• The Centre for Alternative Technology Machynlleth. An internationally well known centre for the development of alternative technology.
• Craig y Nos Castle Pen y Cae, Swansea Valley Set in magnificent grounds, this fairy-tale castle and former home to the Italian opera diva, Adelina Patti, is a wonderful attraction.
• Brecknockshire Canal, Brecon canal basin. 
• Powis Castle and Garden, near Welshpool.

Do

Cultural events

• Brecon Jazz Festival
• Hay-on-Wye Book Festival

Golf

The County has a number of Golf Courses, the isolated nature of the area means that they offer uncrowded golf, even by Welsh Standards!

Courses include:

• Cradoc Golf Club Brecon - This course host an annual competition of all the Welsh Club Champions.
• Glynneath Golf Club, Pont Nedd Fechan, south east of Pen y Cae.
• Llandrindod Wells Golf Club
• Llanymynech Golf Club, Pant, between Welshpool and Oswestry - Former US Master's Winner and Ryder Cup Captain Ian Woosnam learnt his game here. This course also holds the distinction that it is the only course in the world in two countries, it has 15 holes in Wales and 3 in Shropshire, England.

Go next

• Ceredigion
• North Wales
• South Wales