Beaumaris in the Rain

Weatherproof Heritage

Inside the walls of Beaumaris Castle — Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Rain suits castles. Beaumaris Castle’s covered wall passages run inside the walls themselves, so a good hour of exploring stays largely under stone; the moat in the rain is quietly atmospheric, and crowds vanish. Two minutes away, St Mary’s Church offers medieval misericords, Princess Joan’s coffin and total shelter. When the Gaol and Courthouse reopen after refurbishment, they are the town’s definitive wet-day double bill — check current status before relying on them.

If It Sets In

Browse the independent shops and galleries of Castle Street, then take the car ten minutes to Menai Bridge or half an hour to the slate and railway attractions of the mainland — our day trips guide has wet-weather-worthy options. And remember the strait is at its moodiest and most photogenic under storm light: the view from the pier shelter costs nothing.

The Wet-Day Mindset

Beaumaris in rain rewards a change of pace rather than a change of plan: the town was built by people who lived with this weather, and its pleasures — stone, firelight, food, talk — are mostly indoor pleasures anyway. Pack for it (the strait’s squalls pass fast; showers here are often twenty-minute affairs with brilliance between) and use the gaps: the castle empty in drizzle, the pier between showers, rainbows over the strait that no sunny day can offer. The photographs nobody else gets are taken on the days everybody else stayed home.