My wife and I are considering a visit to the UK (from the US), probably in August or September of this year. The main objective (mine, at least!) is to see narrow gauge railways, prototype and (if possible) model. We would welcome suggestions as to what is especially worthwhile visiting. At this point, we're planning on relying on public transportation rather than car rental. At this point we're thinking of a stay in the 10 to 14 day range, but there is some flexibility in that. Any suggestions or advice would be most welcome.
Paul
I recommend two or three days based in Porthmadog - that gives you two and a half railways radiating from there and more that you can get to by 'regular' train.
Bon voyage!
Another suggestion that may help with planning is to take a look at the events section of the UK Model Shops Directory website that will give you an indication of model railway events taking place when you plan to visit. As a quick foretaste August 3rd sees the first Stratford on Avon Industrial & Narrow Gauge show, August 17th is the Wiltshire Group's biennial members day at Pewsey and for full size railways I would recommend a visit to the Statfold Barn Railway open day on September 7th (though I'd also recommend getting tickets in advance for Statfold which are available through their website).
Stratford should be fairly easy to get to as it seems to be quite popular with tourists - something to do with some chap called William Shakespeare's (whoever he is ::) ) and Pewsey has a railway station though I'm not sure how well it is connected to the UK network or how frequent the service is.
Statfold is a bit harder to get to but there may be a shuttle bus from the nearest station (Tamworth?) laid on for the event, though I've been told the walk alongside the canal to get there is quite pleasant (assuming the weather is with you).
Using Public Transport will severely limit you. With a car you'd have no problem visiting North Wales and seeing the Welshpool (en route!), Tallylyn, Festiniog/Welsh Highland, Bala Lake, Snowdon Mountain and Llanberis railways in three days, though fitting a trip on all of them may be pushing it, though if you only did either the Festiniog OR the WH you could probably do it as the rest don't take too long! Without a car you'd struggle to do more than two or three if those three days included travel to/from somewhere else.
My advice would be to hire a car for the days you intend to visit the railways and make a long weekend of it in North Wales!
Porthmadog is the obvious location.
However, it will take you the best part of a whole day by train from London just to get there. It will also cost you about
Personally I think there are far more interesting tings to do than spend a whole day on one line, there's the first Preserved railway and NG Museum nearby, one of the few Common Carrier narrow gauge lines still running, a Mountain Railway and a slate museum with ng railway attached... I just don't understand this fixation with the FR/WHR. And if you have a car there's the chance of a visit to one of the original tourist NG railways as well at Aberystwyth... But that's me, I prefer to see more railways than spend several hours just doing one railway to the detriment of seeing any others...
May I chip in as an Alien living in the UK, but one with a heavy narrow gauge leaning? ;D
Let's work down your list, assuming you'll arrive in London and have not been to the UK before:
Some basics: the UK is small, the longest you can drive in one direction, John O'Groats (Scotland) to Land's End (Cornwall) is just over 1 000km (about 700miles for Imperialists ;D), and nowhere are you more than about 100km (70miles) from the coast. Okay, add some ferries, and you can travel quite a bit further.
However, it's a bit cramped, and travelling by car you expect to average only about 30km/h (40 for motorways only journeys) due to holdups, which are frequent. I always have to reset my navi when I go to, or come from the continent, where you achieve higher averages.
Trains...
are a nightmare, and buying tickets is only for the expert wizard, as it is often cheaper to buy tickets for stages of your journey, rather than 1 ticket all the way. Buying on the day is expensive, e.g. London to Bristol (~120km) is about
If you are staying in London there is one narrow gauge railway that you could visit. It is not your typical narrow gauge line but could be an interesting visit.
https://www.postalmuseum.org/discover/attractions/mail-rail-exhibition/ (https://www.postalmuseum.org/discover/attractions/mail-rail-exhibition/)
Neil
Plus there's a couple in easy reach in Kent, plus a couple of interesting SG lines which used to be Light Railways and a 15" line not far away if you decide to stay in London, all could be done as day trips!
