There are many reasons to visit our twin town in Wales…..
| A | Llantarnam Grange ARTS Centre, Cwmbran A centre for contemporary Art and Craft with exhibitions and education programmes, based in a 19th century manor house in the centre of Cwmbran New Town Abergavenny – a market town in Monmouthshire, Wales, the ‘Gateway to Wales’ and the Brecon Beacons, just 14 miles north of Cwmbran, and 6 miles from the English border. http://www.llantarnamgrange.com |
| B | Blaenavon Blaenavon, the most northerly town in Torfaen. Within the Blaenavon Industrial Landscape which features the Blaenavon Ironworks and Big Pit the National Coal Museum. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. |
| C | Caerleon Roman Ampitheatre, Roman Fortress Baths and National Roman Legion Museum This was mentioned by Tacitus in his ‘Agricola’, a Latin text known to many classical students! http://www.museum.wales Cardiff Also Cardiff, Capital of Wales. Interesting National Museum, Cardiff Bay, Bute Park, Sophia Gardens, beautiful Llandaff Cathedral which has an Epstein Christ Statue above the main aisle. Cardiff Castle. Several Universities and major Hospital. The Welsh Folk Museum at St. Fagans brings together housing and artifacts from across Wales. And Caerphilly Castle The largest castle in Wales www.cadw.gov.wales |
| D | Dyffryn Gardens, Wales A National Trust property west of Cardiff, one of the top 100 gardens in the UK, open all year. More than 55 acres with a collection of garden rooms including a rose garden, Pompeian garden and several ponds. http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk |
| E | Eisteddfod The National Eisteddfod of Wales An Annual Festival held in a different place in Wales each year. 2026 will be held in August in Llanfwd, North Pembrokeshire http://www.eisteddfod.wales |
| F | Football Cwmbran Stadium – the home of Cwmbran Town Football Club |
| G | Greenmeadow Community Farm The Farm has recently undergone a major refurbishment and has now reopened with a mix of farm attraction with animals and play, a farm shop and farm café. |
| H | Henllys Nature Reserve It’s a small 30 minute round walk on the Mynydd Maen mountain range to the west of the town, a lovely forest walk with many historic trees. It links with the Blaen Bran Community Woodland trail a short distance to the north. www.blaenbran.uk |
| I | Industry The Princess Royal recently visited Crane (ChemPharma & Energy), a factory that opened as Saunders Valve in 1939 and is a leading global supplier of aseptic diaphragm valve flow solutions to Life Science Industries. https://cranecpe.com |
| J | John Frosts John Frosts’s Chartists stopped at the Upper Cocks and Greenhouse pubs in 1839 as they made their way to Newport. Alexander Cordell’s Trilogy of mid-nineteenth-century Wales:- The Rape of the Fair Country, The Hosts of Rebecca, and Song of the Earth covers this period of turbulent industrial history. There is a ‘Cordell Trail’ which covers the routes taken by the men seeking freedom and the right to vote. Chartism in Wales: www.bbc.co.uk |
| K | Knauf Factory Cwmbran – makes insulation materials The Cwmbran Factory is part of the Knauff global business which started in the Schengen Community in Germany, and now employs more than 43,000 employees worldwide. www.knauf.co.uk |
| L | Llanyrafon Manor Farm Llanyrafon Manor Farm has recently reopened with a wide range of events: ghost tours, festivals, traditional events (e.g. pumpkin picking), markets, nature trails etc. There is a Tearoom on site in the original medieval farmhouse. The Manor was part of a large 1000 acre farm which included the Mill across the road. www.llanyrafonmanorfarm.com |
| M | Torfaen Museum is based in Pontypool Park in the Georgian Stable Block which once formed part of the residence of the Hanbury Family –local ironmasters during the 18 and 19th Centuries. It has fascinating collections of Torfaen’s heritage including those from Cwmbran. https://www.torfaenmuseum.org.uk |
| N | Newport Tredegar House Now run by the National Trust , it is a 17th Century large Country House with magnificent ornate rooms, set in extensive grounds. www.nationaltrust.org.uk Also of interest in Newport are the rare Transporter Bridge and the St Woolos Cathedral |
| O | Opera The Welsh National Opera performs at the Wales Millenium Centre in Bute Place Cardiff. The autumn 2025 programme included Tosca and Candide. Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman is due 16 & 19 April 2026 www.wmc.org.uk |
| P | Parkrun Parkrun Cwmbran’s 5k weekly Saturday event starts at 9 a.m. at the Boating Lake and runs Northwards along the banks of the Afon Llwyd. |
| Q | Quiet There are many places to relax. Blaen Bran Community Woodland is also mentioned under B |
| R | Railway Pontypool and Blaenavon Railway Company is a volunteer-run not for profit charitable organisation. It provides a trip back in time through the World Heritage Landscape by a Steam locomotive www.bhrailway.co.uk Cwmbran has a modern rail station with trains running north to Manchester, and south to Newport where connections are made to London Paddington, the west of England, Cardiff, Swansea and west Wales. https://www.nationalrail.co.uk |
| S | Shopping Centre Cwmbran Shopping Centre is a major centre in South Wales, now run by ‘M’. It is easily reached by bus, train or car with the attraction of free car parking. There is a mix of shops with a range of Supermarkets around the perimeter – Sainsbury’s, Asda, Morrisons, Aldi and Lidl. The Congress Theatre and Library are in the Central Square. https://www.cwmbrancentre.com The major shopping centre of Cardiff can be reached by bus, train or car; The Mall at Bristol is best reached by car. |
| T | Tower The Tower block when completed in 1967 was the tallest residential building in Wales. It has 23 storeys. |
| U | University The University of South Wales, Newport Campus. The two other Campus sites are in Pontypridd and Cardiff. Cardiff also has the original University founded in 1883 which is a member of the Russell Group, and Cardiff Metropolitan University. https://uniswales.ac.uk |
| V | Voices – Harmonize Choir and Bruchsal Police Choir. The Choirs met last year, 2024, in Cwmbran, and have now met in Bruchsal, October 2025. Choral singing is an important area of Welsh culture, whether Male Voice Choirs, Female or Mixed Choirs. |
| W | Wales Coastal Path The Wales Coastal Path is 1,400 kilometres long https://www.walescoastpath.gov.uk The Wye Valley National Landscape which is an area of outstanding beauty, is not far from Cwmbran, and the drive along the river road from Monmouth to Chepstow where the Wales Coastal Path starts, is beautiful at all times of the year but particularly in the autumn. https://www.wyevalley-nl.org.uk |
| X | X-Ray You can get an X-Ray at the Grange University Hospital in Cwmbran. The Hospital is a relatively new Specialist and Critical Care Centre serving the Gwent and south Powys area of South Wales It provides care for those who are seriously ill or have complex problems or conditions which cannot be safely managed at the Local General Hospitals. www.abuhb.nhs.wales |
| Y | Yachting Yachting at Llandegfedd Reservoir A large 434 acre Reservoir where fishing and watersports take place. Water-sport hire and tuition is available. Water activities include windsurfing, dinghy sailing, paddle and pedal boarding, canoeing and kayaking. There are Walking trails and footpaths, and wildlife watching, plus a visitor centre and café. https://llandegfedd.co.uk |
| Z | Zoo We don’t need a Zoo as we have our wonderful Greenmeadow Community Farm with more than 20 different species of native and rare breed animals with indoor and outdoor activities. https://www.greenmeadowcommunityfarm.org.uk |
