North Wales
Luxury Holiday Homes in North Wales
53 properties found
Our holiday cottages in North Wales
North Wales holiday cottages from Birch Stays: 53 luxury holiday homes from the beaches of Anglesey to the Dee Valley, sleeping from 2 to 34. Most sit on the coast, on Anglesey, the Llyn Peninsula and the Conwy shore. The rest are inland, in Snowdonia and the Vale of Clwyd. Many sleep 16 or more, 31 have hot tubs, and most are pet friendly. You book directly with us.
Where to stay in North Wales
For holiday cottages, North Wales gives you two coasts, a mountain range and a river valley. They are further apart than the map suggests, so choose the area first. The house follows. For cottages in North Wales, Snowdonia is the mountains; if you want North Wales cottages by the sea, Anglesey and the Llyn Peninsula are the coasts to pick. The places to stay in North Wales split into five areas, and the table below is how we'd explain them if you rang us.
| Area | What it's like | Best for | Birch homes here | Page |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anglesey | An island of beaches: surf at Rhosneigr, coves at Bull Bay, Georgian Beaumaris on the Menai Strait | Big groups who want the beach on foot | The Retreat (32), Rhosneigr Hall (22), Bodorgan Inn (22), The Pines (19) and many more | Anglesey holiday cottages |
| Snowdonia and Betws-y-Coed | The national park: Snowdon, the slate towns, the lakes and the Conwy Valley | Walkers, Zip World and the mountain railway | Capel Salem (12) at Blaenau Ffestiniog, The Old Tearoom (12) at Trefriw, Snowdonia Retreat (8, hot tub) at Beddgelert | Snowdonia holiday cottages |
| Llyn Peninsula | The quiet arm of Wales: Abersoch, Nefyn and Aberdaron, with the sea on three sides | Sailing, surf and long beaches without the crowds | Coastal Manor (20), Y Nyth (16), Cliff Top, Gwynt y Môr and Ceg y Bae (8 each) | Llyn Peninsula holiday cottages |
| Conwy and Llandudno | The walled town and castle, the Great Orme and the Victorian promenade | Food, history and a seaside town on foot | Plas y Môr (34) at Rhos on Sea | Conwy and Llandudno holiday cottages |
| Llangollen, Wrexham and the Vale of Clwyd | The Dee Valley, the aqueduct, the Clwydian hills and the market towns of Ruthin and Denbigh | Celebrations in big country houses, 40 minutes from Chester | The Manor (30), Alexander Lodge (23), The Plough Inn (16), The Vale Barn (12), Clwydian View (12), Lambourne House (8) and Lambourne Dell (2) | Llangollen and Wrexham holiday cottages |
| Menai Strait | Both sides of the bridges: Menai Bridge on Anglesey and Bangor on the mainland, with the mountains across the water | A base for both Anglesey and Snowdon, and dinner on foot in Menai Bridge | Craig y Don (20) on the water at Menai Bridge, Telford House (16) at Bangor | Beaumaris and the Menai Strait |
Getting to North Wales
The A55 runs along the north coast from Chester to Holyhead, and almost everyone arrives on it. From Chester, Llangollen is 40 minutes, Llandudno about an hour, and the Menai Strait an hour and a quarter. Abersoch, at the far end of the Llyn Peninsula, is two hours.
From Manchester, allow about an hour and a half to Llangollen, two hours to Llandudno or Anglesey, and nearer three to Abersoch. From Liverpool, Llangollen is an hour and Anglesey an hour and a half.
If you'd rather not drive, our holiday lets in North Wales nearest a station are on the coast. The North Wales Coast line stops at Flint, Rhyl, Llandudno Junction, Conwy, Bangor and Holyhead. The Cambrian Coast line reaches Pwllheli for the Llyn Peninsula, and Wrexham sits on the Shrewsbury line. Holyhead has the ferry from Dublin. Once you're here, you will want a car, because the places worth going are not on bus routes.
When to go
Summer runs May to September. The beaches, Snowdon and the big houses are at their busiest, and the homes sleeping 16 or more book up a year ahead for August and the May half term.
October to March is cheaper by a third or more. The hot tub homes earn their keep, and the mountains are better without the queue at the top. Christmas and New Year sell out first for the largest houses. Easter and the May bank holidays are the busiest weekends outside August.
Large holiday homes in North Wales
Our large holiday homes in North Wales are the reason most groups find us. Plas y Môr sleeps 34 guests, The Retreat 32 and The Manor 30, and plenty more sleep 16 to 22. Each listing shows the bedrooms and the beds, so you can settle who sleeps where before anyone books.
Split between everyone, a big house costs less per head than a chain hotel, which is why so many groups choose holiday cottages in North Wales over one. Our North Wales accommodation is whole houses only, and none of our North Wales cottages to rent is ever shared with another party. For a hen, stag or milestone birthday, see our hen party houses in Wales.
Pet-friendly North Wales holiday cottages
For dog friendly cottages, North Wales is one of the easiest places in Britain. Most of our homes here take dogs, and each listing says how many. Add them as an extra in the guest portal after you book.
Beach rules vary by county and run from 1 May to 30 September. Our dog friendly cottages in North Wales page has the homes and the rules in one place.
