The claim
Next to the ancient church of St Elian above Colwyn Bay, this beamed country inn with slate floors and log fires claims to be the oldest country inn in Wales, with estimates of its age running to a romantic 1,200 years. Cadw dates it as a second-quarter 19th-century inn with earlier, probably late 17th-century origins. The nearby holy well was once used to lay curses.
What the records show
The 1,200-year claim has been traced to one place only: a 2024 holiday-letting blog, which attributes it to the inn itself. North Wales Live gives late 14th to early 15th century. Cadw's full report, read on 17 September 2026, gives the only reading of the building by anybody with the building in front of them: the White Lion Public House, listed Grade II on 2 July 1998, is a second-quarter 19th-century inn with earlier, probably late 17th-century origins as a lateral-chimney storeyed house, of local rubble with slate roofs, forming a U-plan with a former stable or agricultural range that now opens off the bar and keeps pegged and bolted tie-beam trusses with raking queen struts. Inside the primary section are a slate-flagged floor, a stopped-chamfered main beam over the bar and a lateral fireplace with a tall opening and a cambered bressummer. Cadw designated it for its interest as a first-half 19th-century inn with an earlier core, and for its group value with St Elian's Church. So neither the 1,200 years nor the late medieval figure survives contact with the register, and both stand as tradition.
What to look for inside
- Beside St Elian's church
- Associated with St Elian's cursing well
Visiting
The White Lion Inn is in Llanelian-yn-Rhos, Wales, at Llanelian-yn-Rhos, Colwyn Bay LL29 8YA. We do not list opening times, because they change; the pub’s own site is the place to check before you set out.
Sources
- www.northwalesholidaycottages.co.uk/other-information/blog/things-to-do/historic-pubs-of-north-wales/
- www.dailypost.co.uk/business/business-news/north-waless-oldest-pubsand-ghosts-14818052
- camra.org.uk/pubs/white-lion-inn-llanelian-yn-rhos-115819
- ratings.food.gov.uk/business/230389
- cadwpublic-api.azurewebsites.net/reports/listedbuilding/FullReport?lang=en&id=20098
Know something we don’t?Suggest a correctionLast checked Sept 2026
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