Simply … Spectacular
“This is the story of a motorcycle route through Wales I took with my friend Miguel between July and August 2022. The decision, like most good ones, came fast: where hadn’t we been yet in Europe? We weighed a few options, but ended up choosing Wales, mostly because it was the closest. A total win. Sensational.”
The Routes We Followed in Wales
Crossing France: Moules et Frites in St Malo
Before setting foot in Wales, we had to cross France. We stopped near St Malo and did the only sensible thing under the circumstances: moules et frites. They were outstanding.
That night we treated ourselves to dinner with St Malo lit up in the distance — the kind of view that makes a trip feel worthwhile before you’ve even reached the real destination.
Arrival: 11pm, a Ferry, and an Endless Queue
The ferry dropped us in Poole after dark, and between disembarking and clearing passport control — car by car, bike by bike, with absolutely no rush from anyone — nearly an hour went by. Frustrating, honestly, though at least it wasn’t raining, which counts for something.
We reached our first B&B past 11pm and were still treated like royalty. The next morning brought a spectacular breakfast — with a bottle of still water and one sparkling waiting in the room, that very British touch of leaving nothing to chance.
Roads Between Stone Walls (and Sheep)
And that’s when things got good. Wales has its own particular kind of road: impossibly narrow, hemmed in by hedgerows and, in many stretches, by bare stone, where meeting a car head-on becomes a quiet negotiation over who reverses first. Miguel lost that negotiation more than once.
Along the way we crossed paths with a couple touring Wales in their camper van: sleeping on one side, with their motorcycle parked on the other. They’d just woken up and were getting ready for a two-hour ride — right along our route. Simple, no fuss. They took a photo of us before we parted ways.
I remember turning onto one of those lanes without really knowing where it led, feeling genuinely cautious. Miguel talked me into pushing on, and thank goodness he did — it turned out to be one of the most spectacular stretches of the whole trip. The road improved a little further on, opening onto some breathtaking valleys. Sheep, sheep, and more sheep, as much a part of the landscape as the mountains themselves.
Fish & Chips in Minehead
On our way back, in Minehead, we stopped at The Old Ship Aground, a pub with rooms right on the quay (The Quay). We sat outside with a beer as the evening settled in, then had dinner right there — haddock fish & chips I still think about, the kind that justify crossing the Channel all by themselves. More riders kept arriving as we ate, until the terrace filled up with motorcycles parked in a row. One of those simple scenes that, in the end, stay with you the longest.
Two Nights by the Lake, Exploring Snowdonia
One of the trip’s highlights was the little hotel with its own private lake, where we stayed two nights, using it as a base to explore Snowdonia. Tables right on the water’s edge, absolute stillness, and lamb that, once again, was superb.
If I had to pick just two places from the whole trip, it would be exactly these: Brecon Beacons and Snowdonia. Everything else was beautiful, but these two national parks were the crown jewels.
A Village, a Church, and More Lamb
At one of our last B&Bs, tucked away in the middle of nowhere, we took the chance to visit the local church and its graveyard — a small but beautiful village. For dinner, of course, lamb.
Here are the B&Bs and hotels where we stayed:
Poole – https://www.westoncottage.org.uk
Tyn y Cornel – https://visit-tywyn.co.uk/accommodation/tyn-y-cornel-hotel/
Minehead – https://theoldshipaground.com
Lydford – https://castleinnlydford.co.uk
Poole – https://www.thebridgehousehotel.co.uk
The People, Driving on the Left, and a Mysterious License Plate
The Welsh are simple and kind, the sort of people who help you out without making a fuss about it. What took a bit more getting used to was driving on the left — especially in the first few days, when your brain keeps steering you into the wrong lane at every roundabout.
At a bar in the middle of nowhere, where we stopped for coffee and pastries, we found — to our surprise — a Tesla Model 3 parked outside. In 2022, out in the Welsh countryside, that was the last thing we expected.
And as if that mystery weren’t enough, at another point on the route we spotted a license plate we still haven’t managed to place.
The Passport, the Rain, and a Suspicious Officer
And to close out the trip, the story that never fails to get a laugh: heading back toward France, going through customs in the rain, I had the bright idea of holding my passport in my mouth — closed, just for a second — to free up my hand and pull off my glove. The officer saw it. And since we’d just come out of the pandemic, the moment I handed it over he sprayed it with disinfectant before even opening it. Luckily it didn’t damage the passport, and he didn’t seem too bothered either — barely glanced at it before stamping it.
Miguel, being a doctor, couldn’t resist: according to him, the officer must have assumed I’d just handed him a properly “contaminated” passport. We laughed about that for the rest of the trip.
In Conclusion
Five days in Wales that, in my opinion, hold up against the landscapes and roads you’d find in Norway — minus the summer snow, and with the added bonus that riding a motorcycle there is an absolute pleasure from start to finish.
📍 Resources and Recommendations
The 5-day routes:
- Day 1 – View route
- Day 2 – View route
- Day 3 – View route
- Day 4 – View route
- Day 5 – View route
Where we stayed:
- Poole – Weston Cottage
- Tywyn – Tyn y Cornel Hotel (the one with the lake — the best stop of the trip)
- Minehead – The Old Ship Aground
- Lydford – Castle Inn Lydford
- Poole – The Bridge House Hotel