Snowdonia car park fills up as mountains reopen to visitors following lockdown relaxation

A Snowdonia car park was rammed with visitors after the national park’s mountains were reopened today.

Snowdon, the Glyderau, Carneddau and Cader Idris have been closed off since lockdown measures were introduced in Wales in March to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

National park owners admitted their nervousness ahead of welcoming people back for the first time in over three months as the Welsh Government eased the “stay local” travel restrictions.

In order to prepare, a number of social distancing measures have been implemented, with visitors encouraged to check this dedicated web page to find out where parking spaces are available ahead of travelling.

But by 2pm this afternoon, the Ogwen car park was reported to be full, with park officials sharing a picture of some vehicles parked on the pavement.

Parking Update 06:07:20 – 14:24:

The Ogwen car park is now full. For other car parks follow this link.https://t.co/RZ54bdvmie pic.twitter.com/Z9edR5wXEc

— Snowdonia NPA (@visitsnowdonia) July 6, 2020

The busy scenes came despite the availability of spaces in most other locations.

Visitors coming to Snowdonia by car are now being encouraged to observe the following rules to ensure the safety of local communities, as well as their own:

• Be safe – Observe social distancing at all times. Maintain a safe distance between you/your group and others. Be mindful of any pinch points and remember to sanitise your hands after contact with hard surfaces including pay and display machines.
• Tread lightly – Be willing to change your destination. Have a few options prepared in case you arrive somewhere that is increasingly getting busy.
• Be kind – Park in designated parking spaces. Do not park on roadsides or across entrances, it is dangerous and can cause problems for our farmers, communities and emergency services.

For more advice on visiting Snowdonia at this time, the park has prepared the following video.