Blaenavon Attractions
Blaenavon is one of the best-preserved examples of a traditional South Wales iron-making town. It is unique in Europe for possessing one of the best preserved late 18th and early 19th C ironworks in the world. Although part of the town dates from the late 1780s, most of the buildings in the town are representative of an early to mid-Victorian Welsh industrial community with much of it built before 1870.
Blaenavon Ironworks - Big Pit Mining Museum
"Big Pit" ("Pwll Mawr"), Blaenavon's ironworks, ceased production at the beginning of 1980 after more than a century. Three years later the old blast furnaces and foundries were reopened as a mining museum. Even the tower of the hydraulic lift, with which the ore-laden iron wagons used to be raised on to the loading ramp, has survived. As well as touring the workshops, winding engines and workers' residential area, entry to the 328ft/100m-deep shaft gives visitors an impression of the hard life of a miner. The tours below ground (warm clothes are recommended) are sometimes led by former miners.
Hours
February 1 to November 30
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open | 9:30 | 9:30 | 9:30 | 9:30 | 9:30 | 9:30 | 9:30 |
| Close | 17:00 | 17:00 | 17:00 | 17:00 | 17:00 | 17:00 | 17:00 |
December 1 to January 31
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed | Closed | 10:00 | 10:00 |
| Close | 15:30 | 15:30 |
Parking
Free
