You may remember that I used to travel to work on the bus and always found it fun! So when I was offered a chance to take part in Arriva Buses’s Ride & Seek campaign I jumped at the chance! And so on Saturday we had a great day out on the buses!
We had planned on making it a family day on the buses but husband pointed out that the littlest suffers from travel sickness. I really did not fancy cleaning up her throw up so it was just me and the eldest. It was her first time on the buses and it was such an adventure for her!
The Bus
The plan was to visit Conwy Castle and as it happens there’s a direct bus from Caernarfon to Llandudno (which goes through Conwy). We caught the 9am number 5 bus from Caernarfon. The timetable said to get the number X5 bus from Bangor so I thought we had to change… we didn’t! Our 5 bus became the X5! How handy is that?
Arriva now have a mobile app which you can use to buy tickets (search for Arriva M-Ticket) which I had fully intended to use. Unfortunately due to my crappy wi-fi and no 3G I couldn’t use it. I did however spot a number of passengers come on the bus using their e-tickets though. No instead I bought the ticket on the bus – £5.50 return from Caernarfon to Llandudno.
The bus itself was really clean and the chairs were comfy. Not those horrid plastic seats that I remember from my school bus days! Oh and the bus has free wi-fi! YASS!
The Journey
It was a lovely journey! The views along the North Wales Coast are AMAZING! The main reasons I like travelling by bus is that I get to nosey! If I’m driving, I obviously can’t look around. Also, the bus takes you through all these wonderful little villages which I wouldn’t normally visit if travelling by car. On the journey to Conwy the bus takes you into Abergwyngregyn – a little tiny village which you zoom past on the A55. I had seen someone mention Aber Falls and hadn’t realised it was in Abergwyngregyn. Now I know!
Husband needed to get into Llandudno to get something from Acme Games so we ended up taking the bus all the way to the end of the line.
Conwy Castle
I’ve been to Conwy Castle relatively recently but it’s such a good day that it’s always great to go back. It was such a sunny day and the views over Conwy Marina and Conwy Estuary was just spectacular! Honestly, why do you even need to think about going abroad when you have this on your doorstep.
The girls loved running around the castle but I was in full on panic mode when they got close to the edges of those walls! As you can see from the above photo…. quite a drop down! On the grass in the main area there were some smaller walls which they loved to play on. My littlest is such a little daredevil! Nothing stops her. Eldest is a bit more wary though. Not sure if it’s just an age thing or a personality thing!
Eating Out
We had lunch at Watson’s Bistro which is a little bistro situated in one of the back roads in Conwy. I wouldn’t have known about it expect my husband had been before and said that the food was amazing. He wasn’t wrong! I went for a vegetarian option – wild mushroom cousous with veg and crips. Oh my word! SO yummy! Hubby had his usual choice – a burger but this one was posher than a Big Mac! Girls had pizza and chicken nuggets because it’s the only thing they seem to eat without fuss.
We decided not to have pudding at the bistro and instead had ice cream by the castle. They didn’t have any mint (my fave) so instead I opted for a raspberry one. It was so nice!!
I caught the 15.07 bus back from Conwy. I went on my own as the girls had fallen asleep and hubby put them straight in the car. I had planned on doing some vlogging on the way home but the idiot that is me forgot the portable charger for my phone. Never mind! It was a relaxing journey on the way back… just taking in the views of the North Wales coast.
All in all it was a fab day out! It’s reconfirmed to me that I do enjoy travelling by bus! For more inspiration of fab days out on the buses take a peek at Arriva’s Ride & Seek website. I must admit, the North Wales Postcard Fair in Llandudno looks interesting! (That’s the stationery geek in me for sure!)
Are you a fan of public transport? Do you use the buses often? And how about those views eh?
(Arriva Buses kindly paid for my day out however all opinions are my own)
Neither my fella or I drive so we rely on buses. I much prefer traveling on buses now that they have free wi-fi and charging points on board. hehehe
It looks like you had a fab day x
Looks like you had a lovely time. I don’t use public transport often, it’s not as flexible, but it surely saves time on finding a car park. I would use the tube in London most times, but sometimes we might pay the Congestion Charge (£11.50!!) and go with the car, if the parking is ok.