MORE THAN 100 stalls, live music and family fun as Llangollen and Corwen Railway offers the perfect way to travel to the Food Festival, plus steam, Welsh ales and special food experiences

Llangollen Food Festival is back on Saturday, October 10 and Sunday, October 11, promising a packed weekend celebrating local produce, cuisine and crafts.

Well over 10,000 people are expected to travel to Llangollen for one of the region’s biggest culinary celebrations, with more than 100 stalls, 22 local music acts performing in Riverside Park and Centenary Square, cooking demonstrations at Blas Culinary School and a huge choice of food and drink.

With so many visitors expected and parking at a premium in Llangollen town centre, Llangollen Railway is encouraging people to leave the car outside the town and travel to the Food Festival by train.

Visitors can join services at Corwen, Glyndyfrdwy, Carrog and Berwyn, enjoy a journey through the spectacular Dee Valley and arrive by train at Llangollen Station, right in the heart of the Food Festival action.

With five trains in each direction on both Saturday and Sunday, the Railway offers a relaxing and memorable alternative to driving into a busy Llangollen town centre.

Once visitors arrive, Llangollen Railway will itself be part of the Food Festival, with food producers at Llangollen Station, a Real Ale Bar, the Railway Café and special food and drink experiences throughout the weekend.

Alex Elborne from Llangollen Railway said the Food Festival was “one of the great weekends in Llangollen”, adding: “With well over 10,000 people expected, Llangollen is going to be incredibly busy and parking will inevitably be at a premium.

“That’s where the Railway can really help. Rather than worrying about driving into the town centre and finding somewhere to park, people can join us at Corwen, Glyndyfrdwy, Carrog or Berwyn and make the train journey part of their Food Festival day.

“You can sit back, enjoy the spectacular Dee Valley scenery and arrive at Llangollen Station right in the heart of the action. Then, when you’re ready to head home, simply catch the train back.

“It’s a practical way to get to the Food Festival, but it’s also a much more enjoyable way to arrive. With steam and heritage diesel trains running throughout both days, the journey becomes part of the experience.”

From 9am on Saturday, Llangollen Station will welcome some familiar Food Festival favourites, including Bourne’s Cheese, Pen Y Llan Pork, Sunrise Patisserie and Lucelas Chocolate Rum.

There will also be plenty of new flavours to discover.

Newcomers include Greek on a Grill, serving souvlaki and gyros; Joules Gourmet, with fancy sausage rolls and pies; The Korean Corndog Station, bringing Korean street food to the station; and Tuktuk Llangollen, serving chilli paneer wraps and chaats.

The Railway Café will be open on both Saturday and Sunday, serving quality produce and refreshments throughout the Food Festival weekend.

For two days only, the Railway’s historic Waiting Room will be transformed into a Real Ale Bar, showcasing beers from three Welsh breweries: Purple Moose from Porthmadog, Hafod from Mold and Magic Dragon from Wrexham.

Wine lovers will be catered for too, with Blas Wines joining the celebrations.

The Railway’s food offering will extend beyond Llangollen Station, with special dining experiences giving visitors the opportunity to combine the scenery of the Dee Valley with something delicious.

Special Food Festival Afternoon Tea on the Dee services will run throughout the weekend, departing at 12.20pm on Saturday, October 10 and at 12.20pm and 3.15pm on Sunday, October 11.

Passengers can settle into their own reserved table aboard a heritage carriage for a return journey from Llangollen to Corwen while enjoying a traditional Afternoon Tea.

The experience includes a selection of sandwiches, fruit scones with jam and clotted cream, sweet treats and cakes, and a choice of tea or coffee. Passengers can also upgrade their experience with a glass of sparkling wine.

Food remains firmly on the menu on Sunday with The Glyndŵr Steam Roast.

Passengers leave Llangollen aboard the 12.20pm steam service for Corwen before making the short walk into the town centre, where a table will be reserved at the community-run Owain Glyndŵr Hotel for a traditional Sunday roast.

After lunch, passengers can enjoy some time in Corwen before returning on the 4.20pm steam service, arriving back in Llangollen at around 5pm.

Jordan Edge, Catering Manager at Llangollen Railway, said: “Food is going to be a huge part of the Railway’s celebrations, which is exactly how it should be for Llangollen Food Festival.

“Our Café will be serving quality produce throughout the weekend, we’ve got fantastic food producers joining us at the station, and then there are experiences like Afternoon Tea on the Dee and The Glyndŵr Steam Roast for people who want to make food part of their railway journey too.

“Afternoon Tea on the Dee is a particularly lovely experience. You have your own reserved table, a traditional Afternoon Tea and the wonderful scenery of the Dee Valley passing your window.

“Tickets are already getting low, so I’d encourage people to book soon if they want to join us.”

There will be plenty happening beyond the station too, including activities for younger visitors.

The team from Xplore Science! in Wrexham will run workshops in the Llangollen Silver Band Room, with messy and fascinating experiments exploring DNA, diffusion and kitchen chemistry.

It means younger visitors can get hands-on with science while the grown-ups explore everything else the Food Festival has to offer, including whiskey and wine tastings at Blas Culinary School.

With well over 10,000 visitors expected in Llangollen and town centre parking at a premium, the Railway will operate a busy timetable on both days of the Food Festival, with five trains in each direction.

Visitors are being encouraged to leave the car outside Llangollen and let the train take the strain, joining services at Corwen, Glyndyfrdwy, Carrog or Berwyn before travelling through the Dee Valley directly into Llangollen Station.

The journey provides an attractive alternative to negotiating busy town centre traffic and searching for parking, while also giving visitors the chance to experience one of Wales’s scenic heritage railway journeys as part of their Food Festival day.

Services will alternate between steam and heritage diesel, giving visitors the chance to travel behind GWR Heavy Freight locomotive 3802 “The Carthorse” and Class 47 diesel “The Dutchess”.

Trains from Llangollen to Corwen will depart at:

10am Steam
11.05am Diesel
12.20pm Steam
1.45pm Diesel
3.15pm Steam

Trains from Corwen to Llangollen will depart at:

11.05am Steam
12.20pm Diesel
1.45pm Steam
3.15pm Diesel
4.20pm Steam

Services call at intermediate stations, giving visitors from along the line the opportunity to make their journey to and from the Food Festival by rail.

For those travelling from the western end of the line, Corwen provides the perfect starting point for a Food Festival day out, with passengers able to board the train, travel through the Dee Valley and arrive at Llangollen Station in the heart of the festivities.

The Food Festival atmosphere will continue into Saturday night with a special Ales from Wales train, with Llangollen Railway deliberately keeping tickets to just £20 per person to make it an affordable night out during one of the town’s biggest weekends.

Departing Llangollen at 5pm, the steam-hauled special will be in the hands of 3802 “The Carthorse” for an evening celebrating Welsh beer, wine, live music and heritage rail travel through the Dee Valley.

Passengers will be able to enjoy real ales from three Welsh breweries: Purple Moose in Porthmadog, Hafod in Mold and Magic Dragon in Wrexham.

And it isn’t just for real ale drinkers. There will also be three wines handpicked by Pip Gale from Blas Wines for those who would prefer wine.

Providing the live soundtrack will be The Sidekicks from Wrexham, a four-piece band playing rock, blues, rhythm and blues, 60s and indie music and promising “Great Entertainment”.

The Railway is encouraging everyone enjoying the Food Festival weekend to come along, whether they have spent Saturday visiting the stalls, are staying in the area for the weekend or simply fancy a great Saturday night out in Llangollen.

There is also a special invitation to the traders who have travelled to Llangollen for the weekend to put down their apr...

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