The 'unspoilt' Gwynedd village that describes itself as Eryri's 'loveliest'

Beddgelert is not a place to undersell itself - describing itself as “undoubtedly the loveliest village in Eryri/Snowdonia”. It’s hard to argue: with its old stone cottages, quaint shops and floral blooms, the village is picture postcard perfect.

Bisected by water and surrounded by mountains, like many once-isolated communities in Eryri, Beddgelert has a distinct vibe of its own. The place has evolved without losing its sense of self or the knowledge that this was once a mining village, its old stone cottages embedded with the memories of hard men who worked at local slate quarries and the nearby Sygun Fawr Copper Mine.

Since the late 18th century, artists and tourists have gravitated towards Beddgelert in search of the “picturesque”. Its appeal lies in its location: to the south is Aberglaslyn Pass, to the east is Nant Gwynant. And just 4.5 miles away, to the north, is the summit of Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) itself.

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“You can’t see out of the village as it’s surrounded by hills,” said local resident and businesswoman Bonnie Rowley. “I think that has always fostered a strong sense of community.”

This month Beddgelert was named one of the 30 most unspoilt villages in Britain by The Telegraph newspaper. It’s easy to see why: the place has a timeless appeal – not preserved in the past but conserved in deference to its heritage, culture and surroundings.

Everyone knows about Gelert’s Grave and the legend of the faithful hound, the publicity stunt created to encourage local tourism. But there are plenty of stories that are true, fashioned over 1,300 years since Beddgelert was founded by an early Christian missionary.

Beddgelert has produced renowned bards, and still does. Luminaries include harpist Marged ferch Ifan, the fabled, “Queen of the Lakes” who could "out-wrestle any man". Another was Alfred Bestall, the Rupert Bear illustrator and storyteller who lived in the village for many years.

As a stopping point on the Welsh Highland Railway, and the start of the Watkin Path up Yr Wyddfa, Beddgelert’s enduring popularity with visitors is assured. In summer, the crowds descend and like any place that relies on tourism, there are tensions that simmer beneath.

“It is a beautiful village and we need to accept that people will want to share it,” said businesswoman Nicola Lloyd. “It’s a question of finding the right balance. Without the visitors, Beddgelert would be a very different place. It’s because of them that we still have three pubs, a village store, post office and primary school.”

Nicola runs two shops in the village, Beddgelert Woodcraft and Siop Pen Gwyn. The latter sells homemade fudge, old-school sweets and souvenirs. It’s based in a former National Trust shop that closed during the pandemic, and which was once run by Nicola’s mother. “When it became vacant, I knew it had my name on it,” she said.

“Beddgelert can get busy in the summer, when the locals go into hiding. But compared to somewhere like Betws-y-Coed, the village is still relatively undiscovered. We are very lucky: it’s not full-on all the time, and in winter the locals can enjoy all the facilities that may have disappeared in other rural villages.”

Like so many rural communities, volunteers are Beddgelert's backbone. The old summer carnival may have gone but residents still provide spectacular spring and summer blooms. Every year, flower tubs and window boxes burst with colour. Between 1993 and 2000, they were unstoppable, winning the Britain in Bloom village category on no fewer than five occasions.

Like many others of her generation in the village, Delyth Griffiths was raised in the wider area, moved away but yearned to return, in her case from Cardiff. As her husband was born in Beddgelert, the pretty village and its close-knit community beckoned.

Delyth took on Emrys House, the village’s shop and Post Office. It remains Beddgelert’s beating heart.

“We had the hiraeth to come home,” she said, referring to the untranslatable Welsh word encapsulating a sense of nostalgia and longing for Wales, its culture and family roots. "It’s a village with an obvious centre that gives the place real heart, and that’s one reason why the community is so tight-knit.

"There is a perception that Beddgelert hasn’t changed over the years but that’s not quite true. It’s still evolving. People are still buying properties and doing them up – we’re doing that ourselves at the moment – but they have to work within the restrictions of the National Park.”

In places, buildings crowd the streets and leave them too narrow for pavements, adding to the village’s sense of antiquity. Some structures predate the 13th century, mostly in St Mary’s Church, a major tourism attraction in its own right.

