About

CAMBRIAN LINE | SHREWSBURY - ABERYSTWYTH

The Cambrian Railway Line spans 120 miles of unspoilt natural beauty and is one of the most scenic routes in Britain. From Shrewsbury, the Cambrian Main Line takes passengers across the border into Wales, through rugged mountain terrain, quaint market towns, World Heritage sites and castles, cross country towards the picturesque west coast of Wales.

The journey from Shrewsbury follows the upper Severn Valley via Welshpool and Newtown and on to Aberystwyth via Machynlleth. The trains on the Cambrian Coast Line departing from Machynlleth, where the line merges into the Cambrian Coast Line, offer spectacular views, coastal walks and places to visit along the Wales Coast Path.

These railways provide access to many holiday destinations in Mid Wales and their scenic routes make for delightful trips to see the area. Indeed the Guardian newspaper included the Cambrian Coast line in its list of “10 of the World's epic train journeys”!

And your Cambrian railway adventure can begin at Birmingham International, Birmingham New Street, Wolverhampton, Telford or Wellington - most trains run direct from these stations and you normally don't have to change trains until you reach your destination on either the Aberystwyth or the Pwllheli lines.

CAMBRIAN COAST LINE | ABERYSTWYTH TO PWLHELI
At Machynlleth, the line merges into the Cambrian Coast Line offering spectacular views, coastal walks and places to visit along the Wales Coast Path. The Cambrian Coast Line route from Dyfi Junction is to Aberdyfi, Tywyn, Llwyngwril, Fairbourne and over the Mawddach estuary via Barmouth bridge - at 700 metres long, this is one of the longest timber viaducts still in regular use in Britain.

Travelling north from Barmouth, the line continues to Dyffryn Ardudwy, Harlech, Penrhyndeudraeth and to Porthmadog. Here the line turns west to Criccieth and finally Pwllheli. In addition to the stations mentioned, there are another 13 little halts at which trains will call on request.

SHORT BREAK BY RAIL & ITINERARIES
Visit Mid Wales has an excellent selection of trips by rail ranging from days out to tours lasting 2 to 5 days. From the top bar menu, click on ‘Search’ and select ‘Tours & Itineraries’. All have details of what to see at the various locations and the 5 day town tours also have a guide on what to look out for on your journey.

There are also tours on the Cambrian lines for railway enthusiasts which take in many of the famous narrow gauge steam railways; these have detailed notes on the main line route, former stations, closed lines, what to see and how things were at the end of the steam era in the late 50s/early 60s.

From Shrewsbury, the Cambrian Line runs west through the Shropshire countryside to cross the border into Wales and on to the market town of Welshpool. The next stop is Newtown followed by the village of Caersws and then to Machynlleth; here many of the trains divide into two - one part to Aberystwyth the other to Pwllheli.

Machynlleth is the operational focal point for the Cambrian Lines; all train movements on the 130 miles of track are controlled from here and the trains are serviced here as well.

From Machynlleth the line continues to the remote Dyfi Junction (the station has no vehicular access) where the routes diverge; travelling south, trains call at the coastal village of Borth before reaching the terminus at Aberystwyth.

Services on the Shrewsbury to Aberystwyth route consist on 12 trains each way Monday to Saturday running every one or two hours and 9/8 on Sunday. The Cambrian Coast Lines has 5 weekday trains each way between Machynlleth and Pwllheli with one on Sundays (3 between mid-May and mid-September).