5 thrilling activities to try in Wales this year

Are you looking for an extraordinary action-packed experience to try this year? Wales is the perfect place for an adventure seeker, home to the most incredible landscapes and offering a wide range of activities. It is renowned for its strikingly rugged coastline, green rolling hills, pristine lakes and world-class beaches. 

If you are looking for your next adrenaline rush this year, visit Wales. To guide you on your new exciting adventure, we have listed 5 thrilling activities to try in Wales this year.

1. Coasteering

What can be more exciting than leaping off cliffs into the water? Coasteering is an extreme sport like no other, involving swimming, climbing, scrambling, jumping and caving. If you love to explore, this will definitely give you the chance to experience the coast in a completely new way and discover the rich marine wildlife. The most thrilling aspect of the sport is timing. You will feel more connected to nature as you wait to use the strength of the sea to your advantage. A wave can give you that extra boost you need to climb onto a cliff and a strong current can help you when entering a cave.

Where to go: We recommend Anglesey Outdoors in stunning Holyhead, North Wales. Surrounded by spectacular coastlines and breathtaking scenery, Holyhead is the perfect environment in which to give coasteering a try. Anglesey Outdoors offer a wide range of sessions, including family coasteering sessions suitable for children aged 8 and over. 

2. White water rafting

White water rafting is the ultimate experience for the true adrenaline seeker. You will plunge down waterfalls and battle against rapids whilst navigating down the river. Feel the crash of the waves on the side of the raft while intensely paddling to keep afloat. If you want to succeed in overcoming the strength of the water, it's important to have great body and mind coordination. Teamwork is essential to power through the wild waters, making this a great bonding activity to do with friends or family. Every person on board must be focused, and communication is crucial to avoid obstacles in the water. 

Where to go: Adventures Wales has been running for nearly fifteen years and offer amazing white water rafting opportunities. Located in Bridgend, they have access to quiet, unspoilt beaches, plunging cliffs, and river gorges on the fringes of the Brecon Beacons National Park. Perfectly situated just 35 minutes from Cardiff city centre.

3. Skiing and snowboarding

Skiing and snowboarding are great activities that can be enjoyed all year round. Dry ski slopes enable you to experience the thrill of gliding down the slopes whatever the weather. There are endless runs to explore and different degrees of difficulty. It's an ideal opportunity for beginners looking to develop the right technique before tackling the mountain slopes or people wanting to perfect their skills. If you are the competitive type, you can even try slalom racing. Practice carving and feel the buzz of racing through the gates, the ultimate exhilarating experience! Snowboarding also provides the perfect chance to freestyle and practice cool tricks and flips. 

Where to go: If you are looking to hit the slopes, we recommend Cardiff Ski and Snowboard Centre. Located in Fairwater Park it's conveniently just a 15 minute drive from the city centre. They offer private and group ski and snowboard sessions for all abilities and run over 11,000 sessions a year. Looking to perfect your tricks? It's renowned for its huge freestyle scene and they have some of the best features in the UK!

4. Assault course

An Assault course is sure to get your heart rate pumping as it tests your ability to run, jump, crawl, climb and problem solve. As an action-packed activity, you will exercise a range of skills, both mental and physical. To accomplish the wide array of different obstacles it's vital to not only have physical strength but also determination and courage when faced with what may seem like an initially impossible hurdle. There's nothing quite like the thrill of swinging across monkey bars, climbing across walls and running across narrow wooden beams.

Where to go: Adventure Wales in Bridgend holds an incredible military-style assault course featuring over 20 different exciting obstacles to conquer. Go with friends, family or colleagues and have the most thrilling experience. Located further West along the coast from Cardiff and just a 35 minute drive from the city centre. 

5. Surfing

If you are a lover of the coast and are looking for an adrenaline-fueled adventure, try surfing this year. It’s an amazing sport, with so many aspects to master. Patience is important as you have to wait for the perfect wave, which is part of the thrill and excitement. Once focused, you have to paddle vigorously, racing to catch the wave in time. It's such a liberating feeling when you conquer standing up and ride the wave all the way to the shore. No wonder so many people become hooked on the sport and it is easy to find a large surfing community all over the world!

Where to go: If you are looking for one of the best surfing spots in Wales we recommend Porthcawl. It is known for the most stunning beaches such as Rest Bay, a long stretch of golden sandy beach with mellow waves and consistent break, ideal for beginners. Visit Cressey's surf school, a friendly family run school managed by Ingemar Cressy, the Welsh national surf champ. Another great centre is Porthcawl surf school, specialising in well-structured beginners lessons and kids courses. You also have Adventures Wales offering session for beginners to intermediate levels.

As you can see Wales has a really impressive range of activities to offer. These are just some of the many different types of activities available to book on the eola marketplace.

Looking for more fun and exciting ways to get active this year? We have listed 5 unique experiences to try this year and The eola bucket list: kitesurfing.

Follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter to keep up with the latest information and adventure activities available near you.