# Pontypridd



## jannerboyuk (Oct 16, 2012)

Having finally fluked an actual career i've started to ponder housebuying and have kinda convinced myself that ponty is the way to go, more bang for your buck compared to cardiff, good transport connections and i work in tongwynlais which is connected by bus. any ponty people here have any insights on buying and living there? do and don't, good/bad areas, good/bad pubs etc?


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## editor (Oct 16, 2012)

Treforest down the road is OK in a villagey kinda way with the seasonal bonus of a lively student scene. Haven't been to Ponty for years, sorry.


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## tarannau (Oct 16, 2012)

Same here. The last time I was in Ponty was on a colts tour, many, many years ago. Short of the rugby ground, a few bars and a curry dive called 'Sweaty Bettys' there's not much I can tell you. Oh and there was a place (the Gogg shop?) that seemed to sell a lot of cartoony figurines of Tom Jones and various rugby players.

I suspect it's gone considerably upmarket since then mind, but I've fond memories of the place.


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## William of Walworth (Oct 16, 2012)

The Otley brewery is very near Treforest I think. With 3 pubs of its own in the Ponty area, this one kicks serious arse beer quality wise


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## xenon (Oct 16, 2012)

Pick and Shovel pub is alright. The rest, up that hill, are a bit Valley Comando. Nightmare commuting in the snow of course. My mate moved there for pretty much same reasons as OP, though he's moving back nearer to Cardif now. Treeforst I remember being as Editor describes, XGF went to glamorgan uni and that seems to dominate the area. I remember the otley was decent enough the few times I went there FWIW.


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## editor (Oct 16, 2012)

William of Walworth said:


> The Otley brewery is very near Treforest I think. With 3 pubs of its own in the Ponty area, this one kicks serious arse beer quality wise


I was drinking Otley in Treforest recently. 'Tis the big brew there.


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## jannerboyuk (Oct 16, 2012)

xenon said:


> Pick and Shovel pub is alright. The rest, up that hill, are a bit Valley Comando. Nightmare commuting in the snow of course. My mate moved there for pretty much same reasons as OP, though he's moving back nearer to Cardif now. Treeforst I remember being as Editor describes, XGF went to glamorgan uni and that seems to dominate the area. I remember the otley was decent enough the few times I went there FWIW.


I get to work from home when i need to so the snow wont bother me, might be a shock moving from pontcanna though! still these prices are hard to resist!
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-39658187.html
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-35392732.html
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-33503188.html
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-39100568.html


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## geminisnake (Oct 16, 2012)

Only thing I know about Ponty for a fact is getting to and from tesco is a fecking NIGHTMARE!! and I was only going there to get diesel!!


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## Clint Iguana (Oct 18, 2012)

Depends what you are after.

As a town its ok, has good areas and bad areas. Southern end tends to be a bit student land.

The town centre is dying on its arse. Full of charity shops, card shops and shoe shops. For some years now the redevelopment of the town has been centred around a new development on the north of the town with a shopping centre, café’s and a riverside walk. A lot of time and effort has gone into the planning of it and they have knocked down the old shopping centre and tax office in preparation – but it wall went tits up last month and has been scrapped.

There is a brand spanking new Sainsbury’s and a mini retail park with halfords, currys, and one of them there DIY superstores (cant remember which one)

There are one or two half decent pubs, but nothing special. Rose and Crown on the Graig is my favourite (even though it is a ‘sports bar’) purely because I have been away to the football with the landlord a few times. Clwb-y-bont is probably the best place for live music, but has nothing on music venues in the ‘diff – although having said that the Muni has a few big name bands on the way down grace its stage now and again.

On the weekend the town tends to fill up with people from the Rhondda or Cynon valley who are adventurous enough to leave their valley, but not adventurous enough to go to the big city down the road.

The A470 runs through it so easy to get to motorway or heads of valleys. Big bus station so I assume you can get anywhere by bus. Trains on the Merthyr Line and the Rhondda Lines go through Ponty so it is well served in the choo choo department.

Erm…. They have a rugby club that used to be famous.

Struggling to think of anything else.

EDIT - nice big park there with cricket pitches, bowling green and out door paddling pool and there is supposed to be a Lido on the way. Park often host big gigs with the likes of x-factor winners - although they did have the lost prophets once.


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## poisondwarf (Oct 18, 2012)

It's a shame that Ponty centre has gone downhill so much, it used to be thriving when I was a kid and I used to love the market they had on Wednesdays and Saturdays. The park is called Ynyshangharad- I think that's the right spelling and is the best thing about the centre of Ponty. It used to have a lido in the seventies as we used to go there quite a lot as kids. Sorry, no advice on areas but good luck.


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## Gavin Bl (Oct 24, 2012)

jannerboyuk said:


> might be a shock moving from pontcanna though! still these prices are hard to resist!


 
you do need to think about this - have you ever lived in the valleys, it ain't pontcanna. Tranport links are pretty good, but its a non-descript sort of a place.


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## jannerboyuk (Oct 26, 2012)

Gavin Bl said:


> you do need to think about this - have you ever lived in the valleys, it ain't pontcanna. Tranport links are pretty good, but its a non-descript sort of a place.


Nah but having lived in various bits of plymouth (devonport, st budeaux, st peters), brixton and gillingham might have given me some insight in less salubrious places then pontcanna tbf


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## geminisnake (Oct 26, 2012)

You've experienced the joys of Gillingham!! (((you)))


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## jannerboyuk (Oct 26, 2012)

geminisnake said:


> You've experienced the joys of Gillingham!! (((you)))


i worked in a short stay homeless hostel so i saw the town at its best


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## Gavin Bl (Oct 28, 2012)

jannerboyuk said:


> Nah but having lived in various bits of plymouth (devonport, st budeaux, st peters), brixton and gillingham might have given me some insight in less salubrious places then pontcanna tbf


brixton, nah - gillingham, yeah - that might easily cover it


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## jannerboyuk (Oct 29, 2012)

Gavin Bl said:


> brixton, nah - gillingham, yeah - that might easily cover it


gillingham i have to say was the worse place i've ever been to let alone lived in! horrible


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## editor (Feb 16, 2020)

There's been some terrible flooding in Pontypridd











						Storm Dennis: Month's worth of rain falls in 'major' floods
					

Hundreds of homes and businesses are damaged in flooding caused by Storm Dennis.



					www.bbc.co.uk


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## ddraig (Feb 16, 2020)

More Ponty


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## jannerboyuk (Feb 19, 2020)

I moved to Ponty in the end, love the place, floods are terrible but reveal a genuine sense of community, people coming together in a very heartening way. Also the Otley is great!


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## Supine (Feb 19, 2020)

I used to live near the Otley. Great Wednesday night lockins upstairs


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