Discover 7 hidden attractions, cool sights, and unusual things to do in Holy Island (United Kingdom). Don't miss out on these must-see attractions: Holyhead Mountain, Caer y Twr, and Penrhos Feilw Standing Stones. Also, be sure to include Holyhead Breakwater Lighthouse in your itinerary.
Below, you can find the list of the most amazing places you should visit in Holy Island (Wales).
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Holyhead Mountain
Mountain in Wales. Holyhead Mountain is the highest mountain on Holy Island, Anglesey, and the highest in the county of Anglesey, north Wales. It lies about two miles west of the town of Holyhead, and slopes steeply down to the Irish Sea on two sides. Ireland can be seen from here on a clear day and the mountain is an important site for seabirds.[1]
Caer y Twr
Historical landmark in Wales. Caer y Twr is an Iron Age hillfort atop the summit of the Holyhead Mountain in Anglesey, Wales.
The hillfort, which is situated among rocky outcrops, is ideally placed for defence and likely served as a watchtower and possibly as a signal tower. Some have speculated that it was built to alert a small fort in the modern town of Holyhead in the case of raiders coming in from the Irish Sea, while others have suggested that it may have been a lighthouse.
The hillfort is now mostly rubble, but its walls can still be made out, including a large stone rampart on the north and east sides which reaches 3 metres at points. The entrance to the fort was through a rocky gully. The footings of a tower were discovered when the site was excavated; its stones are believed to date from the 2nd to the 4th centuries.
Nestled below Caer y Twr is a group of several enclosed huts, named Cytiau Tŷ Mawr (the Holyhead Mountain Hut Circles), that also date from the 3rd to the 4th centuries, some of which still contain the accoutrements of life, such as hearths and shelves.[2]
Penrhos Feilw Standing Stones
Historical landmark in Wales. The Penrhos Feilw Standing Stones are a pair of standing stones on Holy Island west of Anglesey in north-west Wales. They are thought to date from the Bronze Age but their origins and purpose are unclear. They are about 3 m high and are a similar distance apart.[3]
Holyhead Breakwater Lighthouse
Lighthouse in Wales. The Holyhead Breakwater Lighthouse stands on the Holyhead Breakwater outside the Welsh port of Holyhead, Anglesey.[4]
Elin's Tower
Bird watching area in Wales. Elin's Tower is a Victorian stone tower on Holy Island, located around 2+1⁄2 miles west of Holyhead. The castellated folly, which was originally used as a summer house, was built between 1820 and 1850 for the notable Stanley family from Penrhos. It is named after Elin, the Welsh wife of the 19th-century politician William Owen Stanley.
The building near South Stack was used during both the First and Second World Wars as a coastal observation tower. However, it was abandoned and fell derelict. The restored tower is used as an RSPB information centre, shop and café for the nature reserve in which it is situated, and affords a good view of South Stack and its lighthouse. In 2007, the tower was damaged by vandals who used it for a drunken party.[5]
Penrhos Country Park
Penrhos Country Park is a country park in Britain. It lies near Holyhead, on the island of Anglesey. The park attracts approximately 100,000 visitors each year. It was opened in 1971 on the former Penrhos estate which was formerly owned by the Stanley family and at the time of opening the Anglesey Aluminium company.
It is adjacent to the A55, on the Anglesey Coastal Path and also adjoins Beddmanarch Bay.[6]
Ucheldre Centre
Art center in Holyhead, Wales. The Ucheldre Centre is an arts centre located in Holyhead, Anglesey, Wales.[7]