Two Welsh towns ranked as the happiest places to live in Britain

For many of us being Welsh and living in god’s own country is enough to satisfy the requirement for happiness.

However, according to a newly published list, there are two Welsh towns in particular which rank among the happiest places to live in Britain.

According to The Guardian newspaper, which conducted the research, Caernarfon and Aberystwyth ranks amongst the 20 happiest places in Britain – with Caernarfon in third place and Aberystwyth, fourth.

The paper measured the happiest towns using criteria such as access to green spaces as well as rivers, lakes or the sea and good air quality and convenience factors.

The factors also included things that made lives easier, such as public transport links, broadband speeds, access to health services, culture, in the form of museums, galleries, theatres and cinemas, and community, measured by pubs and libraries.

The newspaper ranked Caernarfon’s famous castle, Galeri and the Black Boy pub as some of the town’s main attractions.

The Guardian wrote that the “dramatic” mountain landscape of Eryri and the “beautiful” sandy beaches of Eryri were within an hour’s drive, as well as its nearest beach – Dinas Dinlle, being seven miles away.

The newspaper chose Caernarfon Food Festival as one of the main things to do in the town in spring, as well as going for a walk or cycling along Lôn Eifion. It also noted that Llandwrog is one of the best places to buy a house in the area, with house prices varying between £340,000 and £395,000.

It also recommended visitors to take on Beacon Climbing Centre, which is the largest of its kind in north Wales, and the Lôn Eifion Cycleway, which runs along a 12.5-mile route to Bryncir through “tranquil” woodland with views of Eryri.

When it came to Aberystwyth the paper described the town’s coastal setting as “spectacular” attracting crowds to the “sweeping promenade”.

It noted that the town was nestled not too far from the rugged landscape of the Cambrian Mountains, and that the landscape itself had played an integral part in the hit Welsh noir drama Y Gwyll (Hinterland).

It also recognised the town’s university which made it a “diverse and vibrant place”, teaching students from more than 100 countries, as well as the National Library of Wales, described as “one of the great libraries of the world”, the Arts Centre and the fact it is a Welsh language stronghold.

The paper added: “There is a nice alternative feel to Aberystwyth. For decades people with an interest in the environment and a desire to escape the rat race have found a new home here.”

The happiest places to live in Britain:

Berwick-upon-Tweed
Evesham
Caernarfon
Aberystwyth

And the best of the rest…

Aylesbury
Chesterfield
Chichester
Cirencester
Devizes
Durham
Exeter
Haddington
Lewes
Newport (Isle of Wight)
Padiham
Penzance
Perth
Shrewsbury
Worcester
York