Snowdonia spreads over 800 square miles across North and Mid Wales. The main towns in the national park are Blaenau Ffestiniog, in the north, and Dolgellau, in the south, along with Conwy and Caernarfon in the wider region. There’s easy road access from the North of England via the M56 (or M53) and then the A55, and from the Midlands via the M6, the M54 and then the A5; from the South of England, the M5 (from Bristol) and the M40 (from London) connect with the M6 at Birmingham. Journey times vary, of course, but rough times to the village of Beddgelert (which is near where our Snowdonia itinerary starts) are: 3 hours from Birmingham; 4 hours 15 minutes from Bristol; 5 hours 45 minutes from Edinburgh; 2 hours from Liverpool; 5 hours from London; 2 hours 30 minutes from Manchester; and 4 hours 30 minutes from Newcastle.

From Dublin, you’ll need to catch a ferry with Irish Ferries or Stena Line to Holyhead, on Anglesey [3 to 4 sailings per per day | 3 hours 25 minutes], from where it’s about an hour’s drive to Beddgelert.

Always use public car parks within the national park, as parking your car on the verge or roadside can block other traffic – and your car will get towed. Parking generally costs £3 for up to 4 hours or £6 per day; note that you’ll need cash for the car park at Dôl Idris (for the Minffordd Path up Cadair Idris). The car park at Pen-y-Pass, for the Pyg Track and Miner’s Track up Snowdon, costs a flat £10 and can fill up very early, especially at weekends and in summer (you can check the status at Pen-y-Pass, and the other car parks in Snowdonia, here). On summer weekends, you actually need to pre-book your parking space at Pen-y-Pass online, at the increased rate of £20 [tickets are valid from 8am to 8pm or from 8pm to 8am | tickets go on sale at midnight on the previous Wednesday evening]; if you haven’t got a pre-booked ticket, you’ll have to park your car in the car parks at Llanberis or Nant Peris and catch the Snowdon Sherpa Park and Ride service (the Sherpa’r Wydffa) from there to and from Pen-y-Pass [buses run every 15 minutes from 6.45am, with the last one leaving Pen-y-Pass at 7.05pm | £2, £3 return, children £1/£1.50].

As you’re going to be doing some proper mountain walking in Snowdonia, you’ll need to make sure that you’ve got the right equipment. Pack good (ankle-supporting) walking boots and suitable clothing – you’ll need to wear layers, including a fleece for when you’re higher up the mountain, and take a waterproof jacket, waterproof trousers and a hat with you (in spring and autumn, you’ll also probably need a thermal base layer and maybe gloves). Take a day-sack, so you can carry enough food and water (allow half a litre per person for every hour of hiking you’ll be doing); it’s also useful to pack a small first-aid kit, along with a torch and whistle.

It’s a good idea to also invest in a couple of maps. You’ll need the OS Explorer Map OL17 (Snowdon/Yr Wyddfa) and the OS Explorer Map OL23 (Cader Idris & Llyn Tegid) [both cost £8.99 each]. The Snowdonia National Park Authority produces a GPS-enabled app that can track your progress on any one of the six main routes up Snowdon. The app [£1.99] uses Ordnance Survey mapping (including contours) and works completely offline; it’s available from Apple’s App Store and Google Play.