https://bwlr.co.uk/
http://www.sklr.net/
https://www.rhdr.org.uk/
Leprechaun, GB might be small by US and European standards but the OP is only staying for 10-14 days so just travelling round the UK will take quite some time, especially bearing in mind how busy and slow the motorways are over here compared with Germany and the like. Buying railway tickets is not a nightmare either though to get to many places by train or bus is a non-starter if you have to travel longer distances (over 100 miles). The original suggestion by Tom of North Wales is a very good one, it allows them to stay in a very nice part of the country for a few days and they can visit several narrow gauge lines of different characters at the same time, hence I'd agree with him that's it's a good base for a few days after they've "done" the usual non-railway hotspots if they have the time... TBH 10-14 days is a very short period of time to even see the main places of interest in the UK without adding such things as railways on top of them! At least a month would be better thus not having to dash from one place to another...
Regarding a car, I've found that the best bet is to hire an automatic, that way you don't have to worry about changing gear and can concentrate of staying on the correct side of the road!
Just one other thing, as far as I was aware the Festiniog was built as a slate line, whilst it might of branched out in later years it didn't start that way, the Welshpool was built and run as a common carrier...
Just 2 responses to Leprechaun's very comprehensive piece above:
If you can get from John O'Groats to Lands End in "just over 700 miles" then I think you must be doing it by helicopter as the shortest and quickest route (which I have done several times both ways) as stated on Google Maps direction finder is 837, so if you are planning to fit that little trip in, then factor in the cost of the fuel as well as the time it will take to do it, which is why we have Google Maps as our "friend" when planning such things!
On cars and driving - yes, driving over here is quite different to driving in the USA - not mentioned are that we have roundabouts instead of intersections (cross roads to most of us) - much safer as stats show, but ensure that you find out what the rules and conventions are for getting across them before you launch yourself in your hire car!
Most cars nowadays are fairly common territory - we drive around in the same German and Japanese tin cans that you do with the obvious difference that we drive on the historically correct side of the road and vehicles are right hand drive. What was not emphasised is that automatic cars are very much in the minority here compared to the States and most if not all of our transatlantic cousins that I know (quite a lot actually) are not used to manual gear changing at all - so you have two things to consider - learn to use manual gear changing before you come over or be prepared to have to search or book well in advance if you want to hire an automatic car, many car hire firms don't keep them lined up as not many people want to hire them, you need to give adequate advance notice to ensure that what you want will be available when you get off the plane.
The other and very relevant point I would highlight about driving on this side of the pond is - be very aware of the cost of the fuel, it is around 4 or 5 times more expensive than you are used to. What we pay for a litre (just over 2 pints if you like) is comparable and possibly more expensive than what you pay for a (US) Gallon. Just about every petrol station is self service, I don't actually know of any currently that fill your tank for you, wash the screen and check the oil etc as in the good old days and over here, which is something that confuses many tourists from overseas, we fill the tank and THEN go to the kiosk and pay for it, not the other way round that you may be used to.
Best advice I have read above bearing in mind the length of your stay over here and the time of year is to get yourself to North Wales and base yourself there for the period that you want to take in the NG railway scene. There's also lots of American-friendly history and non-railway tourist attractions in that area - loads of castles etc!
One other thing from recent memory of having to rescue a transatlantic visitor, sorry if this is teaching granny to suck eggs - you don't have chip and pin credit and debit cars, we do - universally and if you haven't got yourself equipped with a compatible card you may well, almost certainly in fact, experience problems in finding somewhere that will accept your cards - Mastercard or Visa are essential!
Enjoy - but I think the words of others have given a clear message - do advance research and plan ahead!
Mick
I'd agree manuals are more common, but all the major companies do autos, you can't usually get the small ones (Polo/Fiesta size) but Golf sized ones are available though you'll pay a few quid more. There's price comparison sites around and it's well worth looking at them, I couldn't find a small auto for David and my jaunt around Germany next week but a search on a comparison site came up with a small auto (BMW 1 Series "or similar") from one of the companies based at Schonefeld Airport that didn't show on their own website!! (Though i expect I'll get something slightly larger when we turn up on the day!!)
