Dyffryn Gardens

Dyffryn, often Duffryn, is a small village in the Vale of Glamorgan in south Wales. It is located 4.8 miles (7.7 km) north of the town centre of Barry, roughly 1 mile (1.6 km) west of St Lythans and 2 miles (3.2 km) south of St. Nicholas. It lies off the A4226 road (Five Mile Lane), along St Lythans Road, directly east of Walterston. Dyffryn is best known for its Dyffryn Gardens and its megalithic monuments nearby including the Tinkinswood and St Lythans Burial Chamber and also the caves of nearby Goldsland. The River Waycock flows through the village. The Dyffryn Estate dates back to 640 A.D. when the Manor of Worlton (also known as Worleton), which included St Lythans and St Nicholas, was granted to Bishop Oudoceus of Llandaff. Dyffryn House and its Edwardian garden are Grade I listed buildings and are leased to the National Trust. The 22 hectare (55 acre) landscaped gardens were designed by Thomas Mawson between 1894 and 1909, and are the largest and "most exotic" in Glamorgan.The village itself is a wealthy community with a number of quaint houses and farms. It also contains the Dyffryn Nurseries, Wayside Cattery, and an Aqua farm, Dyffryn Springs in Lower Dyffryn, which is a noted commercial fishing spot for trout in the county, located to the south of the main village near the hamlet of Great Hamston.The 1811 Topographical Dictionary of Wales simply said "DYFFRYN, in the Cwmwd of Is Caeth, Cantref of Brenhinol (now called the Hundred of Dinas Powys), Co. of Glamorgan, South Wales; in the Parish of St. Nicholas. It is 6 m. W. b. S. from Caerdiff. Near Dyffryn House, which is the Property of The Honourable William Booth Grey, are several Druidical Monuments."

The St Lythans burial chamber (Welsh: Siambr Gladdu Llwyneliddon) is a single stone megalithic dolmen, built around 4,000 BC as part of a chambered long barrow, during the mid Neolithic period, in what is now known as the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales. It lies about half a mile (1 km) to the west of the hamlet of St Lythans, near Dyffryn Gardens. It also lies around one mile (1.6 km) south of Tinkinswood burial chamber, a more extensive cromlech that it may once have resembled, constructed during the same period. The site is on pasture land, but pedestrian access is allowed and is free, with roadside parking available for 2–3 cars about 50 yards (50 metres) from the site. The dolmen, which has never been fully excavated, is maintained by Cadw, the Welsh Historic Environment Agency.

Tinkinswood or its full name Tinkinswood Burial Chamber (Welsh: Siambr Gladdu Tinkinswood), also known as Castell Carreg, Llech-y-Filiast and Maes-y-Filiast, is a megalithic burial chamber, built around 6,000 years ago, during the Neolithic period, in the Vale of Glamorgan, near Cardiff, Wales. The structure is called a dolmen, which was the most common megalithic structure in Europe. The dolmen is of the Severn-Cotswold tomb type, and consists of a large capstone on top, with smaller upright stones supporting it. The limestone capstone at Tinkinswood weighs approximately 40 long tons and measures 24 feet (7.3 m) x 14 ft (4.3 m); it is thought to be the largest in Britain, and also in Europe. It would have taken some 200 people to lift the stone into the correct position. It was originally all covered by a mound of soil, which has been removed over time. The remaining mound behind the structure measures approximately 130 ft (40 m) x 59 ft (18 m) in size.

Great Hamston is a small hamlet and farm in the Vale of Glamorgan in south Wales. It is located about 4.2 miles (6.8 km) north of the town centre of Barry, about 600 metres to the south of the main village of Dyffryn, even nearer to Lower Dyffryn, west along the lane from Goldsland, and just north of Lidmore and North Cliff Farm. It lies off the A4226 road (Five Mile Lane). The River Waycock flows through the hamlet and the Goldsland Brook joins this stream from the east just to the northeast of Great Hamston. The Hamston Pond Cottage is let out to tourists. Just to the north is the Aqua farm, Dyffryn Springs, which is a noted commercial fishing spot for trout in the county and the hamlet also contains an allotment. Great Hamston Farm has a distinctive white tower which can be viewed on Bing Maps Birdseye view. The lane to Goldsland and Wenvoe to the east contains the Old Wallace Farm and the New Wallace Farm.

