What many British people tend to forget though is that the United Kingdom is actually four different countries, England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, this may sound a little patronising to some of you but I am going somewhere with it, trust me.

As I’ve mentioned before many individuals tend to forget what is on their own doorstep in favour of other exotic climates filled with mystical looking items, much like the pyramids.

But to all you people out there looking for a little exploration of a country filled with heritage, culture and great things to see then why not give Wales a try, with it’s beautiful countryside and some great things to do. Here are a few things you could get up whilst exploring this overlooked country.

Firstly Wales is filled to the brim with culture and heritage and there are a plethora of things you can do to explore this, for example you could visit one of the many many castles located in Wales such as Castle Coch, Bodelwyddan Castle or Cardiff Castle, which was built in 1106.

Wales is also home to three World Heritage sites that includes the Blaenavon Industrial Landscape, which highlights one of the most important times in Welsh history when it was one of the world’s major iron and coal producers. Then there’s the Castles and Town Walls of King Edward I in Gwynedd, which are scattered all across North Wales, and finally there’s the most recent World Heritage site located in Wales the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and canal, which is an excellent piece of engineering built by Thomas Telford.

There are also loads of cultural spots to visit if you’re taking a family with you like Rhondda Heritage Park, where you can experience what life was like for those who worked in the mines by experiencing the black gold tour that takes you right to the heart of the mine.

If the Arts are more your thing then look no further than this magnificent little place filled with performing arts centres such as the Millennium Centre that has housed excellent theatre productions and even has some free entertainment.

There’s also an abundance of festivals hosted in Wales every year if you’re a festival fanatic. There’s the Hay Festival, which is an internationally known literary festival, a whole selection of music festivals such as Wakestock and Green Man and there’s even an annual cheese festival.

Doctor Who is also filmed in Wales so why not take a look around and see if you can spot some familiar sights, you may even see a Dalek if you’re lucky.

Wales is also well known for its rugby so pop over and explore the Millennium stadium, which was the biggest stadium in the UK until Wembley was rebuilt. And sticking with the sports theme there’s other great things such as mountain climbing where you can explore, amongst others, Snowdon, home to Wales’ highest peak.

There’s plenty of other great things to do in Wales like visit its countless museums or gardens or you could even take in the vast countryside with a little camping, or you could check out the wildlife. But the most important thing to remember is that this great country is easily accessible to everyone in the UK, so go and check it out some time.

About Lewis Shepherd

Lewis Shepherd is a freelance writer originally from South Wales who currently resides in the North of England following the completion of his journalism degree last year. He has had work published online and in magazines and newspapers covering a variety of different topics such as film, television, music, LGBT rights, travel, health, technology and gaming.

Photos by Andrew Evans