The National Showcaves Centre for Wales is, would you believe it, in Wales.
We shot off for a 3-night camper van trip during the UK school holidays and our campsite in the stunning Brecon Beacons was a few miles away from The National Showcaves Centre.
Caves are cold, damp, dark and gloomy. So we went on a cold, damp, dark and gloomy day. It wasn’t that bad actually, but it wasn’t a glorious summers day. More like a typical English day!
Throw in life size dinosaurs and a bit of history on some of the Time Periods, Iron Age, etc, and you have the recipe for a fun and potentially educational visit.
Video of the National Showcaves Centre for Wales
Information
- Address is: The National Showcaves Centre for Wales, Abercrave, Swansea, SA9 1GJ
- Parking: Parking is free, although if the parking lot near the entrance is full, you are directed to the lower car park by the Farm. There is a charity shuttle ‘train’ running until 3pm
- Admission price: Adults £15.50, Children £12.00 (ages 3 – 16), Children aged 2 and under are welcome at no charge.
- Opening times: Open 7 days a week from April to end of October. Also Open for a couple of weeks around February half Term
- More information, please check official website, by Googling The National Showcaves Centre for Wales (feel free to use any search engine:)
Getting There
The National Showcaves Centre for Wales – Entrance
We arrived and were instructed to park in the lower carpark, which meant we had to take the land train up to the entrance if we didn’t want to walk.
Paying for tickets could have been better. One kiosk for Card payments, one for cash. Over £50 for a family of 4, so you can imagine there weren’t many people paying with cash.
As a result, we had to queue while the Cash payment kiosk was sitting idle.
The National Showcaves Centre for Wales – The Caves
Dan yr Ogof Cave
Anyway, we enter and head straight to one of the caves, the Dan yr Ogof Cave. Discovered in 1912, by Tommy and Jeff Morgan, the journey you have to take today is slightly easier than they had to encounter back then.
You have the option of grabbing a battery powered lantern before the entrance. The above picture at the start of the National Showcaves Centre for Wales was intimidating to say the least.
The walk took us about 30 minutes, and while dark in places was generally well lit and plenty of fascinating rock formations to look at along the way. The stalactites hang down reaching for the ground, while the stalagmites go the other way, desperate to reach the dizzy heights of their opposites.
The Cathedral Cave
In 1963 a further 16km of caves were discovered. Having to enter them via the “Long Crawl” though, is something we will leave to the dedicated cavers!
The second cave we ventured into was called Cathedral cave. We wandered through, fascinated by the way the tunnels and caves had formed over the years.
We wander through, where we hear a distant droning noise, gradually getting louder as we follow the predetermined path.
The caves open out, and before us, plummeting into the underground lakes, are two waterfalls. The man made walkway winds between them, and the spray from them is nothing but rather pleasant.
We decided not to venture into Bone Cave. As with all the caves here at the National Showcaves Centre for Wales it would no be a waste of time though if you chose to.
The caves are a great adventure for adults and children alike. However, be aware that pushchairs/buggies are not allowed in the caves.
We walk around, from cave to cave. From Iron Age to the Gold Rush display. Things are hidden in the bushes and trees. Well, hidden is the wrong word, for there are life size dinosaurs dotted everywhere.
The caves have now been explored. The dinosaurs gawked at, you can spend some quiet time panning for gold.
There are picnic tables dotted around if you chose to take your own lunch, or a cafe / coffee shop if you’d prefer to travel light and buy there.
But wait…there’s more
Once you have had enough of the National Showcaves Centre and the dinosaurs, then jump back on the train (stops running at 3pm, but the walk down is not a tough one) if you parked down the hill, and head to the Shire Horse Centre & Mr Morgan’s Victorian Farm.
Thee are sheep, alpacas and llamas grazing the park area. Just the other side of the car park, and a pleasant walk through the area takes you to the Shire Horse Centre.
The only ones we saw on our occasion were in their stables. They had returned for something to eat, but there are also pigs and shetland ponies.
If the young ones still have some energy left after the cave walking and dinosaur spotting, there is more to come. There is the large play area in the covered barn, and a small play park alongside the roaming animals in the field.
Summary of the National Showcaves Centre for Wales
All in all, a pretty decent place to go. You can easily spend a whole day here after you have explored the caves, gone dino spotting, panned for gold and wandered through the museum. Then there is of course the Shire Horse centre, the farm, and the Play areas for the little ones.
Worth a visit if you are in Brecon and looking for something for all the family.
Let me know if you have been, or are planning to go. Leave a comment with any questions and I will do my best to answer them.
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