The marketing slogan chosen for the Welsh National Parks of “Britain’s breathing spaces” was never more appropriate than in the Brecon Beacons. The vast majority of the seven million annual visitors to the National Park come from the valleys of South Wales, for whom it has been a vital lung and escape route for generations.

Since before the rapid growth and later decline of the coal mining industry, the Beacons had beckoned the people of the Rhondda and the other South Wales valleys by the striking contrast provided by their clean, fresh air and wonderful vistas to their grim everyday working conditions.

It was the proximity to the populations of these dark, industrial landscapes which was one of the major reasons for the designation of the National Park. Even today only 32,000 people actually live within the National Park, but its catchment area for potential day visitors runs into millions.

This practical visitor guide, published in partnership with the Brecon Beacons Park authority to mark the Park’s 50th anniversary, gives you everything you need for an enjoyable visit to the Brecon Beacons. After a regional breakdown in geographical areas, the guide looks at the Park’s history, human and natural, and lists things to do and places to visit, ending with a useful gazetteer of towns and villages.

Roly Smith is former Head of Information Services to the Peak District National Park, and got to know the Brecon Beacons through many walking excursions. He is president of the Outdoor Writers’ Guild and a member of the British Guild of Travel Writers. He lives in the heart of the Peak District in Bakewell.

ISBN 978 1 84114 645 4, paperback, 205x205mm, 80 pages. Published November 2007.