Wales by Bike

February 17, 2023 10:45 AM

Going on a week long bicycling adventure in Wales very soon. Looking for recommendations on lodging, untrafficked routes, and bike paths. Bonus points for how to get a train from Heathrow to anywhere in Wales without going into London.

This will be a low key trip. I'm not looking to pack on lot of Km's. I am looking for beauty, out of the way places and great bike paths. I may base myself out of one location and do day trips or.....? I will be carrying all my gear in panniers. I am staying at LHR before and after the bike trip. It would be great if there was a way to avoid downtown London altogether on my train journey to and from wherever I go in Wales

posted by Xurando to Travel & Transportation around Wales (23 answers total)

From LHR you will most certainly need to take a train to Paddington to get to Wales unless you hire a car or take a coach to somewhere else along the route. I looked at Rome2Rio.com and it looks like if you got a 6 min taxi ride from LHR to West Drayton then you would have a straight shot to Wales... If Cardiff was your destination. If you want to get north that will make it more challenging.
posted by terrapin at 10:56 AM on February 17, 2023

You can get Heathrow Express to Paddington then get straight on the next train heading west, without ever leaving the station. So your time in London would be pretty much the shortest possible.
posted by rd45 at 11:09 AM on February 17, 2023 [1 favorite]

It would be a short trip, but I assume the poster is bring their bike with them, and more stops means more schlepping of said bike.

I hate making that part of the journey just carrying my luggage!
posted by terrapin at 11:25 AM on February 17, 2023 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Lôn Las Cymru might be too much, but maybe some part of it?
posted by rd45 at 11:27 AM on February 17, 2023

The Welsh Coastal Path is ideal for this.
posted by underclocked at 11:40 AM on February 17, 2023

If you want to get to Snowdonia, and you probably do, there is a shuttle (dedicated bus really) that will take you from Heathrow straight to Birmingham airport, where you can catch the train that runs through mid-Wales and then up (and slightly down) the coast. That's what I usually recommend to my guests who fly into Heathrow. If you're headed elsewhere in Wales and can take the train direct from Paddington then I agree that's fastest, but for mid and North Wales you'd have to take the tube to Euston and that adds significant hassle, especially with luggage.
posted by Rhedyn at 11:45 AM on February 17, 2023

You can probably use the Elizabeth line to get from Heathrow to south Wales without going to Paddington (change at Hayes and Harlington, and Reading) but I don't know what that experience would be like with a bike.
posted by plonkee at 11:48 AM on February 17, 2023

Also here's a rec for my friend's cabins https://www.caban.space/ might suit you well for a home base between Snowdonia and the Brecons.
posted by Rhedyn at 11:51 AM on February 17, 2023

Heathrow to Birmingham airport, take the 423, get off at airport BHX for easy access to train.
posted by Rhedyn at 12:07 PM on February 17, 2023

Response by poster: Can't take a bike on the National Express bus, and I am somewhat confused about where/how to find the bike reservations for Paddington-Cardiff trains.
posted by Xurando at 12:14 PM on February 17, 2023

Assuming you're taking your bike on the plane will it not be packaged up? If so then you can take it on the National Express bus. If unpackaged it's at the driver's discretion.
posted by Rhedyn at 12:28 PM on February 17, 2023

Response by poster: No, I am renting from a bike rental place at LHR.
posted by Xurando at 12:33 PM on February 17, 2023

Oh I see. Why not rent at your destination, wouldn't that be simpler? Lots of bike rental around Machynlleth.
posted by Rhedyn at 12:39 PM on February 17, 2023 [1 favorite]

Crickhowell is a great base for the Brecon Beacons.
posted by mani at 1:30 PM on February 17, 2023

The trains that run from Paddington to Wales are run by Great Western Railway (GWR). If you want to bring a bike you must book a space for it, or you won't be allowed to bring it on the train. The instructions on doing so are on their website.

However I agree with Rhedyn, there are many bike rental places in all of the bits of Wales you're likely to go to and your journey will be immeasurably easier if you don't have to do most of the train journey lugging a bike with you.

