The Chester / Bangor railway opened for passengers in 1848 and the original station for the town was in Old Colwyn. By making the area easily accessible to the growing urban populations of north west England, the opening of the railway made possible the development of the coastal resorts of Rhyl, Colwyn Bay and Llandudno.
The first station in Colwyn Bay, which opened as Pwllycrochan Halt, was near the Marine Road bridge. The site was chosen to meet the wishes of the landowner, Lady Erskine, who apparently sold the land to the railway company on the understanding that her carriage should be accorded precedence.
In the early 1900s, when a horse-drawn bus carried visitors to the Pwllycrochan Hotel, this custom was still observed. Later a “Colwyn Bay station” was built on the present site. Liveried pages from the town’s big hotels met their guests when they arrived at the station. The longstanding four platforms were reduced to two in 1983.
A station opened in Old Colwyn in 1884 but closed on December 1st 1952.