Allow seven hours on the Llanberis Path, which the Park calls best for first-timers comfortable with strenuous mountain hikes.
The Eryri (Snowdonia) National Park Authority gives six hours for each of the other five paths. All six are there and back routes graded Hard/Strenuous.
The Llanberis Path has the most gradual ascent and the best public transport connections, but it should by no means be considered an easy hike.
The number that decides your day is the time you must leave, counted back from sunset.
Which path?
How long will you stop, in total?
Sunset in Llanberis is 17:25 GMT. The Park allows 6 hours for the Pyg Track, plus your 1 h of stops.
At the slow end of the Park's 4 to 7 hour range, leave by 09:25.
Example filled in: Pyg Track, 14 February 2027, 1 hour of stops. Change any of them.
Carry a torch whatever the sums say: the Park tells walkers to carry one in case they are caught on the mountain after dark. Sun times are for Llanberis, from NOAA's solar equations, to within a couple of minutes.
Hours, distance and climb for each path
The Park allows six hours on five paths and seven on the Llanberis Path, all for the round trip.
| Path | Park’s time | Distance and climb |
|---|---|---|
| Llanberis | 7 hours | 14.5 km, 975 m |
| Pyg Track | 6 hours | 11 km, 895 m |
| Miners’ Track | 6 hours | 13 km, 723 m |
| Watkin Path | 6 hours | 13 km, 1,015 m |
| Rhyd Ddu | 6 hours | 12 km, ascent not given |
| Snowdon Ranger | 6 hours | 13 km, 936 m |
The Llanberis Path is the only seven-hour route and has the most gradual ascent.
The Watkin Path has the greatest ascent of the six, and the Park suggests first-timers try other paths. The Park also warns that parts of the Pyg Track can lead you towards Crib Goch.
Not sure which of the six to pick? The guide to which path up Snowdon sets them side by side.
Why your day can run past those hours
Breaks, photos and the slowest walker’s pace all take time.
The Park’s own range for the six paths is 4 to 7 hours, depending on fitness level, experience and weather conditions.
Plan on the Park’s figure for your path, not below it.
In summer the summit is often very busy, with long queues to reach the summit cairn, according to the Park.
Check the hours against your own pace
Ordnance Survey’s OS Maps still uses Naismith’s rule, named for a Victorian Scottish mountaineer. It allows one hour for every five kilometres walked, plus one hour for every 600 metres of ascent.
The rule counts the whole distance, there and back, but adds time only for the climb. It assumes the descent evens out, yet OS says steep slopes may need extra time both going up and coming down.
On the Pyg Track, 11 kilometres is 2.2 hours and 895 metres of ascent adds about 1.5 more.
Naismith’s rule gives about 3.7 hours for the Pyg Track, some 2.3 hours under the Park’s six.
Ten minutes for every 100 metres of climb gives the same sum.
Allow for the way down
The Park’s six and seven hour figures are for the round trip, so the descent is already counted.
The Park says coming back down from the summit can be more challenging than reaching the summit itself.
A steep, rocky descent on tired legs still takes real time, and walking poles are the kit for it.
Ordnance Survey says being overdue or benighted still accounts for a sizable number of incidents each year. A more accurate time estimate could help reduce that risk, and staying safe in Snowdonia is worth reading before you go.
Work back from sunset to your start time
- Sunset. Look up the sunset for the day you will walk, not a time you remember from a previous trip.
- Hours. Count back the Park’s hours for your path, then add your stops and your time at the summit.
- Journey. Count back again for the journey to the start, and check the last bus home on the current timetable.
Count back from sunset by the Park’s hours for your path: seven on the Llanberis Path, six on the other five.
The Llanberis Path is a 10-minute walk from the Llanberis Interchange bus stop. Journey times to Llanberis on the Sherpa’r Wyddfa buses are:
- S1 from Caernarfon: about 25 minutes
- S1 from Betws-y-Coed: about 40 minutes
- S2 from Bangor: about 50 minutes
The Park lists five Sherpa’r Wyddfa routes, S1 to S5. From 2 November 2026 to 19 March 2027 the timetable lists four, S1 to S4.
The Nant Gwynant car park, where the Watkin Path starts, is often full by 7:30am. The Park calls parking there extremely limited.
Its advice for that path is the Sherpa’r Wyddfa bus.
Carry a torch whatever the sums say.
The Park tells walkers to carry one in case they are caught on the mountain after dark. Ordnance Survey says always pack one in winter, even if you plan to be back before sunset.
The pick in the head torch comparison is the Ledlenser MH5, the only one there that also runs on an ordinary AA battery.
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Slower groups, children and winter
A first-timer should use the Park’s seven hours for the Llanberis Path as the planning number.
A slower group should plan on the long end of the Park’s range, and the guide to Snowdon with kids covers a day with children.
The Park says these routes are only suitable for experienced mountain walkers with a good level of fitness and navigation skills.
In winter, snow can cover much of the summit. As it compacts it becomes extremely slippery, and the Park says reaching the summit is then impossible without specialist mountaineering equipment.
Read Snowdon in winter before you plan the hours.
When the sums leave you short on daylight
Add the walking time, the stops, the descent, the bus and a car park that may already be full.
The total has to fit between your start and sunset.
We compile and explain public route and safety information. We guide nobody and sell nothing on the hill.
If the numbers call for a start in the dark, read how to walk up in the dark safely first.
