Blaenau Ffestiniog
| Blaenau Ffestiniog | |
|---|---|
St David's Church, Blaenau Ffestiniog, 2014 | |
Blaenau Ffestiniog Location within Gwynedd | |
| Population | 4,011 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | SH705455 |
| Community | |
| Principal area | |
| Preserved county | |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BLAENAU FFESTINIOG |
| Postcode district | LL41 |
| Dialling code | 01766 |
| Police | North Wales |
| Fire | North Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| UK Parliament | |
| Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament | |
Blaenau Ffestiniog (Welsh pronunciation: [ˈbleɨ̯naɨ̯ fɛstˈɪnjɔɡ]) is a town in Gwynedd, Wales. Once a slate mining centre in historic Merionethshire, it now relies heavily on tourism, drawn to the Ffestiniog Railway and Llechwedd Slate Caverns. It reached a population of 12,000 at the peak development of the slate industry, but fell with the decline in demand for slate. The population of the community, including the nearby village Llan Ffestiniog, was 4,875 at the 2011 census: the fourth most populous in Gwynedd after Bangor, Caernarfon and Llandeiniolen. The population, not including Llan, is now only about 4,000.