1 June 2012 Last updated at 10:21 ET

Ugly House at Capel Curig becomes cafe and bee haven

The garden is tended by a team of volunteer gardeners

A well-known Snowdonia landmark has been turned into a cafe and its garden will become a haven for honeybees.

The Ugly House on the A5 at Capel Curig belongs to the Snowdonia Society.

The cafe venture is being run by local business couple Tim and Ayla Maddox, while the beehives will be managed by the new National Beekeeping Centre Wales.

The society rescued the cottage in the 1980s and until October 2010 it served as the society headquarters.

'Magical house'

A spokesperson said the the development would allow visitors to go inside the "magical" house - called Ty Hyll in Welsh - to learn more about its history.

For the first time there will be access to some of the house and grounds for people with limited mobility.

"Although, as the essential nature and character of Ty Hyll has been retained, users may need to be used to some rough and sloping ground," said the spokesperson.

Inside the house before the tearoom development

"It does mean though that wheelchair users will be able to visit Ty Hyll for the first time in its history, a considerable achievement for this Grade II listed building."

The beehives are due to be installed in the woodland over the summer.

It will become the site for drone rearing and queen mating managed by the new National Beekeeping Centre Wales, whose visitor centre will open soon at Bodnant Welsh Food Centre in the Conwy valley.

There are plans to open the upstairs of the house as a visitor centre in the second half of the year, where people can learn more about the history and ecology of honeybees and their importance today.

Tim Maddox, who also runs the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont tearooms in nearby Llanrwst, said the house and location appealed to him.

"It offers the ideal opportunity to open a second tearoom," he added.