Cardiff is the New London

February 25, 2008 at 11:57 AM | 0 Comments

Forget London - the latest British capital city to visit is Cardiff. After decades of drudgery brought on be incessant rain and regular invasions of sheep, the Welsh capital is now hotting up faster than the US election race.

A spectacular opera house, a shiny new Parliament building, and the super Millennium rugby stadium are the city's most showy accessories. Depending on your attitude towards cruel sports, Cardiff is either a superb or a revolting place to visit on rugby match weekends, as we did.

The hotel scene is hotting up as well, in expectation of the Ryder Cup 2010, to be held at the Celtic Manor Resort near Newport and Cardiff. In the capital, there's a rather frightening trend for ripping the guts out of office blocks and turning them into hotels, with varying levels of success.

The only area currently worth staying is near the imaginatively named 'Mermaid Quay', or Cardiff Bay. In the last few years, it's been redeveloped from a stinking muddy dock area into a fantastic leisure area, packed with bars and restaurants and heaving with Welsh rugby fans, students and increasing numbers of tourists. Thankfully, Cardiff's two best and most long-standing hotels - the St David's Hotel & Spa and the Jolyon's Boutique Hotel - are right in the centre of this area.

Don't Judge a Book....
The 132-room St David's Hotel & Spa looks rather Bulgarian on the outside, with a dirty greenish exterior and a huge structure on the roof that the reception staff inform us is supposed to look like a seagull. It's part of the Principal Hayley chain and popular with business people and conferences, who arrive late at night in taxis and spend most of the day indoors.

But despite its ugly exterior, the inside is impressive. You walk into a huge, light atrium, bright white with a few splashes of colour and an immense feeling of space. Staff are friendly and efficient and the atmosphere is quiet and civilised.

Recent reviews say the hotel's past its prime, but although the outside definitely needs a scrub, we reckon it's still one of the best places to stay in the city. Partly, it's the location - right on Cardiff Bay, a two-minute walk from the nightlife but set quietly on a small corner sticking right out onto the water.

Eat & Drink
In one corner is the Tides Bar and Grill, not cheap (a 'tasting' menu is £55 ($108) without wine or service) but relaxed and modern. It sticks out into Cardiff Bay so the view will be spectacular - once they rip down the remaining dirty dock buildings on the opposite side of the bay and redevelop that area too.

Water, Water, Everywhere
The hotel's biggest boast is the spa, open to all guests. It has huge hydrotherapy pools like giant jacuzzis and a hydrotherapy corridor that sprays you with 'healing' waters, as well as all the treatments a middle-aged woman can dream of.

Looking at Cardiff Bay, however, we wouldn't recommend going for the mud and seaweed face-masks, in case the products are locally sourced...

Rates
Unlike London, Wales' capital is still cheap to visit. Rates in the St David are pretty steep by this city's standards, so if you're going budget, go elsewhere. It's around £120 ($235) for a two people in a standard room or £200 ($395) for a junior suite, not including breakfast.

Tags: Cardiff Hotels / Wales Hotels / Business Hotels / Monica Guy

by femmefatale

HotelChatter

Select a Region or Country:

Cardiff Hotels