Adventure award for slate cavern

Re-minted Victorian coins are used in the village

A tourist attraction which invites visitors to step back in time and experience the tough life of a slate miner has won the accolade "the adventure of the year".

The Llechwedd Slate Caverns in Blaenau Ffestiniog, Gwynedd was described by the Good Britain Guide as a "must-see" for visitors and "an unforgettable hard-hat encounter with the world of the Victorian miners."

During its heyday in the 19th Century, the slate industry employed thousands of men in north Wales and was said to have roofed the industrial revolution.

Earlier this month, a memorial service was held in recognition of those who suffered during Bethesda's Penrhyn Quarry strike of 1900 - 1903, still the longest trade union strike in British history.

Almost 3,000 workers were locked in a bitter dispute with the quarry's owner Lord Penrhyn which tore the town apart.

Visitors to the slate caverns can get a taste of what life was like for those quarrymen.

The usual comment we get from people is, 'We don't realised how good our lives are' Glenys Tudor Jones

Those boarding the Miners' Underground Tramway, are hauled by a locomotive through a tunnel and into the area's spectacular caverns.

The Deep Mine offers an alternative view of slate mining when passengers are taken into the lower depths of the mine.

Helmeted visitors can walk through chambers and tunnels on a tour showing what life was like for the men who mined the slate.

Above ground, there are exhibitions on the mine tramways and slate mining, the old smithy and slate mill, the Village Square with Victorian shops and the Miners' Arms pub.

Nine couples have even got married in the underground caverns in the last few years.

'Fantasised'

"We are delighted with the award," said Glenys Tudor Jones, the attraction's booking officer.

"I think our success is due to the fact that we show how people lived in that age, we are not offering a fantasised view in any way.

"The usual comment we get from people is, 'We don't realised how good our lives are."

The attraction has had more than 3 million visitors pass through its gates since it opened in 1972.

During the summer, an average of 2,000 people a day visit the mine.