Dear Hobby,
By and large I fully agree with you, and that's why I went to great detail on Wales, adding detail to support Tom's suggestion. At the same time, even if you're a die-hard narrow gauge aficionado, you don't want to miss the castles and other attraction that are along the way!
I expect, from past experiences, that Paul most likely can't drive stick-shift anyway; but the stick (or whatever you call it) for an automatic is on the other side too. ;D
I just bought my first automatic (due to my disability; not a problem for me as I worked in a garage, i.e. drove everything in the past), but the mere thought of having to drive it causes SERIOUS panic attacks to my dear one! It's not as simple as you think for stick-shift only drivers!
However, automatic are readily available from all hirers, but the requirement must be identified at the time of booking.
I also disagree regarding Germany, yes your average speed on motorways is about 80km/h, but off the piste the average speed has dropped substantially in the last 15 years; thanks to the powers of the green parties, i.e. speed restrictions and roundabouts in A-roads. Obviously they think more pollution is good for the environment. My hometown has been bankrupted and turned into a ghost town by 25 years of green-party rule; so we can discuss that elsewhere, if you like. Germany might be 'ahead' in some ways, but not necessarily in a good way!
But go to Austria or Switzerland, and your average speed is about the same as in the UK, or Wales for that matter. We are not as bad as some might think!
Especially, as the US occupational forces in their private cars were (and still are, though not occupational anymore ;D) always mobile road blocks on German motorways (causing serious accidents); I'm not sure they actually can cope with faster motorways than in the UK???
I'm disabled, and I looked at rail travel, in essence the situation here in the UK is a denial of service, you're not even guaranteed your seat if you book one, and, apart from quite a few operators refusing to carry disabled outright, you're not even guaranteed to get on or off the train, whether pre-booked or not. And that's before discussing timeliness, making connections (rather not), 'train substitution coaches' (which leave disabled behind), standing all the way due to insufficient seat numbers, etc.. If that is not a nightmare, and a massive abuse of the term 'service', I don't know what is?
But, as I said, my intention was to put some detail to the suggestions made here that help Paul to plan their holiday. Of course, if he sends me an PM, or posts more specific details and questions here, we can help him better.
What was the title of Bill Bryson's best known book: 'Notes from a small island' (Paul, I take it, you have read this; essential, before you travel! Everything true and current, I can confirm from my own experience!)
The AA tells me: John O'Groats - Lands End:
837,5miles and 14hr 34min (average 58.4miles/hr);
Hobby, I don't think that's bad, but I agree it could be better, and is probably rather optimistic; I would have guessed around 22hr. Yes Mick, that was straight line as I was talking country-size, not journey. :laugh:
Mick, the problem is not so much roundabout versus cross-roads, it's the direction signs: at the first sign you get long-distance destinations (just once, you missed it, you had it), at the roundabout/ intersection you only get local destinations (which are meaningless and irrelevant; the locals normally know where they go, but the foreigners now get lost as most of these destinations are not on the road maps). That inconsistency is an absolute nightmare for foreigners, especially, as every local authority has its own spin on the general rule, i.e. different destinations!
Mick, that's a very valid point: I just cancelled my American Express card as it is useless in Europe! Make sure you have the right card(s). And mastercard UK is not fully compatible with mastercard Europe either, so beware. I usually pay cash ONLY, and use my cards on tellers only. That minimises the fraud risks, as well as minimising the compatibility problems (and the resulting embarrassment)!
Anyway, just some more food for thoughts
Waldschrat
Just to clarify a couple of points: My wife and I are both (unfortunately) of the generation which learned to drive manual transmissions. We just traded in our most recent manual transmission car last July, so the skills are still there, although we're used to shifting gears with the right hand. Our area of the US (Wisconsin) has also discovered roundabouts, and is installing them in many locations, although we're used to going counter-clockwise around them. One of the reasons for thinking of traveling by train is that I like trains!
