An underground adventure Bounce Below

A huge cavern lit in spectacular bright colours, completely decked out with giant trampoline nets. It’s the first attraction of its kind on the planet, set in a cavern that is more than twice the area of St Paul’s Cathedral, and is an experience like no other. The trampolines are all inter-linked, with tunnels, walkways and slides, with the highest net allowing you to bounce at almost 200 feet above the cavern floor.

Blaenau Ffestiniog is a small Welsh town found in the centre of Snowdonia. As a place, it is more famous for its history of mining rather than anything else, although it does have a few tourist attractions that are very popular.

These attractions include the Ffestiniog Railway, a narrow gauge heritage railway that takes its passengers on a comfortable ride up to the harbour of Porthmadog and back, and the nearby downhill mountain biking courses that were designed by Artur Stiniog.

There’s also the well-known Llechwedd Slate Caverns, found just outside of the town. These were once the largest slate quarry in the world, but it’s now run solely as a tourist attraction. The exhibition is interesting, offering the chance to learn about the hardships of a miner’s life, with a reconstructed miners’ village showing how time was spent outside of the quarry, and an interpretive centre detailing the workings of the slate extraction and processing. A funicular also operates, letting guests travel deep down into abandoned sections of the caverns.

The Llechwedd Slate Caverns also play host to some rather more unusual attractions. The first of these is Zip World Titan, the largest zip zone in the world, where you can travel on three different zip lines that reach speeds of up to 70 miles per hour. Titan has the first 4-person zip lines in Europe, meaning you and three others will get to experience the exhilaration at the same time.

Perhaps even more exciting than that, however, is Bounce Below. Although it is operated by the same people who are in charge of Zip World, this is an altogether different experience. The slate mine beneath Blaenau Ffestiniog has been converted into what is essentially a theme park based around trampolines – it’s certainly rather different to your average caves!

After a short train journey through a narrow tunnel a giant cavern opens up to reveal a multi layered series of enormous nets which stretch across the space. Moving from one side to the other requiress a special bouncing style of walk that lets you cover a large distance quickly but soon tires you out! Moving between levels involves sliding down steep tubes of nets, a little unerving the first time you try it but lots of fun. Entry is for 1 hour and is definitely worth considering during your time in North Wales.

Unfortunately, children under the age of seven years old are not permitted to use Bounce Below for health and safety reasons (and everyone who does go on has to wear the provided safety gear). Fortunately, however, there is also Bounce Below Juniors, allowing 3- to 6-year-olds to join in on the fun. With three separate trampolines and all the tunnel and slide fun of the bigger course, there’s plenty for the little ones to enjoy here.

If you are looking for a unique experience (or even two or three), then North Wales’ very own Blaenau Ffestiniog may well be a surprise contender for your top destination. Click here to find out about our self-catered accommodation in Blaenau Ffestiniog.