Why we love North Wales
You can swim off Anglesey in the morning and be on a mountain by lunch, and nobody will have asked you to book the mountain.
Cottages with hot tubs, and the luxury end
Our cottages with hot tubs in North Wales number 31, and every tub is private to the home. They range from wood-fired tubs for two on the Menai Strait to tubs for 30-plus guests at Plas y Môr and The Manor. Our hot tub cottages in North Wales page lists them all.
For luxury cottages, North Wales guests ask us most often for Craig y Don, Rhosneigr Hall and The Manor, with bars, cinema rooms and, at Craig y Don, a private jetty.
What it costs
A holiday property in North Wales with Birch starts at about £100 a night for a cottage for two, and about £550 a night for a house sleeping 12 or more. With twelve of you, that is about £46 a head a night, and it drops the more of you there are.
Seasonal rates apply. You pay 30% to secure the dates and the balance before you arrive; each listing gives the date.
What we know from staying here
Anglesey, for beaches you can walk to
Newborough Forest leads straight onto the beach and out to Llanddwyn Island, which the tide cuts off, with its lighthouse and ruined church. Rhosneigr has the surf, Beaumaris the castle, the pier and boat trips to Puffin Island, and Penmon Point the lighthouse and priory (bring coins for the toll road). Parys Mountain is a short walk over the ochre and purple spoil of the old copper mines, like nowhere else on the island. For dinner, Sosban and The Old Butchers in Menai Bridge has the Michelin star, Dylan's does local mussels, and Catch 22 at Valley is the one locals book. Give the island its own day rather than adding it to Conwy. The Anglesey page has the rest.
The Llyn Peninsula, for the quiet beaches
Walk across the golf course to Porthdinllaen, where the pub sits on the sand, and on past the lifeboat station to watch the seals. Whistling Sands is at the tip, Abersoch has the boats, and Criccieth has a castle on its headland. See the Llyn Peninsula.
Snowdonia, for the mountain days
Take the train up Snowdon and walk down, or the reverse; the train gives you about half an hour at the top and isn't cheap, so save it for a clear day. Pen-y-Pass car park has to be booked ahead. For the views without the queue, Cwm Idwal is an easy circuit of a glacial lake, Moel Siabod is the gentler summit, and the Llanberis Pass is the drive. Aber Falls is a short walk to two waterfalls. See Snowdonia.
Betws-y-Coed and the Conwy Valley, for walks and waterfalls
Swallow Falls is five minutes up the road from Betws-y-Coed, and Zip World's forest site there runs under the trees, which helps on a wet day. From The Old Tearoom at Trefriw, a 3.8-mile walk passes the Fairy Falls on the way up to Llyn Geirionydd and back down for a drink in the village. Bodnant Garden is 20 minutes down the valley.
Conwy and Llandudno, for a town with history
Conwy fills a day: the castle, the walls you walk on top of, Plas Mawr, the intact Elizabethan townhouse, and crabbing off the harbour with bacon from the shop by the castle. Parking is hard, so take the bus over from Llandudno. Llandudno has the pier and the Great Orme: up by tram or cable car, with the Bronze Age copper mines inside. From Plas y Môr, St Trillo's chapel on the shore at Rhos on Sea is the smallest church in Britain. See Conwy and Llandudno.
The Dee Valley, for the aqueduct
The Pontcysyllte Aqueduct near Llangollen is a World Heritage Site and free to walk across, or go over by canal boat. Llangollen has the steam railway and the ruins of Valle Crucis Abbey. See Llangollen and Wrexham.
When it rains
The castles first: Conwy, Caernarfon, Beaumaris and Harlech are all World Heritage Sites, and Penrhyn Castle near Bangor is the opulent Victorian one. Underground, there are the Great Orme mines, Sygun copper mine near Beddgelert, and Go Below or Zip World's caverns at Llechwedd. The Welsh Highland Railway runs from Caernarfon to Porthmadog, and the National Slate Museum at Llanberis is free. With children, Anglesey Sea Zoo, Pili Palas and the Welsh Mountain Zoo at Colwyn Bay. Portmeirion, the Italianate village on the estuary, looks like a corner of the Mediterranean dropped into Wales.
For a large group
We can add bookable experiences to your stay: a private chef, spa treatments at the house, a cocktail masterclass or an activity day. Ask when you book.
Fair warning
North Wales is bigger than it looks, and the mountains are in the middle of it. Rhosneigr to Abersoch is an hour and a quarter by road, though it looks like twenty miles across the water. Pick one coast for the week rather than trying both.
It rains in Snowdonia when it is dry on the coast, which is the whole point of the coast. Do the big shop in Bangor, Llandudno Junction or Wrexham on the way in. Each listing says whether the home has an EV charger and how it is paid for.
Why book direct with Birch Stays
Book direct and you'll deal with us, not a call centre. Our team will answer the phone and can tell you, honestly, which home has the better hot tub. When you're ready to book, pay 30% to hold your dates. The balance is usually due 60 days before you arrive, but it varies by home, so check the listing for your dates. If anything about the home changes before then, you'll hear it from us first.
