In 1972 a consortium of local investors teamed up with Llechwedd Slate Mine near Blaenau Ffestiniog to create The Miners’s Tramway, Britain’s first public underground mine ride.
Guests would board a 2ft gauge train for a short 2 1/2 minute ride into the old mine. They’d get off and listen to a talk by ex-miners demonstrating how the slate was worked and cut. Then back on the train for the return trip out. It was all over in about 20 minutes. The initial fare was 25p (10p for kids). The Ffestiniog Railway were contracted to lay the track and build the carriages. The battery-electric locos came secondhand from the mining industry.
The developers were expecting 20,000 visitors during the first season but it became a surprise hit and they ended up with 110,000. It won the top award from the British Tourist Authority for most outstanding tourist enterprise. The company was said to be slightly embarrassed by their success as they weren’t prepared for the huge crowds.
In 1974 a much needed two-storey building was erected containing a large restaurant, gift shop and lecture room. That same year another slate mine opened across the road at Gloddfa Ganol, offering a different walk-through experience. The two attractions complimented each other well.
In 1979 a second ride was opened called the Deep Mine Tour which consisted of a 24-seat carriage which was lowered a short distance underground via a cable. Guests would then proceed on a 30 minute self-guided walking tour around some of the old slate workings. 221,000 people came to Llechwedd that year.
In 1981, just 9 years after opening, they welcomed their 2 millionth visitor. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s it became one of the top attractions in Wales. The crowds and long queues were legendary. Even Princess Margaret came for a visit.
During the early-1990s a handful of old buildings were restored to create a ‘Victorian village’. In 1992 an investment of £130,000 was made to update the Deep Mine Tour with new technology and lighting.
Health and safety standards evolved over time by the 1980s, hard hats became mandatory, and in 2003, the carriages were enclosed in plexiglass which totally ruined the overall experience.
By the 2010s, the site felt dated, tired and expensive. Little had changed since the 1980s. Ticket prices for the tramway where now around £10, while annual visitor numbers had declined to about 50,000—a far cry from the 200,000+ of its heyday.
In 2013 it was announced that major changes were taking place as a company called Zip World were building the world’s first subterranean playground inside one of the huge caverns. This unique attraction, with 6 trampoline-style nets suspended from the cavern walls, offered thrill seekers a unique experience.
The tramway continued in use during 2014 and was used to transport guests to the new attraction but it was closed the following year and the track ripped out. Guests now walked to the playground along the route of the old tramway.
The Deep Mine Tour remained and was given a facelift which included a longer walk, tour guides and “enhanced reality technology and explosive special effects”.
In 2021 the Zip World company took over the lease for most of the Llechwedd tourist site and it’s now back to being a popular and unique attraction.
