Crosskeys lies seven miles north west of Newport in Caerphilly county, South Wales. Once known as Pont-y-Cymer, the village changed its name to that of a hotel which once stood here. To the south of Crosskeys is Machen, with Risca to the south east, Wattsville to the west and Pontywaun to the north. The village is also the meeting point of the Sirhowy and Ebbw river.

The Ebbw Valley Walk passes through Crosskeys, and the Sirhowy and Raven Walks are easily accessible from the town.

Black Vein Colliery lies on the southern edge of Crosskeys. Opened in the 1840s by John Russell, the colliery soon became known as the 'Death Pit' as it suffered from many explosions. Tragedy hit Blackvein on 1st December 1860, when 146 miners lost their lives in a gas explosion, the worst coal mining disaster ever known. Later in 1918, a gob fire broke out in the pit, but fortunately no one was killed. After all the devastation, the colliery finally closed in 1921 and has since become an industrial estate.

Crosskeys is close to the Cwmcarn Forest Drive, which can be taken either by car, mountain bike or on foot, and offers spectacular views of the surrounding mountains and hills.