This tour will introduce you to the town of Blaenafon* (alternatively spelt Blaenavon, see note below) a small Welsh valley town situated at the head of the Afon Lwyd (Eastern) Valley, some 25 kms directly north of Newport. What makes Blaenafon remarkable is that it was at the very heart of iron and coal mining, powering the Industrial Revolution with its high-quality coal and steel. Its hey-days may be gone, however due to the rapid decline of industry here, Blaenavon still retains not only its proud character but much of the infrastructure of its past glory. A visit to Blaenafon is to step back to the South Wales of Alexander Cordell's novels - you can still hear the lusty miners' voices echoing across the valley in song. (Actually, it's the Blaenavon Male Voice Choir practising in the Workmen's Hall.) Much of the original Ironworks are still extant and can be viewed while Big Pit, one of the last deep coal mines in Wales to be worked, is now open to tourists. Anyone who descends the original cages into the Stygian world of dank tunnels and passages, where many of Blaenafon's men, women and children toiled their lives away, will return to the surface with renewed respect for this brave community (and will also understand why they drank so much beer).

*[A note on spelling - the English version 'Blaenavon' was regularly used on maps and official publications, but the Welsh version 'Blaenafon' is now becoming more common in usage. Both are used here for indexing purposes.]

Blaenafon has been awarded the status of 'World Heritage Site' by UNESCO, stating:
"The area around Blaenavon bears eloquent and exceptional testimony to the pre-eminence of South Wales as the world's major producer of iron and coal in the 19th century. All the necessary elements can be seen in situ - coal and ore mines, quarries, a primitive railway system, furnaces, the homes of the workers, and the social infrastructure of their community."