I have lived in Swansea for about 17 years now, and there are still so many places I haven’t been to and things I haven’t done here. One thing that I can cross off that list though is taking a trip on the Swansea Bay rider land train, from Blackpill to Mumbles.
I went on it for the first time last week, with the children and Steve’s family who were over from the Isle of Man. And I can safely say it is as much fun as it looks!
The train runs 6 times a day, from Blackpill all along the front at Swansea bay to Southend gardens in Mumbles.
We decided to catch the first train of the day, at 10.30 from Blackpill.
We got there a few minutes before the train arrived, and so had the fun build up of peering down the prom trying to spot it as it made its way towards us.
By the time the train arrived there were several other families waiting to get on, and I wasn’t sure how much room there would be for everyone. So I was really pleasantly surprised when I realised that the Swansea Bay rider is actually a pretty decent size. According to the council website it has enough seats for 72 people which I thought was great.
I was also really impressed with the two men who were running it that day.
They took the time to chat with us and work out the best deal for us when it came to buying our tickets which we really appreciated.
Then before we knew it, the whistle blew and we were off!
The land train travels all along Swansea promenade to Mumbles, so you get amazing views of Swansea bay the whole way.
I’ve lost count of the amount of times I’ve looked out at that view across the bay, but I don’t think I will ever get tired of it. And if you’re visiting Swansea then taking the land train is a great way to really experience the view for the first time!
One thing I really loved was how everyone walking along the prom reacted as the train went by.
All the children on the train were shouting hello and waving to them as we went along, and pretty much everyone we passed grinned and waved hello back to them. There was just such a lovely atmosphere to the whole thing.
We got off the train at the last stop – Southend gardens in Mumbles. Then walked for a couple of minutes to Mumbles pier.
We ventured out along the pier to visit the Mumbles Lifeboat station, which I’m not sure I had ever done before.
Rhys and Nerys have been a few times before though, with their Nana and with Steve, and Rhys was really excited to tell me all about how the lifeboat launches and splashes out in the water to rescue people.
I was really impressed with the lifeboat station, there was a fair bit to look at and interact with while learning all about how the crew do their jobs. The children even had the chance to try on some of the gear!
After a good nose at the lifeboat we headed back along the pier to the beach hut cafe to refuel with coffee for the adults and lunch for the children. Rhys highly recommends the margarita pizza from the children’s menu, it was delicious!
We just had time after lunch for a quick visit to the amusement arcade.
I think the children could’ve quite happily spent all afternoon there, playing on the different games and trying out the various rides, but luckily for our wallets we were watching the clock to make sure we got back to Southend gardens in time to get the train back to Blackpill.
We did have time for Nerys and her cousin to ride in a rocket ship a few times though, while Rhys challenged his Nana to a few games of air hockey.
We managed to get the little ones away from the arcade without too much drama (luckily!) and then strolled back to meet the train for the journey back home.
We were a few minutes early again, so passed the time taking photos and seeing who could spot the train coming first!
Then it was time to hop aboard and make our way back along the prom to Blackpill.
We had a really great morning out together, riding the land train and spending some time at the pier in Mumbles. I still can’t believe I’d never done it before! And now I’ve seen how much fun it can be I’ll definitely be taking the children for a ride again next summer.
You can get details of ticket prices and the dates and times that the Swansea Bay rider runs here.