A Welsh road has been named one of the best to drive in the UK. Snowdonia's Llanberis Pass is ranked number five by National Geographic’s Car SOS and spectacular drone footage of the route shows why.
The A4086 runs for around five miles with the peaks of Snowdon and the Glyderau towering above on each side. Snaking its way through an area of rugged natural beauty in Snowdonia, the verges and mountainsides are scarred by slate mines and large boulders which are popular with rock climbers.
Llanberis lies at the bottom of the valley and is the starting point for the equally scenic Snowdon Mountain Railway while the historic Dolbadarn Castle - a twelfth century fortress of the native Welsh princes - stands guard nearby.
A survey of 2,000 UK motorists by National Geographic revealed that the most popular driving route in the country was the North Coast 500 route starting from Inverness in Northern Scotland. While a second Welsh road - the Black Mountain Pass in the Brecon Beacons - just made the top-10.
Snowdonia was recently named among the best places in the UK to take your family for a walk. Coming in at number five, the survey found that "Snowdonia National Park in Wales is one of the best locations for family-friendly hiking in the UK".
The top 10 best driving routes are listed below:
1. The North Coast 500 route starting from Inverness in Northern Scotland
2. Cheddar Gorge through the Mendip Hills B3135
3. Snake Pass in Peak District National Park
4. Kendal to Keswick in the Lake District, A591
5. Snowdonia’s Llanberis Pass, in Wales - A4086
6. St Ives to St Just in Cornwall, B3306
7. Best of the Moors (A169 and A170) in Yorkshire
8. The Cotswolds – Cheltenham to Stratford
9. Cat and Fiddle route (A53 then A54 followed by the A537) in the Peak District
10. The Black Mountain Pass A4069 in the Brecon Beacons, Wales
The research was commissioned to celebrate the return of Car SOS for its 11th season which starts on National Geographic on March 9. Celebrity guests and cameos featuring in series 11 include two-time world heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury and legendary Formula One world champion Nigel Mansell.
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