Address: Cwmcarn Forest Dr, Newport, NP11 7FA, United Kingdom
Phone: +441495272001
Rating: 4.8
based on 180 reviews.
Scenery and Views
Pros:
"Beautiful scenery and stunning forest sights."
"Lovely views of the whole area from up top."
"What a stunning drive-through forest with amazing views throughout."
"Absolutely glorious scenery and toilet facilities at all parking points around the drive."
"The views over the Bristol Channel, Pontypool, Cwmbran, Newport and Steel Holm and Flat Holm were outstanding."
"The views from the tops of the trails are amazing and totally worth the climbs."
"Breathtaking views at every turn."
"The forest views are stunning and include views that go around 360 degrees of terrain."
Cons:
"Veiws spectacular, visitor maps useless."
"The new road is very dangerous, a narrow winding road that makes you dizzy, with no fencing or barriers."
Facilities and Amenities
Pros:
"Food, drinks and toilets available in visitors centre."
"Really super job has been made of the single track, one way roads, and each of the seven car parks, some with toilets, some with play parks for the children."
"Nice cafe at the visitor centre. Lovely kids parks in various locations around the forest."
"Great cafe, really well priced food and drinks. Friendly staff."
"The visitors center is really good with cafe, showers, shop and plenty of info."
"The Raven Cafe is reasonably priced and idea for a break from the climbing."
"Great walks through the trail plenty of choice for distances and abilities. Great coffee shop at the visitor centre."
"Excellent facilities for just about everyone."
Cons:
"Had a fab time, a birthday disappointed in the cafe, my jacket potato was cold and missing a topping."
"Great cafe at the bottom too but all the toilets were blocked when we visited unfortunately."
"Cafe is ok, but we didn’t feel super welcome."
"As a cafe for the mountain biking, more of a 3/5 than a 4/5. Facilities are a bit basic and food options limited."
"The park experience was OK, the cafe was not good I ordered a burger and it came out black and rock hard could not eat it."
"Had to explain to the person serving us what a toastie was (on the menue) and he still made a sandwich."
"The cafe/restaurant is as good as any you would find anywhere, with reasonably priced food and refreshments available during opening hours."
"Member of staff at Cwmcarn Forest Cafe, Kevin, refused to serve breakfast at 1202pm."
Outdoor Activities
Pros:
"There are lots of Off road biking activities available."
"Walking and cycling routes for the adventurous."
"A paradise for mountain bike lovers."
"Cycle tracks and hiking tracks too; believe there is canoeing available too."
"Great place for mountain biking, with a variety of routes for different skill levels."
"Amazing place to stay we took an all weather pitch. It rained all 3 nights but with the kitchen open we could cook and make cups of tea all weekend no problems."
"Excellent day on the trails, loved the Twrch extension."
"Great location for a leisurely walk in the woods, around the lake or if you're feeling energetic then why not get on your mountain bike and hurl yourself down any number of graded routes."
Cons:
"Came here for the MTB Trails and was somewhat disappointed. Poor signage led to some confusion on the Twrch route."
"The trails are a little lacking compared to other trail centres with limited technical or challenging features."
"Lovely place to walk, spoilt by people leaving rubbish in the barbecue areas."
"Also really bad signage for walkers with lots of gangs of bikers using the walking paths, very dangerous."
"Unfortunately the deforestation has had a negative effect on walking trails and scenery."
"Today I visited as a walker and was disappointed - the trails are very poorly way-marked for walkers."
"Certainly changed when I was here last, we rode one of the red trails technical up hill climbs in places not really rewarded with the downhills."
"The cwmcarn forest drive is a lovely place to visit with your children or if you want a simple jog/walk up there. There are also alot of bike tracks for bikers to go on."