At a glance
Bodysgallen Hall Gardens (LL30 1RS) — National Trust, free entry to gardens. Off A470 between Llandudno and Conwy. Rare 17th-century parterre, walled rose garden, spring borders. Outstanding views of Conwy Castle and Snowdonia. Hall is a luxury hotel — restaurant available to non-residents by reservation. 2 miles from Llandudno. Dogs on leads welcome.
About Bodysgallen Hall Gardens
Bodysgallen Hall stands on a hill between Llandudno and Conwy — a 17th-century manor house built around a medieval tower, with a garden history that is as old as the house itself. The gardens were acquired and are maintained by the National Trust as part of the agreement under which Historic House Hotels leases the hall for operation as a luxury hotel. The public has free access to the gardens, which represent some of the most historically significant designed landscape in North Wales.
The parterre below the house is the garden's most important historic feature. Created in the late 17th century in the formal French and Dutch style that was fashionable under Charles II, it consists of geometric beds outlined in clipped box hedging with gravel paths between. Such parterres were created throughout Britain in the later 17th century; very few survive unaltered, making the Bodysgallen example a valuable piece of horticultural history. The Trust has restored and maintains the box hedging to its historic pattern.
The walled garden to the south provides a more domestic but no less pleasant experience — a productive and ornamental enclosure with roses, herbaceous planting and seasonal vegetables. The spring garden gives its best in April and May, with bulbs and early flowering shrubs. Above the formal gardens, the parkland extends with views across the Conwy estuary to Conwy Castle — a view that has barely changed in three centuries and remains one of the finest castle-and-estuary panoramas in Wales.
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Frequently asked questions
Bodysgallen Hall is a 17th-century manor house (with a medieval tower) set on a hill between Llandudno and Conwy. The house is now a luxury hotel operated by Historic House Hotels; the gardens are cared for by the National Trust and are open to the public free of charge. The hall was acquired by the National Trust in 1980 and leased to Historic House Hotels, which has restored both the building and the gardens.
The parterre at Bodysgallen is one of the rare surviving examples of a 17th-century formal garden design in Wales — a geometric pattern of clipped box hedging with gravel paths and planting within the beds. Parterres of this type were fashionable in the late 17th century under French and Dutch garden influence; very few have survived unaltered. The Bodysgallen parterre has been restored and maintained by the National Trust as an important piece of garden history.
The gardens are on a hill above the Conwy estuary and face south-west — giving views across the estuary towards Conwy Castle (visible on its promontory), and beyond to the Carneddau and the full Snowdonia range. On clear days the panorama from the upper garden areas is exceptional, with Great Orme to the north and the sea beyond Conwy to the west. Few garden settings in North Wales offer views of this quality.
Yes — the restaurant and afternoon tea at Bodysgallen Hall are available to non-residents by reservation. The combination of a meal or afternoon tea in the 17th-century hall, a walk through the NT gardens and the views over Snowdonia makes Bodysgallen a memorable destination for a special occasion. Reserve directly with the hotel at bodysgallen.com.
Bodysgallen Hall and Bodnant Garden are approximately 7 miles apart — both on the western edge of the Conwy Valley, separated by the A55 and the river. They make a good garden combination, with Bodysgallen offering the historic parterre and hall setting and Bodnant Garden (NT) providing one of Britain's greatest horticultural gardens with its famous laburnum arch, terraced borders and formal pools. Both are accessible from the A470/A55 corridor.