Miss Mostyn on the Little Orme, the quieter headland that views Llandudno with useful detachment.

The Little Orme is forever being compared with the Great Orme, which is unfair but inevitable. It is smaller, quieter and less dressed for visitors. One should not mistake that for weakness.

It rises to around 141 metres at its highest point and anchors the eastern end of Llandudno Bay with the quiet authority of a person who does not need to raise their voice to be noticed. From the Little Orme, the full sweep of the bay becomes visible: the Great Orme on the far side, the pier reaching out from the promenade, the hotel frontage curved neatly between.

It gives a fine view back across Llandudno. From there, the town appears as it truly is: a deliberate curve between two headlands, not just a line of hotels hoping the sea air will hide the plumbing.

Access is more local, usually from the Penrhyn Bay side rather than the main resort centre. The paths begin near the golf course and climb through limestone grassland to views that justify every step and reprimand the visitor for not coming sooner.

The geology is similar to the Great Orme (carboniferous limestone, shaped by the same glacial and marine forces) but the character is less packaged. There is no tramway, no summit café and no cable car. What there is, is the headland itself.

This is not a packaged attraction. There is no summit fuss, no grand commercial flourish and no attempt to make every edge safe for people who should have stayed near the tearooms.

The Little Orme also has its own wildlife interest, with cliffs supporting seabirds and the limestone grassland holding plants that depend on the thin soils and lack of agricultural interference. It is a SSSI in its own right, a designation the casual visitor rarely notices but the serious walker appreciates.

The Little Orme gives perspective, and perspective is something Llandudno occasionally needs after too much applause from coach parties.

Penrhyn Bay lies below on the eastern slope, and from the summit one can see eastward towards Rhos-on-Sea, Colwyn Bay and the coast continuing towards Prestatyn. Llandudno becomes one resort among many, which is a healthy corrective to the town’s occasional habit of imagining itself the only character in the narrative.

Use it when the main town feels too busy or too pleased with itself. A little distance improves many things: views, reputations and certain family arrangements.