Originally a part of an Augustinian priory, it was rebuilt under the patronage of Prince Llywelyn Fawr (Llywelyn the Great), who is associated with the Gelert legend. The priory survived several fires but fell victim to King Henry VIII’s dissolution of the monasteries. As a church, its parish covered much of Eryri, including the summit of Yr Wyddfa.

Doffing a hat to its architectural roots has helped the village retain its charm and sense of timelessness. It’s an example that Eryri National Park Authority is keen for others to follow, especially when it comes to listed buildings.

With summer on the horizon, the authority is worried a frenzy of DIY and alterations could compromise the “special qualities” of Eryri’s culturally-important buildings. A new historic environment planning officer, Eleanor Carpenter, has been appointed to monitor the park’s listed buildings, and she is calling on owners to contact the authority to discuss their plans beforehand – and so avoid the potential for penalties.

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Beddgelert has plenty of listed structures, the most prominent being the “sub-medieval” stone bridge over the Afon Colwyn in the village centre. Other listings pay tribute to Beddgelert’s working past - they include two entire terraces of quarryworkers’ cottages.

Where the village has been altered, the work has been done sympathetically, said Delyth. “Everything fits in,” she said. “Even when the new riverside walk was built around the turn of the millennium, it seemed like a natural addition.

“The village is so compact that you can stay in Beddgelert and not have to use the car. From your door, there are lots of circular walks that are both interesting and beautiful.”

In the three decades since Bonnie Rowley began primary school in Beddgelert, there have been social shifts in the village. Pupil numbers slipped, she said, but they now appear to be stabilising. Young families have moved in and, more importantly, moved back, helping to underpin Welsh language and culture.

One factor, believes Bonnie, was the rise in home working during the Covid pandemic. It was a period that threatened her own business, the oldest ice cream parlour and pizzeria in Eryri.

“My husband used to commute to Leicester and if he wasn’t now able to work from home, I’m not sure how we’d be able to stay here,” she said. “I’m seeing more families coming here now because they can work from home and raise their children in beautiful surroundings.”

Bonnie owns the Glaslyn ice cream parlour and pizzeria, just around the corner from Beddgelert’s much-photographed stone bridge. Having recovered from the pandemic, the business is noted not just for its products but also for its commitment to the environment.

Having achieved net-zero status, Glaslyn has a vision to work with farmers, suppliers and the community to make the entire Eryri National Park a carbon-free area. From solar panels to insulation, tree planting and nature-based solutions, Bonnie hopes to safeguard not just Beddgelert but all of Eryri and make it more sustainable for future generations.

“As trade in the village tends to be seasonal, as a community we need to look at ways to become more more cost-effective and efficient,” she said. Among her innovations is an air-cooled display freezer for ice creams.

Visitors don’t come here just for scenery and serenity. Part of Beddgelert’s lure is its quaint independent shops and cafes: there’s not a retail chain in sight.

For some, artisan ice creams are a key reason for their annual pilgrimages. “Sometimes I can’t believe how far people have travelled just to get an ice cream,” smiled Bonnie, whose grandparents Joan and Bert founded the company in 1970.

“For some people, it’s about memories. They came here with their parents, wandered around the village with an ice cream, and now they want to do the same with their children. We do get a lot of returnees. Visitors come back year after year - this village holds a special place in people’s hearts.”

In September 1949, a “strange happening” in Beddgelert was reported in the Caernarvon & Denbigh Herald. A meteorite had struck the Prince Llewelyn Hotel, damaging the roof and a bedroom.

The “Beddgelert incident” remains only one of two verified meteorite falls in Wales; the other was in 1931, some 14 miles away in Pontllyfni at the other end of the Nantlle Ridge. The Prince Llewelyn soon recovered and it remains an iconic feature in the village. The community of less than 500 people has been equally indomitable.

Postmistress Delyth Griffiths said: “Beddgelert is one of the most beautiful places in the whole of Britain, thanks partly to the way its building heritage is protected by being in the national park. But as beautiful as it is, and despite the importance of its visitor economy, Beddgelert is a place with a genuine community.

“They live here as well. It is not a holiday village, and it’s important that facilities and services are protected for them too.”

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