For one night only

[Patrick Thistle]

I'm in Aberystwyth tonight for a work thing tomorrow. Had a little wander when we arrived. Saw the castle and sea front. The town itself is a curious mix of funky delis, boarded up shops, Welsh nationalism and classic owner occupied B&Bs.

Feel free to log your short stopovers here.

[Various Artist]

For one night only

I lived in Aberystwyth from 1997-2006. Not a "short" visit per se, I grant you, but a stopover nonetheless. Have only been back once, the September before last, in all the time since I left however, and I still miss the place. Send my love will you PT?

Spent the last three and a half years I was there living near the castle, in a corner house overlooking the Old College and thus a short hop from the seafront. Spent one summer living right on the front on South Beach, around the castle headland from the main promenade, which was quite something – right next door to one of those "classic owner occupied B&Bs", in fact.

Hope there was a good sunset for you this evening, you get world class ones with fantastic colours over the bay, and vast flocks of starlings wheeling across the dusk sky over the sea before plunging to roost under the pier. You can just see Snowdonia on the northern horizon when it's backlit at the right angle, too.

If you're out and about right now and it's not past closing time already, check out the Academy pub on St James' Mews, just past the clock tower at the intersection of Great Darkgate Street (the main high street) and Pier Street, for an interesting drinking venue – it's a converted church. Rummer's tavern/wine bar, next to the river at Bridge Terrace near the bottom of South Road, is a good place for some nice ambience.

Don't know how long you're around for tomorrow, but Little Italy on Northgate Street (keep going straight from the bottom of Gt Darkgate St) was always my favourite restaurant in town by far. If you fancy a classic greasy-spoon breakfast in the morning, the Upper Limit cafe on the same road is the place to go. The Orangery on Market St (turn left near the bottom of Gt Darkgate St) is a great place to eat/drink/chill, though googling it now it appears it may have disappeared, alas. Hopefully the other places I mention won't have.
Round the corner from the latter is Eastgate (running down parallel with the high street), and near the top of that (where it joins Pier Street) there's a chip shop that always sold the best chips in the known universe, as far as I and many other connoisseurs were concerned. Will say no more or else I'll start drooling.

If you go back to the castle, try to find the 'whispering wall' – a long curved colonnade cut into the cliff, where you can stand at one end and the acoustics mean someone at the far end can hear you even if you only whisper. If you've time to spare tomorrow and it's nice out, you could always take the funicular railway up Constitution Hill at the end of the seafront to admire the views through the camera obscura on the top, or failing that there used to be a nice little ice-cream hut on South Marine Terrace just outside the south end of the castle grounds. Folk wisdom in Aber always said never eat the ice-creams from the pier, though.

[jameswba]

For one night only

I stayed in the Glengower when I was there. They had some great beers and a huge range of whiskies. I believe they're well up and running again after being flooded out last(?) year. The Greek restaurant in town was all right too.

The towns to the south along that coast are lovely, especially Aberaeron and Newquay. We also took the little steam train up to Devil's Bridge, but that day saw the kind of rain you really only seem to get in corners of Wales, and we couldn't appreciate it at all.

[NickSTFU]

For one night only

Seeing how well travelled most people appear to be on here this thread could go on forever.

[Vicarious Thrillseeker]

For one night only

I once had a Saturday overnight stopover in Aberystwyth before heading to Brecon for a regional cricket match on the Sunday - I think it was the North Wales cricket association against one of the larger South Walian ones. We all got there fairly late, after we had finished our respective Saturday club games. We ended up drinking in a nightclub on the pier, as it was the only place left open. We were captained by Richard Lloyd Jones, a Bob Carolgees lookalike from Bangor but with slightly crossed eyes and incredibly long pockets to go with his short arms. During the game, he disappeared on a kids' bike to visit an old girlfriend while we got soundly humped. Our Australian fast bowler, Paul Tregloan, finished off the game by bowling six bouncers, each one of which went for four behind square - the last one fielded by intrepid skipper, pedalling back from his afternoon delight.

[gintsr]

For one night only

I was at Aberystwyth at 25/03/08 for their game vs Llanelli. It was last game in my first proper football tour and I planned Huddersfield-Leeds for that night but it was postponed I think. Game ended 1:2, I sat in Diaz stand and 10+ teens there sung their hearts out.

Seaside, pier and walkabout through town and after game journey to Stansted for 6:25 flight home.

[Benjm]

For one night only

The Druids have that burg sewn up tight and there's some pretty whacked out Patagonian War veterans knocking round too.

[Felicity, I guess so]

For one night only

I went to a wedding in Aberystwyth in the late 80s. We commandeered a seafront guesthouse called Brendan and had a ridiculously debauched time. the only other thing I remember is a National Milk Bar on the way home, perhaps just outside town?

Brendan is still there, but renamed. Milk Bar gone, I gather.

[Vicarious Thrillseeker]

For one night only

Benjm wrote: The Druids have that burg sewn up tight and there's some pretty whacked out Patagonian War veterans knocking round too.

Very Louie Knight. I've read them all - can't wait for the next, if there is indeed one. We saw a radio play on stage at our local theatr, based on the 'Aberystwyth' books. I think it was adapted and aired on Radio 4 once.

[Giggler]

For one night only

Patrick Thistle wrote:
Feel free to log your short stopovers here.

Stoke, in February 2007. I was supposed to be travelling to Birmingham to do a day's training for a new job but because of weather never got further south than the Potteries.

Dickie Branson put me up in the hotel opposite Stoke station. After staring at the walls of my windowless room for an hour I decided to go for a drink and embarked on the loneliest pub crawl ever, around the student district near the station. I ended the night with a kebab and sauce so hot it gave me terrible sweats all night, which made getting into yesterday's shirt the next morning without any deodorant a horrible prospect.