Ten to fourteen days is, indeed, too short a time to "see everything." (Does anyone remember the old movie, "If today is Tuesday, it must be Belgium" about a package tour of Europe?) We're content to concentrate on a few things and travel at a leisurely pace.
Finally, thank you for your comments and suggestions. Anything more would still be welcome. We are still planning and thinking, though we realize we need to decide what we're doing fairly soon, if we're going to it at all.
Paul
As Mick T may or may not confirm, should you be tempted to visit the Great Dorset Steam Fair you'd probably want to allow three days: one for the Fair itself, plus one to queue to get there and park up, and best part of a third in the traffic queues getting away afterwards. Mind you, I've not actually been, so maybe I'm paying too much attention to the rumours (or even rumors).
Have a great trip, anyway, wherever you go.
David.
Yes - Tuesday ... Belgium: that is a definite trope and of course you do see tourist pouring out of coaches on for a 30 minute stop somewhere that could take a day or a week and not see anywhere near all there is to be seen. However holidays are short so a balance must be struck.
There are travel passes for visitors that might be worth considering, e.g. https://www.visitbritainshop.com/world/travel-and-transport/britrail-passes/ (https://www.visitbritainshop.com/world/travel-and-transport/britrail-passes/). There are others far more qualified than me here to offer advice.
Some of the best trips I've had have relied on chance. There is always the danger of missing something that could have been seen or done if my research had been better but on the other hand setting out with too much of a prescribed itinerary has lead to disappointment.
If there is one thing I can say it is if you are planning on being in the UK in August/September - avoid the English August Bank Holiday at all costs! It appears to be something of an national obsession and people seem to take masochistic delight in it. https://publicholidays.co.uk/summer-bank-holiday/ (https://publicholidays.co.uk/summer-bank-holiday/)
Bearing in mind the warnings about opening of various attractions "out of season" it could well be wise to avoid the school holiday dates:
https://publicholidays.co.uk/school-holidays/england/ (https://publicholidays.co.uk/school-holidays/england/)
Quote from: clayliner on April 27, 2019, 15:44
As Mick T may or may not confirm, should you be tempted to visit the Great Dorset Steam Fair ..................
This year it is Thurs 22 to Mon 26 August. I am anti-biased because I live in a market town of 8000 souls just 2 miles from the steam fair location which attracts a quarter of a million visitors with over 50000 of them being resident for the 5 days. Totally clags up the roads for miles around, the police have an annual "turkey shoot" with their radar guns and impose 20 and 30 mph limits on the surrounding roads for a couple of miles before and after the location - the result is that the local hard working people trying to get to and from their daily toil sit in traffic snarl ups for half an hour or more at the morning and evening peak times, get past the entrance gate and floor the accelerator in relief only to be caught by the police for speeding - cunning ba--t--ds - but I suppose they have to fund their Christmas party and bonuses somehow................
Anyway, as a local and having been to the fair, I join the other locals and either get out of town for the duration or stay at home and protect my property from the hordes of pikeys and others who descend on the town looking for quick tarmacing and hedge cutting etc jobs and regrettably some of them looking for criminal activity opportunities, whilst any chance of getting a takeaway at the local chippy, pizza palace or kebabery is futile as you can guarantee that there will be half a dozen people ahead of you who are doing bulk orders for half the camp site.
However........ it is genuinely well worth a visit, it is not so bad as Clayliner thinks in getting in - as long as you have purchased advanced tickets online, just bad for the honest local folk who may need to get from and to Salisbury. Once in, it is a memorable occasion, the biggest gathering of steam road engines of all shapes and sizes as well as vintage vehicles, steam powered huge funfair and etc etc certainly in Europe and possibly in the world. I would recommend going in the early afternoon to take in the arena activities , the market and the line ups of vintage vehicles and exhibits and stay on into the evening to enjoy the huge range of activities and entertainment. The only problem getting out of the arena is if it is hugely wet (about 1 year in 5 or so), late afternoon when the daytrippers are going home and on the last day - don't go on the last day! If you stay to mid evening then it is no problem getting out. Accomodation no prob, local area hostelries only hike their prices by about 200% or you can pitch your tent on my lawn for 50 quid.....................