This is doubly so if you choose to take anything other than the easiest option which is Heathrow Express > Paddington > Wales. Paddington is basically all flat, a large terminus with a dozen lines going out of it, all next to each other. Moving a bike around it is fairly easy. Euston/Birmingham not only adds extra stations to your trip, it adds up and down on stairs and lifts....with a bike.

You'll also be unnecessarily paying for renting a bike for 2 days of travel to and from Heathrow when it will be nothing but a hindrance.
posted by underclocked at 11:32 PM on February 17, 2023 [1 favorite]

Also do keep in mind that the UK is having a long series of train strikes and other rail disruptions, and train fares have increased. The bus may be a lot more reliable, and much cheaper.
posted by Rhedyn at 1:29 AM on February 18, 2023 [2 favorites]

To all intents and purposes, if you take the Heathrow Express or the Elizabeth Line to Paddington and get straight onto a train to Wales, you will not be going into central London. You will simply be changing trains at a large station that happens to be in central London.

Is it possible to bypass London altogether? Yes. Take the Elizabeth Line to Hayes and Harlington, change for a train to Reading, change at Reading for a train to Wales. *Do not do this.* The journey will only take slightly longer, but you want the fewest changes possible, especially if you're taking a bike. Each train change you add to the journey is another opportunity for things to go wrong. (Also, you'll almost certainly have more time to board the train to Wales if you join it at Paddington, where it starts, than at an intermediate stop.)

And speaking of things going wrong - please, if you have the option to do this trip without taking a bike on any trains, choose that option. British trains struggle to accommodate the number of passengers who want to use them, let alone anything bulky and awkward like a bicycle. And things *do* go wrong, and if the worst happens and you end up on a rail-replacement bus service, you won't be allowed to bring the bike.
posted by ManyLeggedCreature at 4:14 AM on February 18, 2023 [1 favorite]

And another thing (lol). If you're thinking in terms of just getting into Wales and then figuring out your next bit, be warned that you can't really travel north/south in Wales by train without going back into England (thanks, extractive colonialism) so there's only bus, and not much for major north/south roads either. Cardiff is great but the heartland for beautiful out of the way spots and great bike paths is mid to north Wales and if that's where you want to go then Paddington to Cardiff will still leave you facing a long bus ride, unless you want to bike all the way up the coast.
posted by Rhedyn at 4:30 AM on February 18, 2023

nthing "Heathrow Express or Elizabeth Line (slightly slower, but cheaper) to Paddington, and then GWR train to Cardiff".

The trains aren't always super-packed, but avoid rush "hours" if at all possible, because they will be standing room only. Less of an issue if you've reserved a seat in advance, but still not pleasant.
posted by fabius at 5:11 AM on February 18, 2023

If you want to get to North Wales, you can go Heathrow -> Reading -> Birmingham -> very slow train towards Pwllheli but if you do this, take a very long book! And it would be painful to do this with a bike, as others have said.
posted by altolinguistic at 8:35 AM on February 18, 2023

Adding to those suggesting hiring the bike in Wales if possible. Once you get set booking a bike space on GWR you still have to get the bike on and off the train, which can be a pain. GWRs bike spaces are limited to a rack that's supposed to take 2 bikes but doesn't, the racks require the bike be up almost perpendicular to the floor in a very narrow space, the space is sometimes full of luggage if the train is busy and you will have to get the bike on the train and into position yourself as there will be no one to help.

Cycling UK slams awful bike storage on GWR trains.
posted by biffa at 1:59 AM on February 19, 2023

I would suggest taking the train just to Machynlleth, which should only require a medium length book ;) Make home base there, then Lloyd's Coach bus to Aberystwyth or Dolgellau for bike rental and nice ride back to Machynlleth, then enjoy the many gorgeous local trails and longer excursions into Snowdonia as you like. Unless you like riding in very heavy weather it'll be sensible to have home base somewhere you have other comfortable options in case the weather goes unfriendly -- March is the month for heavy gales and downed trees.
posted by Rhedyn at 7:37 AM on February 19, 2023

You might find the route guides at cycle.travel useful. Nthing that hiring a bike in Wales would be much less stressful. Taking bikes on GWR trains tends to be a less than joyful experience. If it's your only option, try to avoid the morning and evening trains stuffed to the brims with commuters.
posted by wavelette at 8:19 AM on February 19, 2023