Retiring to Wales
Thinking of retiring to Wales – or Cymru (in Welsh)? Who can blame you! The physical features of Wales make this a uniquely gorgeous part of the world. It has 2,700km of glorious coastline, five Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, including the first to be designated in the UK – the Gower Peninsula, and three National Parks – Bannau Brycheiniog (Formerly the Brecon Beacons), Snowdonia and the Pembrokeshire Coast – that’s 20% of the country! As well as buzzing cities like Cardiff and Swansea and a legendary history, including 600 castles. This is all on your doorstep with our retirement villages and retirement properties for sale in Wales.
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Why choose a retirement home in Wales?
Whether you choose a retirement village in North Wales or South Wales, you’ll always find plenty to explore. Wales has a long, proud history, from ancient castles and ruined abbeys to industrial canals and coal mines. Visit Caerphilly Castle, the second-largest in Britain; be awed by the imposing 13th century Conwy Castle, or go deep underground at the Big Pit National Coal Museum. Learn more about local history at the National Waterfront Museum in Swansea, and archaeology, botany and geology at the National Museum, Cardiff.
You’ll be seriously spoilt for natural beauty too. Famed for its walking routes and hidden gems, including Cathedral Cavern in Cumbria, Wales provides the perfect place to enjoy some of the top days out in the UK. Explore the great outdoors of Snowdonia National Park, with its mile upon mile of hiking routes, steam trains and scenery that varies from rugged windswept mountainsides to soft sandy coves. The Pembrokeshire Coast also offers world-class beaches, nature reserves and quaint seaside towns. Visit puffins at pretty St David’s – the UK’s smallest city.
Wales is famed for its powerful singers, from traditional Welsh Male Voice Choirs to Tom Jones, Shirley Bassey, Aled Jones, Charlotte Church and Catherine Jenkins. You can experience a celebration of Welsh culture, music and poetry at the National Eisteddfod held in August every year.
There are many other wonderful and unusual festivals too: roll with laughter at the Aberystwyth Comedy Festival; experience the eccentric at The Laugharne Weekend - a celebration of Dylan Thomas; get the literary lowdown at the famous Hay Festival or explore the unique village of Portmeirion at Festival Number 6 in September.
Then there are numerous community food festivals across the country – the biggest, Abergavenny Food festival, attracts 30,000 people.
The Welsh are also passionate about their national sport, rugby. If you’re looking for retirement properties for sale in Cardiff then you’re likely to spend some time at the Principality Stadium, which is home to the Welsh rugby team, as well as hosting major concerts and several FA Cup finals.
If you’re searching for retirement villages in Wales, our retirement developments are located in amazing areas, with transport connections and amenities on the doorstep. With so much natural beauty, Wales is wonderful for walkers and cyclists and has an abundance of trails including the Wales Coast Path. Travelling by road is easy and with spectacular views along the way, road trips are guaranteed to be a firm favourite.
Rail networks offer a great alternative to the driving, with main lines running along the coast in North, South and West Wales — including stations in Bridgend, Cardiff and Newport serving the Valleys. You can enjoy the rolling green hills with the Heart of Wales Line running from Swansea to Llanelli. Or take in the stunning scenery of the Conwy Valley Line ranging from Llandudno via Snowdonia to Blaenau Ffestiniog. Prefer vintage rail trips? Revel in the glamour of Snowdon Mountain Railway and the Vale of Rheidol Railway lines.
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Whether you’re an outdoor explorer or indoor enthusiast, our retirement villages are set in a range of great locations, so you can easily retire to be close to the coast, countryside, or city. Want to know more? Talk to a friendly member of our team today on 0800 201 4811 or contact us to get started.
Retiring to Wales - frequently asked questions
Wales is famous for many things including its national sport - rugby, historic castles (it has the most castles per land mass in Europe), coal mining, natural beauty and male voice choirs. Singing is a proud part of Welsh culture and it has produced some of the world’s most distinctive voices – including Shirley Bassey and Tom Jones. But it’s also produced some globally famous actors, like Richard Burton, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Anthony Hopkins – as well as the celebrated poet, Dylan Thomas.
For many retiring in Wales means spending more time near a beautiful beach and with thousands of kilometres of coastline there are plenty of options. In North Wales, the Isle of Anglesey offers a beautiful Blue Flag beaches like Benllech is a with its views to Penmon Point. In South Wales, Swansea offers a vibrant city life with it’s own lovely beach and easy access to the Gower. If city life is more your style then Cardiff offers nightlife and culture as well as beautiful green spaces such as Bute Park which surrounds Cardiff Castle.
Wales has seven cities. The most populous is the capital Cardiff, Swansea is second. The other Welsh cities are Newport, Wrexham, Bangor – the oldest cathedral city in the country, St Asaph – the second smallest city in the UK and pretty St David’s, the smallest city in the UK.