If you are genuinely thinking of visiting the fair, then I suggest do it on the Thursday or Friday and book accomodation in somewhere like Salisbury, 20 miles away, which is unlikely to be affected too much by the surge in bookings in the local area. Alternatively, try a PM to Clayliner who has a very nice place on the Isle of Purbeck and would love to get some visitors.
::)
Mick
I was at the Great Dorset only about 4 years ago, and we didn't have trouble getting there, or back. I suppose, if you're on holiday, you could travel there in the evening and stay overnight to avoid the morning rush.
As I said, even if you're only peripherically interested I engineering history, a must-see. I agree, travelling on the motorways on that August-bankholiday weekend is something to avoid; every car with a British number plate is on the road then, but country-roads is not too bad.
Paul, good on you, if you can handle stick-shift, and doing it with the other hand is not too bad. My problem, when converting from left-hooker to right-hooker was aiming the corners, the rest is easy. You must be fairly old, I presume; my prejudice goes back to the 1970s, when the occupational forces struggled to get their recruits to drive trucks, double-stick shifting splitter-boxes with double-clutching became a big deal then... :laugh:
Before we start throwing arbitrarily pages of suggestions around, may I suggest, you let us know where your (both of you) interests are (art, architecture, engineering, stone-age, Celts, Medieval, Victorian, film sets, hiking, cycling, etc.).
If trains are your fancy, fine, go for it, others have survived it too, and the casualty rate is not too bad either... ;D
This is the country of countries for preservation railways, so finding a steam-ride around the next corner is not a problem; - except maybe inner London. ;D
All I say is, Great Britain is the country of hedge rows and burins, so don't be disappointed... :laugh:
Cheers
Waldschrat
Quote from: Leprechaun on April 27, 2019, 12:10
I expect, from past experiences, that Paul most likely can't drive stick-shift anyway; but the stick (or whatever you call it) for an automatic is on the other side too. ;D
I just bought my first automatic (due to my disability; not a problem for me as I worked in a garage, i.e. drove everything in the past), but the mere thought of having to drive it causes SERIOUS panic attacks to my dear one! It's not as simple as you think for stick-shift only drivers!
However, automatic are readily available from all hirers, but the requirement must be identified at the time of booking.
I also disagree regarding Germany, yes your average speed on motorways is about 80km/h, but off the piste the average speed has dropped substantially in the last 15 years;
I'm disabled, and I looked at rail travel, in essence the situation here in the UK is a denial of service, you're not even guaranteed your seat if you book one, and, apart from quite a few operators refusing to carry disabled outright, you're not even guaranteed to get on or off the train, whether pre-booked or not. And that's before discussing timeliness, making connections (rather not), 'train substitution coaches' (which leave disabled behind), standing all the way due to insufficient seat numbers, etc.. If that is not a nightmare, and a massive abuse of the term 'service', I don't know what is?
I had only driven manual gearbox cars ("stick shift" is the US euphemism!) until a few years ago when my youngest past her test with an auto only licence, as she is the second driver on the Motability car that meant that we've had autos ever since. I only wish I'd used them earlier, compared to a manual an auto is a doddle. I don't understand anyone who has driven manuals being "afraid" of an auto, quite honestly they are far easier. That is why I suggested getting one (especially as being Americans, as you say, they are probably used to them anyhow), it's a lot easier to drive an auto than a manual, once you've put it in gear that's it, you can then concentrate on driving on the correct side of the road without having to worry about gear changes. Having driven 3k plus miles per year in Mainland Europe for the past 20 years I can assure you that driving an auto is much easier than a manual for concentration and therefore safety.
