Llandudno (, ) is a seaside resort, town and community in Conwy County Borough, Wales, located on the Creuddyn peninsula, which protrudes into the Irish Sea. In the 2021 UK census, the Llandudno community, which includes Gogarth, Penrhyn Bay, Craigside, Glanwydden, Penrhynside and Bryn Pydew had a population of around 19,700. The town takes its name from Saint Tudno, with Llandudno meaning "Church of Saint Tudno".
Llandudno is a major seaside resort in Wales, and as early as 1861 was being called 'the Queen of the Welsh Watering Places'The North Wales Chronicle and Advertiser for the Principality, 2 November 1861, p.11 (a phrase later also used in connection with TenbyThe Pembrokeshire Herald and General Advertiser, 18 August 1876, p.4 and Aberystwyth;Llangollen Advertiser, Denbighshire Merionethshire and North Wales Journal, 25 July 1884, p.2 the word 'resort' came a little later). Historically a part of Caernarfonshire, Llandudno was formerly in the district of Aberconwy within Gwynedd until 1996.
History
The town of Llandudno developed from Stone Age all the way through to Iron Age settlements over many hundreds of years on the slopes of the limestone headland, known to seafarers as the Great Orme and to landsmen as the Creuddyn Peninsula. The origins in recorded history are with the Manor of Gogarth conveyed by King Edward I to Annan, Bishop of Bangor in 1284. The manor comprised three townships, Y Gogarth in the southwest, Y Cyngreawdr in the north (with the parish church of St Tudno) and Yr Wyddfid in the southeast.
Modern Llandudno takes its name from the ancient parish of Saint Tudno. The modern town has grown beyond the ancient parish boundaries to encompass several neighbouring area, including Craig-y-Don and Penrhyn Bay, which were in the parish of Llanrhos (or Eglwys Rhos), which also included Llanrhos village and Deganwy. The ancient parishes of Llandudno, Llanrhos and Llangystennin were in the medieval commote of Creuddyn in the Kingdom of Gwynedd, which was made part of the new county of Caernarfonshire under the Statute of Rhuddlan in 1284.
Great Orme
Mostly owned by Mostyn Estates, the Great Orme is home to several large herds of wild Kashmiri goats originally descended from a pair presented by the Shah of Persia to Queen Victoria and subsequently given to Lord Mostyn. These goats are also known to frequently roam the main streets of Llandudno. The summit of the Great Orme stands at 679 feet (207 m). The Summit Hotel, now a tourist attraction, was once the home of world middleweight champion boxer Randolph Turpin.
The limestone headland is a haven for flora and fauna, with some rare species such as peregrine falcons and a species of wild cotoneaster (cambricus) which can only be found on the Great Orme. The sheer limestone cliffs provide ideal nesting conditions for a wide variety of sea birds, including cormorants, shags, guillemots, razorbills, puffins, kittiwakes, fulmars and numerous gulls.
There are several attractions including the Great Orme Tramway and the Llandudno Cable Car that takes tourists to the summit. The Great Orme also has the longest toboggan run in Britain at 750m long.
Development
By 1847 the town had grown to a thousand people, served by the new church of St George, built in 1840. The great majority of the men worked in the copper mines, with others employed in fishing and subsistence agriculture.
In 1848, Owen Williams, an architect and surveyor from Liverpool, presented Lord Mostyn with plans to develop the marshlands behind Llandudno Bay as a holiday resort. These were enthusiastically pursued by Lord Mostyn. The influence of the Mostyn Estate and its agents over the years was paramount in the development of Llandudno, especially after the appointment of George Felton as surveyor and architect in 1857. Between 1857 and 1877 much of central Llandudno was developed under Felton's supervision. Felton also undertook architectural design work, including the design and execution of Holy Trinity Church in Mostyn Street.
Transport
Railway The town is served by Llandudno railway station, which is the northern terminus of a long branch line from Llandudno Junction. There are generally half-hourly services between the two stations; some trains continue to Blaenau Ffestiniog or to Manchester Airport.
Llandudno Junction station is sited on the North Wales Coast railway line, which was opened as the Chester and Holyhead Railway in 1848. It became part of the London and North Western Railway in 1859 and part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway in 1923. Llandudno was specifically built as a mid-Victorian era holiday destination and the branch line opened in 1858, with an intermediate station at Deganwy.
Buses The town is served by Arriva Buses Wales, with services to Rhyl, Bangor, Caernarfon and the Great Orme summit. In addition, Llew Jones provides services to Betws-y-coed and Llanrwst.
Trams The Great Orme Tramway runs from the centre of the town to the summit of the Great Orme and is Great Britain's only remaining cable-operated street tramway.
The former Llandudno and Colwyn Bay Electric Railway operated an electric tramway service between Llandudno and Rhos-on-Sea from 1907; this was extended to Colwyn Bay in 1908. The service closed in 1956.The Golden Age of Tramways. Published by Taylor and Francis. In Llandudno, the original tramway went up the middle of Gloddaeth Street, down Mostyn Street, through Penrhyn Bay and across to Colwyn Bay.
Attractions Llandudno Bay and the North Shore
For most of the length of Llandudno's North Shore there is a wide curving Victorian promenade. The road, collectively known as The Parade, has a different name for each block and it is on these parades and crescents that many of Llandudno's hotels are built. The North Wales Theatre, Arena and Conference Centre, built in 1994, and extended in 2006 and renamed "Venue Cymru" is located near the centre of the bay.
