Cardiff travel guide
Tours, attractions, events and places to stay, picked by people who know the city.
Cardiff (Caerdydd in Welsh) is the capital of Wales, a compact and largely flat city where a castle with Roman walls and Victorian interiors sits in the middle of the shopping streets. The Principality Stadium, home of Welsh rugby, stands a few minutes' walk away on the River Taff, and the old coal docks of Cardiff Bay are now a waterfront of arts venues, restaurants and the Senedd, the Welsh Parliament. The national museums are free, and Castell Coch, Caerphilly Castle and the open-air museum at St Fagans are all a short bus or train ride out.
- Welsh name
- Caerdydd
- Currency
- Pound sterling (£)
- Main airport
- Cardiff Airport (CWL), about 50 minutes by bus and train
- Time zone
- GMT, BST in summer
- Paying for transport
- Contactless on Cardiff Bus, capped at the £5.20 day fare
- Languages
- Signs are in Welsh and English
Most-booked tours
Ratings and prices from verified bookings.
ViatorCardiff City Private Guided Walking Tour
2 hoursFrom £150
ViatorThe Valleys tour or Swansea Bay tour. Please choose correctly.
8.5 hoursFrom £86
ViatorDoctor Who Cardiff City Walking Tour
2 hoursFrom £26
ViatorCardiff: City Highlights Guided Walking Tour
2 hoursFrom £18
ViatorCardiff: South Wales Cliffs, Beaches & Castles Day Tour
8 hoursFrom £75
ViatorDoctor Who Cardiff Bay Walking Tour
1.5 hoursFrom £26
ViatorCardiff Private Walking Tour with a Local
2 hoursFrom £40.82
ViatorCardiff/Swansea: Gower Peninsula's Cliffs & Mumbles Day Tour
8 hoursFrom £75
Day trips from CardiffBarry Island, Penarth, Big Pit National Coal Museum, Blaenavon and moreTop attractions
The sights most visitors build a trip around.
Cardiff Castle (Castell Caerdydd)
Roman walls, a Norman keep and William Burges's Victorian interiors
Principality Stadium (Stadiwm Principality) tours
Walk the tunnel at the home of Welsh rugby
National Museum Cardiff (Amgueddfa Genedlaethol Caerdydd)Free
Free: Impressionists, dinosaurs and Welsh art in Cathays Park
St Fagans National Museum of History (Amgueddfa Werin Cymru)Free
Free: forty rebuilt buildings and Welsh life through the centuries
Cardiff Bay (Bae Caerdydd)Free
Free: the old docks, Mermaid Quay and the Barrage walk
Wales Millennium Centre (Canolfan Mileniwm Cymru)Free
Free to enter: the slate-and-steel 'armadillo' on the Bay
What's on
Tickets via Ticketmaster and Tiqets. Updated nightly.
Where to stay
Pick a neighbourhood first. Each one suits a different kind of trip.
City Centre
Cardiff Castle, the Principality Stadium, the arcades and Cardiff Central station, all within a few minutes' walk · 12 places we rate
Cardiff Bay
Waterfront hotels by Wales Millennium Centre, the Senedd and Mermaid Quay's restaurants, with fast trains and buses into town · 10 places we rate
Cathedral Road and Pontcanna
Victorian townhouse guesthouses and good-value small hotels, a short walk across Sophia Gardens to the castle · 10 places we rate
Cathays and Roath
Lived-in neighbourhoods near the National Museum, the university and Roath Park, mostly self-catering apartments · 5 places we rate
Local guides
Plans and tips for getting the most out of Cardiff.
Christmas in Cardiff 2026
Winter Wonderland at City Hall and an ice rink in Cardiff Castle, the makers’ Christmas Market, the Bute Park light trail and the New Theatre panto: Cardiff’s 2026 festive dates.
Read the guide · 6 minDay trips from Cardiff
The best day trips from Cardiff: Castell Coch and Caerphilly Castle, Barry Island and Penarth, Big Pit coal mine, Tintern Abbey and the Brecon Beacons, with how to get there.
Read the guide · 4 minFirst time in Cardiff: a 2-day itinerary
Two days in Cardiff: the castle, the stadium, the arcades and the National Museum on day one, then Cardiff Bay and the Senedd or St Fagans on day two, with prices and opening times.
Read the guide · 5 minFree things to do in Cardiff
Cardiff’s best free sights: National Museum Cardiff, St Fagans, Bute Park, the Senedd, Cardiff Bay, the arcades, Llandaff Cathedral and Roath Park, with opening times checked for 2026.
Read the guide · 4 minDay trips from Cardiff
Easy days out by train or coach.
Getting around
Walking
Cardiff is compact, largely pedestrianised and flat, and Visit Cardiff says most of the main sights are within about 15 minutes' walk of each other. Cardiff Castle, the Principality Stadium, Cardiff Market, the arcades and the National Museum in Cathays Park are all close together. Cardiff Bay is about half an hour on foot from the city centre.
Buses
Cardiff Bus runs most city routes, and the Cardiff Bus Interchange at Central Square, next to Cardiff Central station, is the main hub. The Baycar (route 6) is the quick link between the city centre and Cardiff Bay, stopping outside Wales Millennium Centre, and route 32 runs to St Fagans. Drivers do not give change, so pay by contactless or the Cardiff Bus app, or carry the exact fare.
Fares and contactless
Within the Cardiff, Penarth and Llandough fare zone an adult single bought on the bus costs £2.60 and a Day to Go ticket £5.20; children aged 5 to 15 pay £1 a journey or £3 for the day. With Tap On, Tap Off you touch your contactless card or phone on the reader when you board and again on the reader when you get off, and the system never charges you more than a day ticket. Weekly capping applies from Monday to Sunday. Use the same card for every journey.
Trains
Transport for Wales runs local trains from two main stations, Cardiff Central and Cardiff Queen Street. Trains from Queen Street to Cardiff Bay run every 12 minutes and take under five minutes. Great Western Railway runs intercity trains from Cardiff Central to London Paddington, and the city has around 20 stations on the wider South Wales Metro, useful for Caerphilly, Penarth and Barry Island.
Waterbus
A waterbus runs on the River Taff between Bute Park, close to the West Gate by Cardiff Castle, and Mermaid Quay in Cardiff Bay. Wales Millennium Centre says it runs hourly from 11am to 5pm; check times on the day, as they change with the season.
Airport transfers
Cardiff Airport (CWL) is near Rhoose in the Vale of Glamorgan, south-west of the city. The quickest public transport is the 905 shuttle bus from the terminal to Rhoose Cardiff International Airport station, timed to meet trains, then a Transport for Wales train to Cardiff Central. Transport for Wales sells one integrated ticket for both and puts the total journey from Cardiff Central at about 48 minutes. Trains run hourly, every two hours on Sundays. The 304 bus also links the airport with Cardiff via Barry and Cardiff Bay, but it is slower.
Compare Cardiff airport transfers and book ahead →
Taxis
Licensed black cabs wait at ranks across the city, including outside Cardiff Central station, and Veezu and Uber both operate. Visit Cardiff suggests checking the likely fare with the driver before you set off.