Llandudno can be done on a budget because many of its best assets are publicly available and older than the ticketing impulse. Sea, hill, promenade and weather remain difficult to monetise entirely, though I am sure someone is trying.

The promenade, both beaches, Happy Valley, Great Orme paths and West Shore sunsets cost nothing. The Mostyn Gallery is free to enter. St Tudno’s Church on the Orme costs nothing to visit. The view from the Great Orme summit is the same whether you arrived by paid tramway or on foot.

The tramway, mines or cable car feel better when chosen deliberately, not collected like receipts in a panic.

Save money by choosing simple accommodation away from the prime seafront, self-catering where sensible, bringing picnic food and using the train if it suits your route. Llandudno station is close to the town centre, making car-free visits straightforward for those within reasonable rail reach.

Pick one or two paid attractions rather than paying for everything. The two most distinctive are the Great Orme Tramway (unique: the only cable-hauled street tramway in Britain) and the Bronze Age Copper Mines (the largest prehistoric copper mines in the world). Both are irreplaceable. Choose these over generic seaside activities.

The traps are parking, poor-value food in obvious places and late accommodation booking during events. The Victorian Extravaganza weekend in early May and the school summer holidays particularly affect parking and accommodation prices.

Budget travel requires a little discipline, not misery.

Bring your own supplies for Great Orme walks: the summit cafe prices reflect the captive audience appropriately, and a packed lunch on a clifftop is preferable to an overpriced sandwich purchased in self-defence near the car park.

The coastal path, the promenade, the beaches and the basic structure of Llandudno were built for public use and remain so. The Victorian planners who created this resort included broad public spaces as a fundamental element of the design. One need not pay entrance fees to receive the benefit of that decision.

Done well, Llandudno is good value. Done badly, one spends too much on convenience, hunger and things bought because rain weakened the will.