Scenic Place in Rhondda Cynon Taf

Garwnant is a popular forest visitor centre managed by Natural Resources Wales within the Brecon Beacons National Park, set above the Llwyn-on Reservoir in the Taf Fechan valley. Waymarked trails through conifer woodland and alongside the reservoir offer views toward the summits of Pen y Fan and Corn Du. Facilities include a café, picnic areas and a children's play area. The reservoir was built in the early twentieth century to supply water to Merthyr Tydfil and now attracts wildfowl year-round. Wildlife includes red kite, peregrine falcon and a range of woodland birds typical of upland South Wales.

Glyncornel Lake is a reservoir and recreational open space in the Rhondda valley above Llwynypia, set within a forested valley in the former coal-mining heartland of the Rhondda Fawr. Originally constructed in the late nineteenth century to supply water to the densely populated valley communities, the reservoir is now a quiet recreational area popular with walkers, anglers and local residents. The surrounding conifer woodland provides pleasant walking and habitat for common woodland birds. The approach through the lower valley offers views of the characteristic Rhondda townscape, with Victorian terraces climbing the steep valley sides above former colliery sites. The Rhondda valley is one of the most historically significant landscapes in Wales, its identity shaped by the coal industry.

Rhigos Mountain, known in Welsh as Mynydd Rhigos, is an upland plateau forming the Cynon-Rhondda watershed in northern Rhondda Cynon Taf, offering some of the most extensive panoramic views in South Wales. The summit marks the boundary between the former coal-mining valleys to the south and the wilder uplands of the Brecon Beacons to the north, and from the ridge the densely settled valley towns of the Rhondda and Cynon are visible to the south while open moorland stretches northward toward the Beacons. The A4061 Rhigos road is one of the most dramatically scenic routes in south Wales, forming part of the upland zone between the coalfield valleys and the Brecon Beacons National Park.

The Lakes at Clydach Vale (Cwm Clydach Country Park) Clydach Vale sits northwest of Tonypandy in Rhondda Cynon Taf, within the Rhondda Valley, named for its position on the Nant Clydach, a tributary of the River Rhondda. The valley was once dominated by heavy coal mining industry, most notably the Cambrian Collieries, which were the scene of two major disasters in 1905 and 1965. A regeneration programme transformed the once-blackened landscape into the wonderful park that exists today. It is hard to imagine, with its lush green forestry and large open lakes filled with wildlife, that Clydach Vale Country Park stands on the remains of the Cambrian Colliery — Mother Nature has reclaimed what was once one of the most intensely-mined areas in the world. In 2021, the park was given Country Park status, recognising it as an official Welsh Country Park. There are essentially three bodies of water in the park: The Bottom Lake is the larger and more accessible of the two main lakes. It has an island where a wide variety of birds live, and is also used by a local canoe club. Visitors can take a circular route around it, feeding the ducks, and there is a Lakeside Café with an outdoor dining deck. The Top Lake is reached via a roughly 20-minute walk up a wide track from the bottom lake. The edges of the valley are lined with forests that tower around it. Here you might spot the resident but elusive Kingfisher, and there are benches and fishing platforms located around it. The top lake also features a plunge pool — known by local wild swimmers as the "Clydach Freezer" — and a waterfall. The Secret Mini Lake is a smaller, hidden third body of water beyond the top lake. It appears after heavy rainfall and has its own waterfall. Of additional note, the stream running between the two main lakes serves a micro hydropower system, generating 55kW of energy — enough for approximately 60 houses — while offsetting around 119 tonnes of CO₂ per year. On the route between the lakes stands a memorial to the men and boys who died in the Cambrian Colliery disasters, with a wheel, coal dram, and shaft lift cage placed as a tribute, along with markers showing where the deep mine shafts were sunk.

Dare Valley Country Park near Aberdare in Rhondda Cynon Taf covers over five hundred acres of a reclaimed coalmining valley transformed over several decades into one of the finest country parks in the Welsh valleys. Centring on two small lakes and a network of paths through grassland, scrub, woodland and moorland on former spoil heaps, the park provides walking, cycling and wildlife watching within a post-industrial landscape of considerable natural interest. Moorland above the valley supports kestrel and peregrine, while the lake margins and woodland attract kingfishers and a range of woodland and waterside birds during the breeding season. The park includes a visitor centre, café and camping facilities, and represents one of the most significant examples of successful industrial land reclamation in Wales. Entry is free.