Lidmore or Lydmore is a small hamlet and farm in the Vale of Glamorgan. It is located just off the A4226 road, to the northwest of Highlight Park in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan and in close proximity to Brynhill Golf Club. To the north is Great Hamston and Dyffryn and the hamlet is accessed through another hamlet called Northcliff from the main road. To the southwest is Lidmore Wood and the Welsh Hawking Centre.

St Lythans (Welsh: Llwyneliddon) is an affluent hamlet and former parish in the Vale of Glamorgan, southeast Wales, just outside western Cardiff. It lies southwest of Culverhouse Cross, west of Wenvoe and southwest of Twyn-yr-Odyn and is also connected by road from Dyffryn and the Five Mile Lane in the west. It is one of the wealthiest communities in the Vale of Glamorgan, containing some notable mansions and cottages, valued on average at over £500,000 as of 2011. The megalithic St Lythans burial chamber, over 6000 years old, lies 1 km to the west of the village and the hamlet also contains the St.Lythans Parish Church or Church of St Bleddian, a Grade II* listed building.

St. Nicholas (Welsh: Sain Nicolas) is a small village in the Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales. It lies 2 miles west of the capital city, Cardiff and 7 miles from its city centre. St. Nicholas is the highest elevation village in the Vale of Glamorgan. The population was 417 in 2011. It is in the community of St Nicholas and Bonvilston.

Great Brynhill is a small hamlet and farm in the Vale of Glamorgan in south Wales. It consists little more than a few farms including the Little Brynhill Farm and Thorn Falcon Farm (Little Brynhill) and the Great Brynhill Farm. It is located in the historical parish of Merthyr Dyfan and near Colcot now northern districts of the town of Barry. It is accessed via a lane from Port Road (the A4050 road) but can also be accessed from Dyffryn along the lane to the New Wallace Farm and Goldsland which lie just to the northeast. "Bryn" means "hill" in Welsh, so the name literally means "Great hill hill". The Little Brynhill Farm is owned by the Tanner family who are notable milk suppliers in Barry under the company name "W. A. Tanner & Son". One of the farms sold off some of their land along with neighbouring Highlight Farm when Brynhill Golf Club was formed in 1921. According to the Barry & District News, Thorn Falcon Farm sold for £400,000 on 25 November 2005.

The A4226 (better known as The Five Mile Lane) is a main road linking Bonvilston to Barry and Cardiff International Airport (CIA) in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales.

Goldsland (Welsh: Tregold) is a small hamlet and farm in the Vale of Glamorgan in south Wales. It is located near the boundary of the Wenvoe Castle Golf Club in the parish of Wenvoe. It lies to the east of Dyffryn and south of St Lythans and the road leading from the west passes through the farms of Old and New Wallace. Goldsland Brook flows through here. A sub-manor was reportedly held at Goldsland by a Mathew of Llandaff under the manor of Wenvoe in 1583.

The Wenvoe transmitting station, officially known as Arqiva Wenvoe, is the main facility for broadcasting and telecommunications for South Wales and the West of England. It is situated close to the village of Wenvoe in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales, in the UK. It comprises a 270.5-metre (887 ft) guyed mast with antennas attached at various heights. The average height above sea level is 400.5 metres (1,314 ft) for the television antennas.It is owned and operated by Arqiva. The site serves 24 counties spanning vast areas of Wales and western England. It is structurally identical to the site at Sutton Coldfield.

The Welsh Hawking Centre and Children's Animal Park is a hawking centre on Weycock Road (A4226 road) on the northwestern outskirts of Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, in southern Wales. It contains the largest collection of birds of prey in Wales, with over 200 birds on site including eagles, owls, hawks, falcons and buzzards.In 2007 seven falcon chicks were stolen from the centre.