What is "vaynol"

Vaynol or Y Faenol ( Welsh ) is a country estate dating from the Tudor period near Y Felinheli in Gwynedd, North Wales . It comprises of park, farmland, and gardens on the estate, with more than thirty listed buildings, surrounded by a wall which is long. "Y Faenol" means "the manor" and is a mutated form of the Welsh word maenol.

The buildings on the estate include two Grade I listed halls: Faenol Old Hall, much of which dates from the Williams' period of ownership, and Vaynol Hall, built in 1793 and extended during the 19th century. Once Vaynol Hall was built, Faenol Old Hall became a farm house and subsequently deteriorated; in 2003 it appeared on the BBC's Restoration programme, championed by Robert Hardy. In 2009, the BBC revisited the project, and said that Faenol Hall was now 'in private ownership and has been restored'. There is also a Grade I listed chapel and a very old barn on the site.

The Vaynol estate should not be confused with the neighbouring National Trust land called Glan Faenol.