Porth: Rhondda history, parks and cycling

For a trip to Porth, cycling, Rhondda history and parks can each provide a different focus. If you are looking for a hotel, you can first consider which theme you want to shape your stay. The Rhondda Fach Trail, a mural and two parks offer specific points of interest.

Cycling and trails

The Rhondda Fach Trail (NCN 881) includes a section from Wattstown Park to Porth. Another cycling option is the bike pump track at Barry Sidings Countryside Park in Porth. The park also has an adventure playground and trails leading into the surrounding mountains. The travel options differ: the trail is a named section between Wattstown Park and Porth; the pump track and trails are features of a park. If you want to focus on cycling, you can consider whether the section of trail, the pump track or the mountain trails is most important to your plans. This means you can explore cycling through a route, a facility and the mountain landscape.

Rhondda history

Porth’s Rhondda history can be seen in the town as a regional art theme and in the town’s development. A three-storey mural on the side of Yr Hen Lyfrgell depicts the history and heritage of the Rhondda. Its subject draws attention to the region. The history of the name Porth also tells a story: the development of mining on the Porth Estate and the arrival of the Taff Vale Railway made the name well known in the area. Porth was one of the first districts in the Rhondda to undergo large-scale industrialisation. So a mural focused on the region sits alongside a district’s industrial history. When choosing a theme, you can consider whether you are more interested in Rhondda heritage or in mining, railways and industrialisation in the town’s history.

Parks with different features

Bronwydd Park has sports pitches, a children’s play area and tree-lined avenues to explore. Sports, play and the avenues are different aspects of the park. It was gifted to the people of Porth by Thomas and Evans. This gift adds a specific local history to the park’s features and connects it with the people of Porth.

By comparison, Barry Sidings Countryside Park has a bike pump track, an adventure playground and trails into the surrounding mountains. The parks offer different features: sports pitches and avenues at Bronwydd Park, and a pump track and mountain trails at Barry Sidings. The play areas are also described differently. These features can help you decide which park appeals to you most.

The places and features mentioned offer specific points of reference to help you focus your search on what interests you during your stay.

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Return to the main travel overview: Rhondda Cynon Taf.