Gone Swimming celebrates sixth year with launch of new outdoor swimming trips in North Wales

Gone Swimming is a swimming holiday and adventure company based in North Wales and entering its sixth season in 2017. We caught up co-founder Gabby Dickenson to find out more about her plans and new trips.

OS: Before we get on to your new trips, tell us about what you’ve been doing the past few years.

GD: For five years Gone Swimming has been providing Wet Weekends in North Wales. These are relaxed and fun swimming holidays with expert guiding, great food and amazing countryside. Guests have been coming back time and time again (14 trips so far for one of our most loyal swimmers!) to swim, laugh and eat their way through a fab weekend.

These trips have always offered a low-cost way to get away for a two or three night break and do loads of outdoor and wild swimming, for around £250. The guests share accommodation and we enjoy family style dining.

We have lots of Wet Weekends running throughout the summer and will be posting more dates into October in the next few months. We will be running trips all though the summer, autumn and as far into the winter as our guests like!

OS: So what’s going to change?

GD: Firstly, we’re not changing the Wet Weekends as we know some of our guests absolutely love them. However, they’ve also been asking for more. They want our season to start earlier, they’ve been asking for additional activities such as yoga and stand up paddle boarding (SUP), and some people would like the option of a private room. And that’s what we’re going to do, starting this summer with our Pleasure of Adventure trips. As before, they will be two or three nights and we’ll be staying in a beautiful holiday home in costal Anglesey, offering private rooms and lots of space to relax and enjoy some down time! We have looked high and low to find a chef – Alex – who we know will keep our guests fed and ready for the next swim. Alex has worked all around the world in top class restaurants, and is super excited to be buzzing around the island to find hidden cheese makers and local goodies to keep surprising and exciting the guests while they are off swimming. The idea is that these trips will offer you the chance to really spoil yourself, get a relaxing or invigorating massage, and perhaps enjoy some local beer.

We plan to host as much of the yoga as possible outside, so just imagine a pre-breakfast stretch and swim, on the wide sandy beach less than five minutes walk from the house.

OS: What about “Aquativities”?

GD: That’s also something new we’re introducing, for people who want a bit less pampering and a bit more excitement and adventure. We are teaming up with the super guides and tutors at Anglesey Outdoors, who are adding to the amazing swimming by providing coasteering and an SUP adventure. This will give guests the opportunity to see the amazing coastline from a few new points of view. Guests will be provided with expert SUP tuition on one of the amazing locations around Anglesey.

For these trips, we will take advantage of the amazing accommodation that’s home from home for the Gone Swimming Crew at Anglesey Outdoors as it offers us comfortable, clean accommodation, just a few moments’ drive from the coast. 

Wet Weekends

Trips are around £275 for a 2-night stay and £375 for a 3-night stay. Bookings throughout the year.

Pleasure of Adventure

Trips run during June and July and are around £375 for a 2-night stay and £475 for a 3-night stay.

Aquativities

Trips are in August and are around £325 for a 2-night stay and £425 for a 3-night stay.

All trips include accommodation, food, local transport including pick-up from local train station, swimming hat to keep, wetsuit and dry bag rental.

Find out more: www.goneswimming.co.uk