Crickhowell

Crickhowell nestles in the beautiful Usk Valley. This thriving Market Town, which has a unique charm, offers an interesting variety of shops, places to eat, drink and stay with attractions for all the family.Whilst there are countless opportunities for the active, everyone can enjoy the beautiful mountain scenery and river valleys. This wonderful corner of Wales is easily accessible being less than an hour from the Severn Bridge with rail access in nearby Abergavenny.

Crickhowell has a lively website which caters for tourists and locals. It contains the most comprehensive information on the latest events, community news, places to stay and where to enjoy a meal. You can see it all at website link or browse this site for information about places around Crickhowell.

The area around Crickhowell includes the Black Mountains with miles of open space in which to enjoy walking, cycling or in which to be inspired as the painting above by local artist Valerie Green testifies. Valerie will be one of the popular local artists exhibiting in the Christmas exhibition in the oriel cric gallery. The River Usk meanders past the town and the surrounding area has many attractive villages to explore. A trip on the Monmouthshire and Brecon canal will provide beautiful views of the Black Mountains. A comprehensive list of activity providers can be found at website link

Crickhowell hosts a very popular annual walking festival. Please visit the website for more information, website link

Of the many spectacular walks around Crickhowell, probably the most popular is the climb up the flat-topped mountain to the north of the town, known in English as Table Mountain. Originally the site of an Iron Age hillfort, this 451m-high outcrop is known in Welsh as Crughywel, ('rock of Hywel'), a name which it gave to the town.

The identity of Hywel is not known, although the most famous Hywel in Welsh history has to be Hywel Dda (Hywel the Good), ruler of Deheubarth, Gwynedd and Powys at the time of his death in 950. According to tradition, Hywel was responsible for consolidating the Law of Wales, a system which had its roots in legal customs which had developed in Wales over the centuries. This law differed from English law in many ways, notably in its inheritance laws, which divided a property among offspring rather than treating the first-born child as sole heir. It is thought that women also enjoyed a higher status under the Law of Wales than they did under the other legal systems of Europe at the time.

Although already in decline, the Law of Wales was not officially abolished by the English Parliament until the Act of Union of 1536; henceforth only the Law of England would be recognised by the courts in Wales.

Crickhowell Resource & Information Centre (CRiC)

The centre is conveniently situated in the centre of Crickhowell (Beaufort Street) and adjacent to the large public car park.It has become the hub of local information containing an independently run Tourist Information Centre.

The Information Centre is open seven days a week, providing information for tourists on sights to see, places to stay and things to do. It also has a wide range of books, maps and leaflets for sale about features in the area. It is staffed by volunteers with great local knowledge, supported by a team of part time staff members.

CRiC also houses up-to-date computer facilities, serviced offices, facilities for other agencies to serve the community, conference and meeting rooms, training facilities, a coffee bar, the local volunteer bureau, the local archive centre, an art and craft gallery promoting local artists and public conveniences.

The Oriel CRiC Gallery promotes local and Welsh art of quality. it hosts 6 exhibitions per year and is well worth a visit. This beautiful exhibtion space is fully accessible to wheelchair users. It is the ideal place to purchase a momento of your visit. More information is available at website link

The Jewel in the Crown of the Brecon Beacons National Park