The Owain Glyndŵr Parliament House in the town centre has a small museum covering Wales's most significant medieval uprising — it was here in 1404 that Glyndŵr held the first true Welsh parliament. The town's clock tower and Wednesday market complete the compact historic core.
The Centre for Alternative Technology, a couple of miles north up the Dyfi valley, is the main draw for most visitors. A working sustainable community since 1974, it demonstrates renewable energy, organic growing, and ecological building on a working site with interactive exhibits. The water-balanced funicular railway alone is worth the visit. Allow at least half a day.
Cors Dyfi nature reserve, 5 km south of town on the Dyfi estuary, is one of Wales's best wildlife sites and home to a pair of ospreys that returned to nest in 2011 — the first wild breeding pair in Wales in 400 years. The viewing platform and bog boardwalk are accessible from the visitor centre.
Cadair Idris, Wales's second-highest peak, is 15 km south and makes for a fine full-day mountain walk. The Mach Loop — the military low-level flying route through the valleys east of town — draws aviation enthusiasts on days when RAF jets are training. The Bron Yr Aur cottage, where Led Zeppelin wrote much of their 1970 acoustic material, is a short walk from the town into the hills.
The Cambrian rail line connects Machynlleth to Aberystwyth to the west and Shrewsbury to the east, making the town an easy stop on a longer Welsh itinerary.