I will agree to differ with you regarding Germany vs UK, I've not noticed any reduction of my average speeds over there in the 20 years I've been driving over there, however that might be because I don't tend to drive as fast as many Germans, I cruise at about 80/85mph (not kph!) and for me the reduction in the lengths of "unlimited" speed section on the Autobahns have made no difference. However getting around over there is a doddle compared with England, the roads are much quieter, mainly because there are more miles of roads to spread the cars out so you don't get the jams you get over here, and especially in the North the side roads are much straighter and allow more overtaking than here in the UK Overall a much nicer experience, more akin to when i started driving back in the 70s when there weren't as many cars around... Those were the days!
Now regarding those so-called "facts" you have given on disabled travel on the railways:
1. If you have booked a seat and you are registered disabled (i.e. have a Disabled Railcard) you ARE guaranteed a seat, that what the wheelchair spaces and Priority Seats are for. If you can't get someone to move then the Guard will move them.
2. No UK rail company can refuse to allow a disabled person to travel, that's the law. However if they turn up without notice and the spaces are already full then they may be directed to another service. Or, in extreme cases the Rail Company will offer to transport them by taxi... Which leads on to:
3. Rail replacement Buses - Most can take wheelchairs, but again if they can't the rail company is obliged to provide a taxi instead. That would also apply if a connection was missed and there was no suitable replacement service within a reasonable period of time.
Unfortunately "turn up and travel" on the railways for those who use wheelchairs and scooters is some way off, though being looked at. The DfT's obsession with Driver Only Trains isn't helping either in that regards which is one of the reasons the Unions are fighting it so strongly. I would accept that travelling on the railways for disabled people isn't the best of experiences but we are trying to make it better but with an antiquated rail infrastructure which wasn't built for disabled people it's taking time. At least our platforms are all at reasonable heights, unlike the rest of Europe and the USA where ground level is far too common!
This might be worth reading for anyone who is disabled and wants to travel by rail in the UK:
http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/stations_destinations/disabled_passengers.aspx
OP, sorry for the thread drift...
Dear Hobby,
While I don't disagree with your 'facts' it appears you can use the seats in rail carriages, I can't; - and that makes a lot of difference! Try to book a space for a mobility scooter, my friend, and you will have an, well shall we call it 'interesting' experience. They'll ask you stuff the average scooterista doesn't know, e.g. turning radius!
Driving in Germany, you obviously didn't read my comment properly; but apart from that, half of Europe is on those roads (plus a couple of 10 000 US-citizens), so I haven't noticed those empty roads you mention. :D
But, as you say, we're off topic, so let's keep it at that.
Cheers
Waldschrat
OK, I've sent you a PM concerning the rail travel!
Frankly I cannot see the problem of driving on the other side of the road .When we came to Greece we brought with us our British RHD car and the only problem with this was pulling out to overtake .We then bought a greek registered LHD and swapped driving the cars when we felt like it .The only thing that seemed strange to me at first was at a crossroad turning left behind another car just seemed odd after 42 years of turning right behind a car .
As has been mentioned the controls (apart from hand brake and gear lever ) are the same (apart from some differences with different makes of cars ) although an automatic would be better for someone facing driving on the wrong side for the first time ,and as automatic drivers never seem to use the handbrake -except for parking - no problems there either .Just remember to fill up with petrol NOT gas !
I drove 100,000's of kms in France with a LHD car and ( with the exception of overtaking on non dual carriageways ) never had a problem .
As with driving any strange car you rent just take your time and get used to the car and what it and you can do with it .
One of those times i wish we had an "agree" button, Alan, says it all!
Perhaps it's best to ask the OP what he was thinking about doing. If he's only here for 10-14 days and also wants to see the (non railway!) sights then that's not a long time at all, we may be a small island but if you have to travel more than about 100 miles travel time will eat up a lot of the holiday which isn't what most people want. Just with the "regular" tourist sites there's easily 14 days worth within London and two hours travel (Windsor, Stratford, etc.) so if it boils down to the odd couple of days free for "railway" interest sights and they are basing themselves in the South East I'd suggest the Narrow Gauge/Light Railways of Kent/Sussex being their best bet.
Paul, what are you planning to see in respect of the "tourist" sights? How long have you got?
