Porthmadog Accommodation

Fantasy kitsch Portmeirion architecture and gardens

Views from Portmeirion

Chic Italianate kitsch

Portmeirion Botanic Garden, Portmeirion Pottery, Portmeirion, North Wales

Fantasy fairytale villages don't come more kitsch than this - in a world of it's own on the Snowdonia coast, Portmeirion was the idea of one man, Sir Clough Williams-ellis. His daughter and partner continue to manage the site. Open all year round, Portmeirion doesn't just have a selection of fascinating buildings including a mock castle, but is also crammed with stunning gardens and woodland. You can stay here, or come for a day trip. Portmeirion is easily accessible just over a mile to the east of Porthmadog.

Portmeirion,Gwynedd, LL48 6ET, Cymru/Wales. Tel: 01766 770228. (see weblink right for Portmeirion Village Guide). Portmeirion Village is open daily from 9.30am to 5.30pm. No dogs allowed (except Guide Dogs). There is a charge to enter - check the website for details.

Portmeirion Village History & Architecture - Clough Williams-Ellis

Developed by the architect Clough Williams-Ellis (1883-1978) and now administered by his daugher and her husband, Portmeirion is a visual delight of a village set on Snowdonia's coast overlooking the Llyn Peninsula. Williams-Ellis shaped the village between 1925 to 1927, and continued to work on it until his death in 1978.

Included on this pretty Welsh village, where only visitors frequent, are 50 buildings all clustered around a central piazza. Chic Italianate kitsch are words that come to mind, Williams-Ellis intended to preserve the area unlike other toy-town villages like Saltaire near Bradford or Port Sunlight on the Wirral created by paternalist industry owners for 'their' workers. This fairytale bubble of a village crammed with gardens and mock castles.

You can stay here in the village either in self catering cottages or at the Hotel Portmeirion (see Portmeirion village weblink right for details). Conference events and weddings are also welcome.

Portmeirion has served as inspiration for numerous artists - Noel Coward wrote 'Blithe Spirit' whilst on a visit to Portmeirion. It's most famous claim to fame however is as a site for the filming of the TV series 'The Prisoner'. Fans of the series or the curious can visit 'The Prisoner Centre' in Portmeirion.

Portmeirion Gardens

There's been planting afoot here in Portmeirion since the Victorian period, and this combined with a nice mild climate (there's rarely frosts here), make Portmeirion a nature and garden lovers' paradise. An amazing selection of trees are here including enormous Douglas Firs, Monterey Pines and Coast Redwoods.

You've a selection of gardens and woodland at Portmeirion. Gwyllt Woodlands can be accessed via paths out from the Triumpha Arch. Expect to see some exotic plants here including Gingko Biloba, Maidenhair trees and a good sprinkling of rhododendrons. You can buy exotic plants from the Portmeirion Plant Centre (open daily from 10am to 6pm) - it's situated near Castell Deudraeth. Mock castle Deudraeth also has gardens of the walled flower variety. Portmeirion is certainly a hotspot for keen gardeners looking for ideas.

Just to the north of Portmeirion Centre are the Plas Brondanw Gardens centred around a striking house, most of which dates from 1550. An unusual landscape garden, the sculptured hedges are amazing here, Clough inherited Plas Brondanw in 1908 - he was still planting here as late as 1971!

Portmeirion Pottery & Shops

One of the best things about visiting Portmeirion is a visit to the Y Llong / Ship Shop selling Portmeirion Pottery. Even better there's a Portmeirion Pottery Seconds Warehouse offering factory seconds at knockout prices! All your favourite Portmeirion designs here, courtesy of Susan Williams-Ellis, daughter of Clough Williams-Ellis the architect of Portmeirion village.

Susan trained at the acclaimed Chelsea School of Art under the likes of Henry Moore and Graham Sutherland. When she and husband Euan took over running the shops at Portmeirion in the 1950s, she developed a selection of ceramic ranges to sell. The quality of the work is timeless - Crazy Daisy - what's your favourite. Her original poular 1960s Totem design has just been re-released - the ultimate in retro ceramics! Portmeirion Pottery is shipped all over the world these days. Stunning design available at a reasonable cost is also another plus point to Portmeirion Pottery.

Other Portmeirion shops within the village alongside the Ship Shop and Portmeirion Seconds Warehouse include The Golden Dragon Bookshop, The Prisoner Shop (the TV series The Prisoner was filmed here in Portmeirion), Pot Jam, Papur a Phensal and Siop Bach and the Dome Gallery hosted by the artist Rob Piercy (weblink for Rob Piercy art linked right).

All the shops, except the Dome Gallery and Siop Bach, are open all year round and every day from 10am to 5.30pm. The Dome and Siop Bach are closed in Winter.

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