Brecon

Rugby posts frame the cricket ground where local matches draw proper crowds on summer weekends. This market town sits snug in the Usk Valley, surrounded by hills that beckon walkers and cyclists looking for a proper challenge. The high street has that lived-in feel - independent shops mixing with chains, cafes that know your order by Tuesday.

Pen y Crug rises dramatically behind the town centre, its Iron Age fort remains still visible to anyone willing to make the climb. Worth every step for the views across to the Black Mountains. Twyn y Gaer offers a gentler ascent if your knees aren't what they were, while Mynydd Illtud provides the most demanding trek for serious hikers.

Cradoc Golf Club has been testing players since the 1920s, its course carved into the valley floor with the Beacons as backdrop. The town's cathedral feels surprisingly grand for somewhere this size - the Bishops Palace nearby reminds you this place once wielded serious ecclesiastical power.

Getting here couldn't be simpler. The A470 runs straight through from Cardiff in under an hour, while the market town of Abergavenny sits twenty minutes east if you need bigger shops or rail connections.

Staying at one of the holiday parks scattered around the valley makes perfect sense. You're positioned for dawn walks up the peaks, afternoon rounds at Cradoc, and evening pints in town - all without the fuss of driving through narrow lanes in the dark. The surrounding countryside offers everything from gentle canal walks to serious mountain challenges, with Brecon as your comfortable base camp.