Coach House

Wales Ape and Monkey Sanctuary sits between Caehopkin and Abercraf in Powys. It began as a hill farm and grew into a final home for unwanted primates, including chimpanzees, baboons, spider monkeys, capuchins and marmosets. Its first chimpanzees arrived in 1999, when seven were taken in from Penscynor Wildlife Park after it closed.

Hay Castle is a medieval fortification with a 17th-century mansion alongside, right in the centre of the book town of Hay-on-Wye. Founded by the Normans and rebuilt in stone around 1200, it has been attacked and burnt several times over the centuries.

Tip: Use the large public car park off Oxford Road, which has free electric vehicle charging points. Dogs must stay on a lead, and are welcome on the ground floor, in the café and in the grounds.

Carreg Cennen Castle stands on a high rocky outcrop above the River Cennen, near the village of Trap and four miles south east of Llandeilo. It sits within the Brecon Beacons National Park and is cared for by Cadw. The castle you see today was probably built by John Giffard and his son after Edward I's conquest of Wales.

Tip: The castle is reached by a steep climb up the hill from Castell Farm, near the car park, so wear sensible footwear.

The National Botanic Garden of Wales is in Llanarthney, in the River Tywi valley. It is both a visitor attraction and a centre for botanical research and conservation. The centrepiece is the Great Glasshouse, the world's largest single-span glasshouse at 110 m long and 60 m wide. It stands virtually on the site of Cockerell's mansion, the new Middleton Hall.

Tip: Look out across the restored eastern view towards Paxton's Tower, which was designed to be seen from the mansion's east side.

Carmarthen Castle is a ruined medieval fortress in the county town of Carmarthen, on a high terrace overlooking the tidal River Towy. It began as an early 1100s timber motte and bailey, was rebuilt in stone and was captured, destroyed and rebuilt many times. Owain Glyndŵr took it in 1405, and Henry VII's father, Edmund Tudor, died here as a prisoner in 1456.