Wales has such a variety of terrain in a comparatively small area that you can practise almost any outdoor pursuit, from walking to white water rafting, including pony trekking, wind surfing, hang gliding, quad biking, mountain biking, climbing, canoeing and kayaking. It also has almost 750 miles of coastline with some of the loveliest beaches in Europe - 44 of them flying Blue flags - so it is ideal for the traditional family bucket-and-spade seaside holiday too.

Wales

Wales offers much more than the great outdoors. It has hundreds of castles and a huge industrial heritage. The town of Blaenavon is a World Heritage Site, its ironworks now telling many stories associated with the development of iron and steel. Big Pit, which lies just outside the town, offers insights into the mining experience by kitting out visitors with helmets and lamps for a tour of its workings 300 feet underground conducted by former miners. The attraction won the £100,000 Gulbenkian prize for Museum of the Year in 2005. The National Waterfront Museum in Swansea was shortlisted for the Gulbenkian Prize in its first year of operation.

North Wales has some of the most dramatic and beautiful scenery in the UK. This area of great contrasts ranges from the mountains of Snowdonia and the tumbling meadows of Ll%u0177n, to the flatland of Anglesey with its stunning coastline and the plump hills and lush valleys of the Borderlands.

The Cheshire Plain runs into the Borderlands, which contain five of the Seven Wonders of Wales - Wrexham steeple, Overton’s yew trees, St Winefride’s Well, Llangollen bridge and Gresford bells - and lie within an hour’s drive of  the other two, mount Snowdon and the 240-ft waterfall, Pistyll Rhaeadr. 

One of the jewels of this area is the Dee valley near Llangollen with its steep green sides and the powerful river flowing through its floor. It can be best appreciated from the dramatic Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, which can be crossed on foot or by canal barge!

The North Wales coastal resorts that extend from Llandudno to Prestatyn can boast some of the best seaside fun in the UK.

Llandudno sits on its own peninsula, nestling between the Great Orme and Little Orme headlands. This stylish, elegant resort, with its majestic promenade, has retained all of its Victorian splendour and grace. It is a town which is proud of its literary links with Lewis Carroll, being the place where Alice Pleasance Liddell spent her holidays as a child.

The neighbouring resort of Colwyn Bay has three miles of golden sandy beaches and a bustling town centre with stunning mountain scenery in the background. It is an extremely popular holiday favourite with people of all ages.

The resort’s superb three-mile long promenade runs into neighbouring Rhos on Sea, a picturesque harbour town with a relaxed atmosphere. All along the seafront you can watch, or take part in a variety of watersports, including jet skiing, windsurfing, water skiing and sailing.

West Wales stretches from the western regions of the Brecon Beacons National Park to the offshore islands of Pembrokeshire, from the golden shores of Carmarthen Bay in the south to the wide sweep of Cardigan Bay in the north. The southern arm of Wales which juts out into the Irish Sea provides the prefect getaway destination, offering a wealth of sights, activities and amenities to suit every palate.

Pembrokeshire is hailed as ‘gwlad hud a lledrith’ (land of magic and enchantment). Its many prehistoric remains, rich history, legends and folklore all combine to give it an unique identity. The county can be split into two by the imaginary Landsker line. South of this ancient dividing line lies an area affectionately known as Little England beyond Wales. To the north is the Welsh speaking Cymru – its wilder terrain possibly explains why it was never conquered by the Normans.

The area’s steep rugged cliffs are home to hundreds of seabirds and other wildlife, as are the off-shore islands of Skomer, Skokholm, Grassholm and Ramsey which are world-famous sea bird sanctuaries.

If your idea of a holiday is an all-action, adrenaline-pumping adventure break, then Pembrokeshire offers it all! An Utopia for adventurers, the county attracted Lord Nelson long before it became synonymous with outdoor pursuits.

Locked on three sides by water, it is natural that many of the outdoor activities for which it is famed are strongly aquatic - the area even dreamed up one of the most original outdoor crazes, coasteering - which, by the way, has nothing to do with table mats!

Coasteering involves traversing the coastline in any way possible, be it swimming, climbing, scrambling or biting the bullet and jumping those cliffs. Acolytes are decked out in wetsuits and trainers and receive expert tuition from instructors who keep them under close surveillance for every minute. Fans of the sport are growing fast. 

The Pembrokeshire Coast National Park is responsible for safeguarding this beautiful tract of countryside, and maintaining the balance of interests between, outdoor leisure activities and the communities that live and work in the Park.

Tenby perfectly combines a rich history with unspoilt beauty and all the fun of the seaside. The town dates from medieval times. Most of the old town, with its maze of cobbled streets and narrow passageways, lies within the extensive remains of the 13th century walls. Parts of the walls still stand to their full height, particularly along the South Parade, and the towers which protected them can be seen at the famous Five Arches, of which there are actually six.

Wales' capital, Cardiff, is Europe's youngest, and one of its fastest growing, capital cities. As well as rapidly growing into a financial and communications centre in recent years, Cardiff has transformed itself into a vibrant, cosmopolitan, modern city, worthy of its title - the youngest capital city in Europe.  Many exciting projects are giving the city an air of dynamism and new found confidence.

Cardiff has the Brecon Beacons National Park within easy reach - a 45-minute drive at most. It has on its doorstep the lovely Vale of Glamorgan with picturesque villages, market towns and beaches too.

The city can offer accommodation to suit any taste and pocket.  It has restaurants providing fine fare from all over the world, reflecting the cosmopolitan nature of this former port and the tastes of its people.      

A different world awaits - Make it your world.

From the Brecon Beacons and Black Mountains of the South, where the SAS test the best, to Snowdonia in the North, where the first conquerors of Everest trained, you have a land that makes the body tingle and delights the senses.