Penrhyn Castle parkrun - North Wales

21 hours ago
3 min read

Penrhyn Castle parkrun – A Truly Magical Run

One of the most beautiful Wales parkruns you'll ever do – inside

the grounds of a real castle!

Based in Penrhyn Castle, Bangor, North Wales LL57 4HT is a 5km free run every Saturday 9am

Jon Evans Coaching poster with lightbulb icon and Quick Facts for Penrhyn parkrun in Bangor, includes location, 5km distance, 9AM time, elevation, cafe and toilet details

Penrhyn Castle parkrun - something special..

If you're looking an amazing parkrun in North Wales, look no further than Penrhyn Castle parkrun! This incredible free 5km run takes place in the grounds of a real castle – yes, an actual castle! – and it's one of those North Wales parkruns that runners talk about for a long time.

Getting There – Don't Leave It Too Late!

The postcode will get you close, but here's something really important to know: once you turn in, the drive to the car park is quite long. It takes longer than you might expect! So make sure you don't leave home too late.

The official Penrhyn Castle parkrun page on the parkrun website says it's about a 5–10 minute walk from the car park to the start line, so add that time in too.

The Setting – Absolutely Stunning!

Honestly, the setting of Penrhyn Castle parkrun is just jaw-dropping. Take the steps up from car park, you'll pass the toilets. From there, you head up the hill behind the toilets. As you make your way to the start, there's a sweeping walkway with incredible views, there is a big wow moment – as you the castle appears in all its glory. It's absolutely amazing. One of those moments where you actually stop and think "What a parkrun!"

The Course – Hilly But Worth It

Now, let's be honest about something. The official course

description says it's "mostly flat" – but that's not quite true! It is compared to the surrounding hills and mountains of Snowdonia but it is not flat, nor undulating! its hilly!

At the first-timers' briefing, the run director was muchmore honest: "You go down a hill".

The good news is that the downhill section is much steeper than the uphill return, so it doesn't feel too brutal on the way back. I was very glad the course

wasn't run in reverse!

The course is 2 big laps (approx. 1 mile each) and 2 small laps. Although its a lap course feels varied the whole way round. I'd happily do it again and happily do it regularly if was a local!

The Finish Line – Wow!

If the setting hasn't already blown your mind, the finish will. You cross the finish line literally through the castle archway. It doesn't get much more dramatic than that in the world of parkrun!

Check out my Instagram for a video of the finish area.

Elevation Breakdown

As you start and finish roughly in the same place, the total ascent and descent is very similar.

Total Ascent: 207FT

Total Descent: 203 FT

Here's the elevation of each mile:

Mile	Total Ascent	Total Descent
1	56	52
2	72	59
3	75	89
0.1	3	3

Post run coffee

After finishing, there's a cafe on site, there were runners sitting on chairs in the courtyard just after the finish.

As per the advice of getting there, if you are in a rush to leave remember, the walk back to the car and the drive to the main road takes a few minutes.

Top Tips for Running Penrhyn Castle

Leave home earlier than you think – the driveway to the car park is long, the walk from the car park is 5 - 10 minutes long.
Toilets are near the car park – go around to the right of the building.
Don't be put off by "elevation" – the downhill is long and the uphill much longer so making it more gentle than the downhill
Enjoy it - Penrhyn Castle parkrun is one of the most spectacular parkruns in Wales and possibly in the whole of the UK.