There’s a particular feeling you get crossing the Menai Strait for the first time — the moment the mainland falls away behind you and Anglesey opens up ahead, all low fields and distant headlands and that unmistakable island light. A weekend isn’t long enough to see everything, but it’s long enough to understand why people keep coming back. Here’s how to spend it.
Saturday Morning: Llanddwyn Island
Start early. Drive to Newborough Forest car park and walk the mile through Corsican pines to Llanddwyn Island — technically a tidal peninsula, but it feels like stepping into another world entirely. The lighthouse keeper’s cottages sit white against the dark rocks, and on a clear morning you can see the Llŷn Peninsula across Caernarfon Bay and the peaks of Snowdonia beyond.
Llanddwyn is dedicated to St Dwynwen, the Welsh patron saint of lovers, and the ruined church and Celtic cross make it feel genuinely ancient. But don’t come just for the history — come for the rock pools, the pilot’s cottages, the way the light catches the Irish Sea. Budget ninety minutes minimum; you’ll want longer.
Check the tide times before you go. The island is accessible for most of the day, but a spring high tide can cut off the causeway for a few hours.
Saturday Afternoon: Coasteering at Rhoscolyn
This is the one. If you do nothing else on Anglesey, throw yourself off a cliff into the Irish Sea with a qualified guide.
Coasteering — the combination of swimming, cliff jumping, and scrambling along the rocky coastline — was essentially invented in Pembrokeshire, but the sea cliffs around Rhoscolyn and the South Stack area are some of the finest spots in Britain to try it. You’ll wear a wetsuit, helmet, and buoyancy aid; guides handle all the safety and route-finding. The jumps range from gentle steps to heart-stopping ten-metre drops, and you can skip anything that feels too much.
Several operators run sessions from the Rhoscolyn area. Sessions typically last two to three hours and suit anyone reasonably fit and comfortable in water — children from around eight years old can usually join in, though check with individual providers. Book ahead in summer; the good sessions fill up.
Afterwards, you’ll be salt-crusted and euphoric. Drive the ten minutes to Trearddur Bay and collapse on the beach for an hour.
Saturday Evening: Rhosneigr
The village of Rhosneigr, on Anglesey’s west coast, has quietly become one of the best spots on the island for food and atmosphere. It’s a surf town at heart — the broad beach catches Atlantic swells that have travelled across the Irish Sea — but the restaurants have lifted their game in recent years.
Find somewhere for dinner, then walk the beach as the sun drops toward the water. On a still evening, with the sky going pink over the Irish Sea and the dunes silhouetted behind you, it’s hard to imagine being anywhere better.
Sunday Morning: The Anglesey Coastal Path
Anglesey has a 125-mile coastal path that circles the entire island — you won’t walk the whole thing in a weekend, but you should walk some of it. The stretch from South Stack to Holyhead offers some of the most dramatic scenery: towering sea cliffs, the historic lighthouse, and RSPB South Stack with its nesting seabirds (puffins and guillemots in spring and early summer, choughs year-round).
For something gentler, the path from Moelfre to Benllech on the east coast gives you sandy coves, the Moelfre Lifeboat Station, and the memorial to the Royal Charter shipwreck of 1859. The coastline here faces the Irish Sea but feels completely different from the western cliffs — softer, more pastoral, with views toward the Great Orme on the mainland.
Pick a section, pack a waterproof, and give yourself two to three hours. The path is well-marked and manageable for anyone with reasonable fitness.
Sunday Afternoon: Beaumaris and the Menai Strait
Finish at Beaumaris, where the castle — built by Edward I, never quite completed, but considered a masterpiece of medieval military architecture — sits right at the water’s edge. The town itself is full of independent shops, galleries, and cafes, and the view across the Menai Strait to the Snowdonia mountains is one of the finest on the island.
If you have time, take the pier walk at Beaumaris as the afternoon light softens. The mountains turn blue across the water, sailing boats move through the Strait, and you’ll already be planning your next visit.
Practical Tips
Getting there: Cross via the A55 and either the Britannia Bridge or the older Menai Suspension Bridge. The island is compact — the furthest points are about forty minutes apart by car.
Where to stay: Beaumaris, Rhosneigr, and Menai Bridge all have good accommodation options. Booking ahead is essential in summer and around bank holidays.
Weather: This is the Irish Sea coast of North Wales. Pack layers and waterproofs even in August. The wind can pick up quickly, and that’s part of the charm.
Timing: A Friday evening arrival and Sunday afternoon departure gives you the structure above. If you have a third day, add the beautiful South Stack lighthouse walk or explore the quieter beaches of the north coast around Cemaes Bay.
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