On 6 June 1881 two excursion trains were run up the railway; this was before the formal approval of the Board of Trade inspector had been given, and was contrived by the participants, 1,000 souls, paying for refreshments and getting the travelling free of charge. The South Wales Daily News understood that the line opened on 20 December 1881: Opening of the Llanelly Mynydd-Mawr Railway: On Tuesday last the Llanelly Mynydd-mawr Railway was formally opened, and in the evening a grand banquet was given, at which the principal gentlemen of Llanelly were present.