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Welsh destinations named Britain’s fastest-growing staycation hotspots

20 Sep 2026 5 minute read

Llandudno seafront. Image: Tayybah Yasin via Unsplash

Nation.Cymru Staff

Welsh holiday destinations have recorded some of the biggest increases in staycation interest anywhere in Britain this summer, with enquiries for breaks in parts of the country more than quadrupling in a year.

UK self-catering holiday cottage marketplace Independent Cottages compared enquiries across its site from June through August 2026 against the same months in 2025, location by location.

The results show a “huge shift” away from the usual UK staycation shortlist, which includes the Cotswolds, the Lake District, and Cornwall.

Wales recorded some of the sharpest increases in the dataset, with enquiries for Gwynedd up 349.4% and Conwy up 276.2%, the two largest rises recorded. Swansea also saw an increase of 87.5%.

Gwynedd

Gwynedd is already home to some of the country’s best-known holiday destinations, with quaint towns like Dolgellau, Barmouth, and Caernarfon offering historic sites, walking routes, and mountain landscapes.

Eryri National Park offers more than 800 square miles of mountains, lakes and valleys, with hundreds of walking routes, including Gelert’s grave, Llyn Ogwen, Rhaeadr Ddu, and Dinas Oleu, all noted as “breathtaking” by the National Trust.

Ffos Noddum. Photo Parc Cenedlaethol Eryri is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.

Gwynedd has two World Heritage Sites, the first of which is The Castles and Town Walls of King Edward, encompassing the castles of Caernarfon and Harlech.

These castles form part of what is considered one of Europe’s finest surviving examples of late 13th-century military architecture, and both are open to visitors.

The county is also home to The Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales, which spans six areas across Gwynedd and tells the story of how slate quarrying transformed the region’s landscape, communities, and transport networks, while supplying Welsh slate to buildings around the world.

There are also several award-winning locations around the county, including Plas Dinas Country House in Caernarfon, which won Best Hotel at the 2025 Wales’ Tourism Awards, with its restaurant, The Gunroom, named Best Place to Eat.

The Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railway, the world’s oldest narrow gauge railway, was awarded Best Attraction and takes visitors through the county’s stunning scenery on historic steam engines.

Conwy

Gwynedd’s neighbour, Conwy has long been a favoured staycation destination, attracting over 9 million visitors in 2025 to seaside destinations like Llandudno and charming villages like Betws-y-Coed.

Conwy Castle and its town walls also form part of the Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd World Heritage Site, despite being located in the modern-day county of Conwy.

Other historic sites and places of interest include the Grade I-listed Bodnant Garden, where visitors can stroll through wildflower meadows and what has been described as “the finest rose garden in Wales”, as well as Conwy town’s Smallest House in Great Britain, measuring just 72 inches wide by 122 inches high, whose last resident was a 6ft 3in fisherman.

The county, like others in Wales, is rich in wildlife, with RSPB Conwy, a wetland reserve near Llandudno Junction, offering trails through reedbeds, grassland and along the estuary. Its lagoons attract a variety of waders and waterbirds throughout the year.

The nearby Welsh Mountain Zoo in Colwyn Bay is home to over 60 different species, including Sumatran tigers, spider monkeys, and Madagascar iguanas. They also host species talks and presentations throughout the day, with a jungle-themed playground for younger visitors.

The Great Orme Tramway. Image: Trevor Bittner via Unsplash

One of the most popular destinations in Conwy, Llandudno has been welcoming holidaymakers since the 1850s. Its pier, measuring 2,295 feet, is the longest in Wales, while its Great Orme Tramway is the only cable-hauled tramway operating on British public roads.

The town retains much of its Victorian character, with seafront terraces along its promenade and Mostyn Street, named for the family who first proposed the town become a holiday resort.

Adventure

In Scotland, North Ayrshire and West Lothian recorded increases of 233.3% and 200% respectively, while enquiries for Perth and Kinross fell by 73% and South Lanarkshire by 75%.

In England, some of the biggest increases were recorded away from traditional south-west holiday destinations. Enquiries for Lancashire rose by 205.2%, while Staffordshire saw an increase of 200%.

In comparison to Welsh locations, Cornwall, one of the UK’s best-known staycation destinations, recorded a considerably smaller rise of 16.8%.

Matthew Fox, CEO of Independent Cottages, said: “After a few years of uncertainty around overseas travel and the rising cost of holidays, we’re seeing people become much more considered about where they spend their summer break.

“Rather than automatically returning to the traditional hotspots, holidaymakers seem to be looking for destinations that offer the same scenery, space and experiences without the same price tag or crowds.

“This summer’s figures suggest Brits are becoming more adventurous with their staycations, and discovering that some of the best alternatives to the usual favourites are right on their doorstep.”

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