Wales (UK) Travel Guide

Essentials

The chances of illness are low, however a good standard of care at hospitals and local medical centres in the country, is on hand for anyone unfortunate enough to require treatment during their stay.

Safety: Wales is largely a safe country to visit but still comes with its fair share of warnings, with some inner city areas where crime levels are higher than average. Common sense and some basic precautions can go a long way to ensuring most visitors enjoy a holiday free from unfortunate incidents.

In the big cities such as Cardiff, Swansea and Newport, the risk factors increase especially in busy places such as bus or train stations. Travelling on public transport late at night can be potentially dangerous.

Use your common sense with regards to those areas that you should or should not stray into, avoiding obviously seedy locations and those with potentially criminal associations. Cars should be parked in official car parks and not on quiet back streets and items of value should never be left inside vehicles.

The beach resorts such as those at Anglesey, Llandudno, Tenby and Carmarthen Bay can be lovely if the weather is good, offering soft white sands for sunbathing on and pleasant sea waters, perfect for the pursuit of a variety of water sports. The summer season can get busy, so book hotel rooms well ahead of time or plan your trip on the seasonal ‘fringes’.

Money: as part of the United Kingdom, Wales has retained the pound as its official currency as opposed to joining other EU member states in the adoption of the Euro. Pound sterling is a unit made up of 100 pence. Notes are issued in denominations of 5, 10, 20 and 50 pounds, while coins come in denominations of 1 and 2 pounds and 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 pence pieces.

ATMs are available across the country, even in many of the small rural villages and the majority accept international cards, although overseas visitors are wise to make sure their cards are endorsed by a reputable credit name such as Visa, AMEX or Diner’s Club.

Language: both English and Welsh are spoken in Wales, with English being the main language in the south of the country while in some areas of the north, Welsh is the first language. While road signs appear in both languages, many examples of public literature are offered in Welsh only. However, everyone can speak English, posing no problem to visitors.

Emergency: the country’s police, fire and ambulance services are, on the whole, efficient and fast to respond to calls for action.

Ambulance: 999

Police: 999

Business needs: overseas visitors with suitable handsets can take advantage of agreements between the UK’s main mobile phone service providers and a large number of international providers, allowing them to use Britain’s cell phone networks.

Typical business hours:

• Government departments: 09:00 to 17:00, Monday to Friday.
• Retail: 09:00 to 17:30 or 18:00, Monday to Saturday; 10:00 to 16:00, Sunday. Some shopping malls and supermarkets close later.
• Banking: 09:00 to 15:30, Monday to Friday; 09:00 to 12:00, Saturday.