As I said in my original post, my wife and I are planning on visiting the UK with the primary objective of seeing narrow gauge railways. I'm sure that we will look at some other things, but the primary objective is narrow gauge railways. We are planning on using public transportation because I (at least) like traveling by train. We understand that in 10 to 14 days we cannot see everything, and for that reason are hoping to concentrate our attention on certain areas and subjects.
I see myself referred to as an OP, and have no idea what that means.
Paul
Paul,
You would be better flying into Manchester if you wanted to see the Great Little Trains of Wales.
You could take a train down the Welsh Coast as far as Bangor, there is a bus service to Caernafon right outside the station or you could continue
down to Porthmadog.
FR, WHR and the WHHR are based in Porthmadog
Snowden Mountain Rly and the Llanberis Lake Rly., are only 6 miles inland from Caernafon ( there is a regular bus service ).
It may come as a shock, but 95% of locals will be speaking Welsh. (this area has a large Welsh speaking population, but they will talk to you ).
You will find all the above up and running, unlike some of the Southern based NG which likely only operate at weekends or vertain times of the year.
Stan.
Hi Paul,
I thought your original post (you are the OP or Original Poster!) was quite clear when I proposed Porthmadog in North Wales. But one thing that has come up is the question of whether you'd prefer to visit more railways without riding on them or fewer with riding on them. Riding in trains sometimes reminds me of the famous guy who said he liked to eat lunch every day up in the Eiffel Tower because it was the only place in Paris where he wasn't forced to look at the Eiffel Tower. Either way, Porthmadog could be a wonderful base but the itinerary would vary a bit according to the answer to this question.
Bon voyage!
OP 'Original Poster'. IE you started this thread.
I stick to what I said Porthmadog is the place to stay.
As well as the FR, WHR and WHHR on your door step (two days) you can get the standard gauge train to Tywyn to ride the Tallyllyn (one day).
You can then go to the VOR taking the standard gauge train to Aberystwyth. (One day.)
To do the above I think you will have to ensure you are in Wales on a yellow timetable day on the VOR, it will be a long day but it can be done.
To get to llanberis sadly there is not enough time to use the WHR, you will need to get a Sherpa bus. But again it can be done in a day. It is up to you if you go up Snowdon or on the Lake railway, again it will take a day for each including the Welsh Slate museum when you do the lake railway.
The more I look into this the better it sounds 7 NG railways in 6 days, and all using public transport. It will not be cheap, but it will be good fun!
If you include the trains to get to and from Pothmadog it will be 9 days.
If you go on a peek WHR timetable day you may also have time to go on the 40 min boat trip along the Menai Strait from Caernarfon or look around the Castle as you can have 3 1/2 hours in Caernarfon. (I can recomend both.)
Brian Meldon
Tom, Stan, and Brian,
Thank you! This is the type of information I was hoping for when I originally posted.
Paul
Sorry for use of jargon, as others have said OP is Original Poster!
Your original post said it was your aim to visit the railways but gave the impression that it wasn't necessarily your other half's. If that has now changed then staying on the North wales Coast would be a good base especially if you are not proposing to use a car. Public transport in the UK is just about OK but in areas like North Wales is much slower than a car so you may end up sitting around on a bus or train a lot and thus not seeing some railways if time is tight! Anywhere from Barmouth up to Portmadoc would be a good base as long as you make sure that you are near one of the stations on the coast line. The Vale of Reihdol, Tallylyn, Ffestiniog and WHR are all alongside or very near a railway station. The Welshpool is a mile or so away but is easily walked. For the others you can use a bus.
I'd suggest you get together all the narrow gauge rail timetables and then look at this site to plan your travelling around. That will give you some idea on how it will work:
https://www.traveline.cymru/
I can recommend the Penhelig Arms in Aberdyfi, excellent accommodation, and food, railway station within yards linking you to the NG railways with a scenic journey along the coast, including the superb bridge at Barmouth. I say this as a very happy guest there last year on a railway holiday. Consider paying for a footplate ride on the Tallylyn, wonderful experience and such friendly people there. ( Book it in advance of course).
Have a good holiday whatever you don
Geo