A base in Somerset works well for a few days. The Mendip hills, Wells, the levels and the coast are all close together. Every so often, though, a visitor wonders whether they could tack on a few days somewhere completely different, and mid Wales is a tempting answer: hills, reservoirs, quiet market towns and very little traffic.
It can be done, and it can be a very good trip. The catch is that most of the hard decisions are about the route and the order of the stays, not the car. Settle those first and the hire question tends to answer itself. Below are the questions worth asking, followed by two hypothetical examples and a worksheet you can copy.
How far is mid Wales from Somerset, really?
Further in time than on the map. From most of Somerset you would normally head up the M5 and either cross the Severn into Wales or continue north and come in from the English side. Check live motorway conditions before you set off rather than relying on a typical journey time. Neither route is difficult, but once you leave the main roads, mid Wales slows down.
Visit Mid Wales, the regional tourism site, is candid about this. Its getting-around page warns that journeys take longer than the map suggests, that many roads are narrow and some are single-track with passing places, and that it’s sensible to fill up in the main towns before heading into the hills. Plan a travel day as a travel day, not a morning.
Do I pay a toll to cross into Wales?
Not on the Severn crossings any more. The UK government removed the tolls on 17 December 2018. That makes the M4 or M48 an easy way to start the journey, though for northern parts of mid Wales a route through the English side can be just as quick. Check both on the day.
Should I take one car for the whole trip?
If you’re driving your own car from home, almost certainly yes. The question only really arises if you’re arriving by train or plane and need a hire car for each part.
In that case, there are two broad ways to do it. One is a single hire for the whole trip, collected in the Somerset area and kept until you go home. The other is two separate hires: one for the Somerset days, then a train into mid Wales and a second car there. Which suits you depends on luggage, how much you want to drive on the travel day, and the hirers’ own terms on one-way returns, mileage and delivery. Don’t assume the two hires will be coordinated. Treat them as two separate bookings unless the hirer confirms otherwise in writing.
Can I get to mid Wales by train instead?
Often, yes. Visit Mid Wales explains on its getting-to-mid-Wales page that trains run to Shrewsbury and on into mid Wales, and that the Cambrian Line crosses the region east to west towards the coast. Newtown has its own station, listed on the Transport for Wales station page. Check timetables for your dates, especially on Sundays.
Two worked examples
Both examples are hypothetical. They are here to show how the decisions fit together, not to describe real customers or real bookings.
Example 1: arriving by train, one car for the Somerset leg
A couple arrive by train at a Bristol station for four nights in a cottage in the Mendips. They want a car for days out to Wells, Glastonbury and the coast, then plan to continue by train to mid Wales for the rest of the week.
Portishead is a short drive west of Bristol, close to the M5, so it is a plausible place to start. They could enquire about car hire in Portishead. That site says it offers delivery and collection to a home, workplace or hotel when arranged ahead, and asks for a full driving licence, proof of address and a card in the driver’s own name for the deposit. Their questions would be practical ones: can the car be delivered to the station or the cottage, what is the insurance excess, and can it be collected from the cottage on the last morning rather than them driving it back?
Example 2: a separate car in mid Wales
A family split their week between Somerset and mid Wales. They travel between the two by train with their bags, and want a car on arrival in Newtown to reach a farm stay in the hills.
They might look at the Newtown hire enquiry page, which lists car, van, minibus and truck hire around Newtown and says bookings are handled by phone. For a family with luggage and a child seat, the questions would be: which car size actually fits everyone and the bags, is delivery to the station or the accommodation possible, and what happens on the return day if their train home is early?
The two-centre worksheet
Fill this in before you book anything. If a row can’t be answered yet, that’s the thing to sort out first.
| Somerset leg | Mid Wales leg | |
|---|---|---|
| Nights and base | ||
| How you arrive (own car, train, coach) | ||
| Car needed? Size, seats, boot space | ||
| Where the car is collected or delivered | ||
| Where and when it goes back | ||
| Parking at the accommodation | ||
| Travel day: route, fuel stops, rough time | ||
Terms to confirm with any hirer
- Exact collection and return times, and the cost of running late.
- Insurance excess, and what reducing it costs.
- Mileage terms in writing. A long travel day adds up.
- Whether one-way returns are possible, and where.
- Additional drivers, and what each needs to bring.
- A DVLA licence check code if they ask for one. GOV.UK says the code lasts 21 days.
Is it worth it?
For the right people, very much so. Somerset is busy, layered and close-packed. Mid Wales is the opposite: space, quiet and long views. Going from one to the other in a single holiday makes both feel sharper. Just give the journey between them the respect it needs, and book the vehicles last.