Llandudno Pier
The Llandudno Pier is on the North Shore. Built in 1877, it is a Grade II listed building. The pier was extended in 1884 in a landward direction along the side of what was the Baths Hotel (where the Grand Hotel now stands).
Happy Valley and Haulfre Gardens The Happy Valley, a former quarry, was the gift of Lord Mostyn to the town in celebration of the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1887. The area was landscaped and developed as gardens, two miniature golf courses, a putting green, a popular open-air theatre and extensive lawns. The ceremonies connected with the Welsh National Eisteddfod were held there in 1896 and again in 1963. The gardens are listed at Grade II on the Cadw/ICOMOS Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales.
Haulfre Gardens were developed as the private gardens to a house, Sunny Hill, in the north-west of the town. Later acquired by the council, they were opened as a public park in 1929, the opening ceremony being conducted by David Lloyd George. The gardens are listed Grade II on the Cadw/ICOMOS register.
Marine Drive The first route round the perimeter of the Great Orme was a footpath constructed in 1858 by Reginald Cust, a trustee of the Mostyn Estate. In 1872 the Great Ormes Head Marine Drive Co. Ltd. was formed to turn the path into a carriage road. Following bankruptcy, a second company completed the road in 1878. The contractors for the scheme were Messrs Hughes, Morris, Davies, a consortium led by Richard Hughes of Madoc Street, Llandudno.Ivor Wynne Jones. Llandudno Queen of Welsh Resorts (chapter 17 page 121) The road was bought by Llandudno Urban District Council in 1897.Ivor Wynne Jones. Llandudno Queen of Welsh Resorts (chapter 10 page 70)
The one-way drive starts at the foot of the Happy Valley. After about a side road leads to St Tudno's Church, the Great Orme Bronze Age Copper Mine and the summit of the Great Orme. Continuing on the Marine Drive the Great Orme Lighthouse (now a small hotel) is passed, and, shortly afterwards on the right, the Rest and Be Thankful Cafe and information centre. Below the Marine Drive at its western end is the site of the wartime Coast Artillery School (1940–1945), now a scheduled monument.
West Shore The West Shore is a quiet beach on the estuary of the River Conwy. It was here at Pen Morfa that Alice Liddell (of Alice in Wonderland fame) spent the long summer holidays of her childhood.
Mostyn Street Running behind the promenade is Mostyn Street leading to Mostyn Broadway and then Mostyn Avenue. These are the main shopping streets of Llandudno and Craig-y-Don. Mostyn Street accommodates the high street shops, the major high street banks and building societies, two churches, amusement arcades and the town's public library. The last is the starting point for the Llandudno Town Trail.
Victorian Extravaganza
Every year in May bank holiday weekend, Llandudno has a three-day Victorian Carnivalvictorian-extravaganza.com: Welcome to Llandudno Victorian Extravaganza and Mostyn Street becomes a funfair. Madoc Street and Gloddaeth Street and the Promenade become part of the route each day of a mid-day carnival parade. The Bodafon Farm fields become the location of a Festival of Transport.
Llandudno Lifeboat
Until 2017, Llandudno was unique within the United Kingdom in that its lifeboat station was located inland, allowing it to launch with equal facility from either the West Shore or the North Shore as needed. In 2017, a new lifeboat station was completed, and new, high-speed, offshore and inshore lifeboats, and a modern launching system, were acquired. This station is close to the paddling pool on North Shore. Llandudno's active volunteer crews are called out more than ever with the rapidly increasing numbers of small pleasure craft sailing in coastal waters. The Llandudno Lifeboat is normally on display on the promenade every Sunday and bank holiday Monday from May until October.
Places of worship The ancient parish church dedicated to Saint Tudno stands in a hollow near the northern point of the Great Orme and two miles (3 km) from the present town. It was established as an oratory by Tudno, a 6th-century monk, but the present church dates from the 12th century and it is still used on summer Sunday mornings. It was the Anglican parish church of Llandudno until that status was transferred first to St George's (now closed) and later to Holy Trinity Church in Mostyn Street.
The principal Christian Churches of Llandudno are members of Cytûn (churches together) and include the Church in Wales (Holy Trinity and also Saint Paul's at Craig-y-Don), the Roman Catholic Church of Our Lady Star of the Sea, Saint John's Methodist Church, Gloddaeth United Church (Presbyterian), Assemblies of God (Pentecostal), Llandudno Baptist Church, St. David's Methodist Church at Craig-y-Don, the Coptic Orthodox Church of Saint Mary and Saint Abasikhiron and Eglwys Unedig Gymraeg Llandudno (the United Welsh Church of Llandudno). There is also a Christadelphian meeting hall in the town.
A member of the local Methodist community is Roger Roberts, now Lord Roberts of Llandudno, Liberal Democrat Spokesman for International Development in the House of Lords.
Llandudno is home to a Jewish centre in Church Walks, which serves local and visiting Jews – one of few in North Wales. There is also a Buddhist centre, Kalpa Bhadra, on Mostyn Avenue in Craig-y-Don.
Sport The town is host to Llandudno F.C., who currently compete in Cymru North, the second tier of Welsh football; the team have competed previously in the top level Cymru Premier division. The club plays its home matches at Maesdu Park and competed in the Europa League in 2016. Llandudno Albion currently play in the third tier of Welsh football and Llandudno Amateurs play in the fourth tier.