Getting to Bryn Teg
By Train
Dolwyddelan has a station on the Conway Valley Railway; although the trains are infrequent, travel from Manchester, London, Birmingham, Cardiff &c. is entirely feasible. Bryn Teg is about 10 minutes walk from the station:
- Leave the station by the lane past the school and then turn right, toward the centre of the village.
- Turn right at the crossroads, along the main A470.
- Go along this road past the Moriah Chapel and the Elen's Castle Hotel and, after seven more houses, turn left up a tarmaced lane, Allt Singrug.
- Bryn Teg is at the top of Allt Singrug, but note the warnings below!
There is a path across the field from the war memorial to the foot of Allt Singrug which cuts off a corner. The path starts at the right hand edge of this picture though the dilapidated metal gate has been replaced by a smart wooden one. Bryn Teg can be seen above and to the left of the white house near the right of this picture.
There are many more trains from Llandudno Junction; it takes about 35 minutes each way to take to, or collect from there. The taxi fare from Llandudno Junction to Dolwyddelan is about £40.
A bus service has started recently. This has caused some irritation locally as the timetable appears to be arranged to undermine the viability of the train service.
With some forward planning it is possible to holiday at Bryn Teg without a car. A shopping trip to Llanrwst is fairly convenient by train and the Snowdon Sherpa bus network gives access to the mountains and tourist hot spots of Snowdonia.
Live Train Times
By Car
Bryn Teg's post code is LL25 0EQ, Grid Reference 273705,352633 so directions from anywhere in the UK can be obtained from Multimap and, presumably, from satellite navigation kit - though we have not checked this out for ourselves! For those without access to these technologies, the cottage is about 200 metres off the A470 trunk road between Betws-y-Coed and Blaenau Ffestiniog. More specifically, when travelling from Betws-y-Coed on the A470, about 4 miles after turning off the A5, watch out for the Dolwyddelan village name signs (there are two) and the 30mph sign. About 300m after this there is a narrow gap between the houses on the right. Turn into this lane, Allt Singrug, ignoring the Anaddas i Fodur/Unsuitable for Motors sign! Take a very sharp left turn where the tarmac ends; Bryn Teg is at the end of this lane.
Allt Singrug (the road up)
However, these various presentations of the directions leave out one crucial bit! Allt Singrug is extremely steep and narrow and at the top there is a hair-pin bend into the track leading to Bryn Teg. We very strongly advise drivers not to attempt to drive up until they have walked up and checked what is involved. It is not really possible to grasp the reality of Allt Singrug from Google Street View even though, somewhat to our surprise, it is on there.
It is best if you park just round the hair-pin bend, where there is space for two or three cars. Don't drive right up to the gate unless there are those in your party with impaired mobility or you have particularly heavy items to deliver.
There is no street lighting so, if you arrive after dark, you will need a torch and should be prepared to carry basic over-night luggage up to the cottage, leaving full unloading until daylight.
There is now lighting on track between Allt Singrug and the gate to Bryn Teg with a proximity sensor at the "car park". The lights are switched on in the glass lean-to; see more on the glass lean-to.
Parking
There is space for two or three cars on the track from Allt Singrug to the cottage. You may also park in the Elen's Castle Hotel car park but please ask permission first.
If you arrive late at night, Eurwyn Roberts (find him at the greenhouses or by phone - see Emergency numbers) will allow you to park opposite his greenhouses until the morning but be aware that his customers and other business visitors may need to park there during the day. Please do not park there during daylight hours without checking with Eurwyn first.