We travelled to the charming Welsh spa town in my father’s pride and joy – an Austin A40
IN our regular series, household names revisit their favourite childhood holiday destinations. This week, former Tory leader MICHAEL HOWARD returns to Llandrindod Wells…
A TRIP down memory lane can end in one of two ways: disappointment, or the warm glow of nostalgia.
Luckily, my return visit to Llandrindod Wells gave me the chance to rediscover this charming Welsh spa town and once again bask in its many attractions. Helped, I should add, by glorious weather.
I can’t remember what the weather was like on my previous visit in 1948, when I was six. That was our first ever family holiday. We drove 60 miles from Llanelli, where we lived, to Llandrindod in rural mid-Wales in an Austin A40 – the first car my father owned and of which he was very proud.
Fast-forward to my wife, Sandra, and I arriving in Llandrindod. We checked into the Metropole
Hotel, the grande dame of the town – and a far cry from the boarding house where we stayed years ago. Incidentally, the Metropole also has a modern swimming pool, spa and sauna complex. We hit the town’s heritage trail after breakfast and ended up at
Rock Park Spa – a peaceful haven which hosts the remains of the spa which brought fame and fortune to Llandrindod in the 19th Century. You can still drink the water, though we were warned that it contains lead. Nonetheless, we had a sip and are still here to tell the tale.
The charming Radnorshire Museum is also worth a visit with its 200-year-old whipping post (so much for the good old days).
But the centrepiece, to my mind, was the collection of exhibits relating to the celebrated 19th Century diarist Francis Kilvert, who was a parson in Radnorshire.
The exhibits include his writing slope, desk and his family bible.
Sadly, the Automobile Palace, which houses the National Cycle Collection, was closed on the day we visited, but we still gazed at the exhibits through the window.
By chance, I later spotted several vintage post-war British cars – courtesy of the Forest of Dean Motor Club – which brought the memories flooding back. Alas, there was no sign of an A40.
But our stay’s highlight was visiting Llandrindod Wells Lake. The clearest memory I have of my boyhood trip was riding a pedalo on the lake, and I was delighted to find they are still for hire – though they now have rather fierce dragon mastheads. Sandra and I spent a happy half hour pedalling away.
Returning to Llandrindod exceeded my expectations. We both thoroughly enjoyed our visit and so, I think, would you. Michael Howard is a vice-president of Hospice UK (hospiceuk.org).
Doubles, including breakfast, at the Metropole Hotel from £125 (metropole.co.uk). A super off-peak return from London Paddington to Llandrindod Wells from £102. Michael Howard is a vice-president of Hospice UK (hospiceuk.org).