Welsh national parks make top five ‘most accessible’ list

New research has revealed the UK’s most accessible National Parks – with two Welsh locations featuring in the top five.

The news comes in light of ONS research highlighting that over half (51.5%) of people with disabilities find it difficult to access public and leisure services across the country.

Independent Cottages analysed the most accessible national parks in the UK for 2024 to understand how easy it may be for disabled individuals to experience Britain beyond its leisure experiences in cities and towns, to instead make the most of its countryside landscapes.

The UK’s National Parks are world renowned, with the New York Times praising y Bannau Brycheiniog in its list of the best places in the world to visit earlier this year.

Th national park was commended for the return to its original name which took place in April of last year – seeing its English name scrapped in favour of Bannau Brycheiniog to underline its commitment to Welsh culture, language and heritage.

Analysis

The new research saw the holiday let company analyse publicly available data points from official UK national park websites, including:

– The amount of accessible toilets, disabled parking spaces, and accessible routes and attractions

– How well each park communicated its accessibility information on its official website (determining how easy it is for those with disabilities to plan a trip)

– The average score of Google reviews referencing ‘disabled’, to take into account the lived experiences of those who have visited the national park who are disabled, or with someone with a disability

Winners

The Cairngorms National Park and The Peak District National Park both secured joint first place in the rankings, closely followed by Eryri National Park in third place.

And in further good news for Wales, Bannau Brycheiniog came in closely behind at number four.

#1 The Cairngorms

#1 The Peak District

#3 Eryri

#4 Bannau Brycheiniog

#5 North York Moors

#5 South Downs

In further good news for visitors of Welsh national parks, Pembrokeshire Coast National Park came in just outside the top ten at number 11.

Access and Well-being Manager of Eryri National Park, Peter Rutherford, shared: “What’s important to us, and every national park throughout the country, is adopting a philosophy that carefully considers accessibility.

“It is at the forefront of our conversations and decisions here at the National Park Authority, and we’re always working to find the least restrictive options to open up opportunities for all.”

You can find a full breakdown of the national park rankings, as well as a full study that includes a detailed methodology, here.