WHEN David Cox painted his famous 'Rhyl Sands' in 1854, a picture which still hangs in the Tate Gallery, the North Wales Coast was already a popular destination with visitors from the cities of Northern England. It has remained so to this day, with coachloads of visitors pouring into Rhyl, Prestatyn, Llandudno and Colwyn Bay every summer weekend.
 The bracing fresh air which Cox successfully depicted remains the same. But nowadays a range of more modern attractions compete with the beach for visitor's attentions. The Sun Centre is the best known, a tropical leisure complex complete with surf pool which was highly innovative when the centre opened in the 1980s and remains very popular. Prestatyn's newer Nova Centre also has a fun pool for children. Rhyl now also has the sealife aquarium, the ocean beach funfair, and the skytower. The resorts of North Wales are all very different. Rhyl is the place for partying youngsters. Prestatyn, Colwyn Bay and Rhos on Sea have a more genteel air, while Llandudno is the dignified old lady of Welsh seaside towns. Other popular holiday towns like Pensarn, Kinmel Bay and Towyn fill the coastal strip between the west end of Rhyl and the market town of Abergele. Llandudno, its beach a graceful curve between the Great and Little Ormes is one of the most attractively situated towns in Britain. Its promenade stretches along the beach and is a relaxing place to stroll and enjoy the sea air. | 
Article
