Cardiff??

[Linda VH]

We will be docking in Cardiff from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The ship's tours have a lot of walking and DH does not walk that much besides being very crowded. I've tried to find a private tour guide but am coming up empty. I've done this alot in other ports so I'm a little frustrated :confused: Will there be taxi's at the port? We would negotiate with one of them for a tour if so. Any help given is appreciated. Thank you!

[John Bull]

Hi Linda,

 

Not my part of the UK, hopefully you'll get more-informed responses from locals such as Newport Dave.

 

 

In the meantime, if you just plan to hop from place to place in the city, this will probably be cheapest in a series of taxi or bus hops. Cardiff castle isn't huge but is worth a visit, & there are tours of the Millenium Stadium though it has limited appeal. That's about all I know of Cardiff.:o

 

 

If you want an all-day tour out of the city, I'd advise that you pre-book at an agreed price - better than the lottery of availability, quality & price on arrival. If you're just two it also gives you the opportunity to halve the cost by inviting sharers via your RollCall or on-board.

 

 

In the absence of "tour operators", I suggest you google "Cardiff Wales taxi" & e-mail a few of the most-promising for suggestions & prices. Drivers will not be "guides" but should know something about the places you visit - especially if you ask for a knowledgeable driver.

 

 

A worthwhile circular tour might be to Blaenavon Mine & Museum, then across the scenic Heads of the Valleys road to Merthyr Tydfil, & Caerphilly castle. Or extend that route further north into the Brecon Beacons national park.

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=cardiff&daddr=51.77293,-3.08438+to:51.94288,-3.38106+to:51.75945,-3.4111+to:51.59278,-3.22676+to:North+Rd%2FA470&hl=en&ll=51.715969,-3.045959&spn=0.562399,1.466675&sll=51.713416,-3.180542&sspn=0.562431,1.466675&geocode=Fe2LEQMdrn3P_yn1U-w01AJuSDEOZ4Zl2wY0FA%3BFQL-FQMdpO_Q_ymHhvaFVthxSDFhFkfHI4sNEw%3BFeCVGAMdvGjM_ym5qXfe7TJuSDHxWjKcs84t6A%3BFVrJFQMdZPPL_ymhGOm-zDtuSDEBn0rHI4sNEw%3BFUw-EwMdeMPO_ykxv_T8IBluSDFKcTAUmL9FNg%3BFf6XEQMdaHPP_w&oq=llanarthne&mra=dvme&mrsp=3&sz=10&via=1,2,3,4&t=m&z=10

This would give you a varied day in Wales, & all of these could be incorporated into a full day within your time-frame.

Google those places, see what you think.

 

 

Doubtless others can come up with other suggestions.

 

 

JB :)

[newport dave]

Here you go

 

Below is a sample list of things to do in Cardiff and the surrounding area.

 

Cardiff City Centre

 

Cardiff Castle in the city centre - http://www.cardiffcastle.com/

 

National Museum and Gallery - http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/cardiff/

plus plenty of architecture in the Civic Area of Cardiff by the above Museum inc. Law Courts, Cardiff University, City Hall.

 

Bute Park (next to castle) - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bute_Park

 

Cardiff HOHO Bus ( operates from outside the castle) - http://www.partner.viator.com/en/267...our/d6-2065CWL

 

Wales Millennium Stadium - http://www.millenniumstadium.com/197_211.php

 

 

Cardiff Bay, where you can find the

 

Wales Millennium Centre (spectacular modern building) - http://www.wmc.org.uk/,

 

Senedd (Welsh Assmebly, pronounced Seneth)(again another spectacular modern building) - http://www.assemblywales.org/sen-home.htm ,

 

Norwegian Church Arts Centre - http://members.lycos.co.uk/Norwegian...2/Cardiff.html

 

Techniquest - http://www.techniquest.org/start/

plus loads of restaurants and bars.

 

 

Outskirts of Cardiff

 

National Museum of Welsh Life (my favourite dayout in Cardiff) (will need taxi to reach) - http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/stfagans/

 

Llandaff Cathedral - http://www.llandaffcathedral.org.uk/

 

The following sites list the above plus extra stuff in the area and further afield - http://www.cardifflife.net/cardiffthingstodo.html

http://www.walesinstyle.com/things_t...n_cardiff.aspx

http://www.thingstodo.net/cardiff/ca...s-of-interest/

http://wales-travel.suite101.com/art..._do_in_cardiff

 

 

Newport

 

Tredegar House Stately Home - http://www.newport.gov.uk/_dc/index.....tredegarhouse

 

Fourteen Locks - http://www.newport.gov.uk/_dc/index.....tredegarhouse

 

Newport Wetlands Reserve - http://www.newport.gov.uk/_dc/index....naturereserves

 

Caerleon (site of Roman remains) - http://www.newport.gov.uk/_dc/index....rleon.homepage

 

 

Outside of Newport

 

Blaenavon World Heritage Site - http://www.world-heritage-blaenavon.org.uk/

 

 

Hope this helps

 

David

[newport dave]

Very much doubt there'll be any taxis at the port, as it's an industrial port where you will dock. Luckily, Cardiff is very compact, so you're actually not that far from the city centre.

 

Below is a link to various taxi companies in Cardiff.

 

https://www.google.co.uk/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ie=UTF-8&ion=1#hl=en&gs_nf=1&tok=u0QMYqGhwglJpA4gGTYuOQ&cp=13&gs_id=b&xhr=t&q=cardiff+taxis&pf=p&sclient=psy-ab&oq=cardiff+taxis&gs_l=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_cp.r_qf.&fp=9cffa9f7621218a4&ion=1&biw=1440&bih=785

[Bruin Steve]

We were just in Cardiff for five nights pre-cruise before our Eclipse cruise this past June/July...

 

With five days, we did a lot of the things on Dave's list...

 

Here are a few notes:

 

We did Castle Coch, Caerphilly and Brecon Beacons in one day...making for a pretty full day...Caerphilly, especially, is quite picturesque...you could probably do this sort of trip if you had a car/driver as it takes you a way out of Cardiff proper...

 

In Cardiff itself, the Castle is worth a visit...they have self-guided in part/guided in part tours...a guide brings you through the house and the grounds you cover with a recorder device keyed by number to stops around the property...

 

We thought the National Museum was just okay...

 

The Welsh Senate (Senedd) was quite interesting...it's a beautiful modern building down near the harbor and we got an excellent free tour (we were there on a weekend when it was not in session)...

 

The Museum of Welsh Life also known as St. Fagan's was really quite interesting..but does require a bit of walking...it's a large outdoor park in which they've relocated old buildings from all over Wales...

 

Aside from finding a taxi, there are also regular buses from the harbor area up to the Downtown/Cardiff Castle area...There is also a bus run by the HOHO bus outfit that, for a small fee, will take you from the Castle or from the National Museum up to St. Fagan's...but, beware, you need to be aware of the bus schedule and the length of the trip...

 

Oh, aside from the buses, there is also a boat that for a few pounds takes you on a ride down (or up) the river between the harbor and downtown...

 

Since your port day ends at 4:00...and you likely have to be back to the ship by 3:00 or 3:30, you may find there is enough for you to do just in Cardiff itself to fill your day.

 

Have fun...

[newport dave]

We were just in Cardiff for five nights pre-cruise before our Eclipse cruise this past June/July...

 

With five days, we did a lot of the things on Dave's list...

 

Here are a few notes:

 

We did Castle Coch, Caerphilly and Brecon Beacons in one day...making for a pretty full day...Caerphilly, especially, is quite picturesque...you could probably do this sort of trip if you had a car/driver as it takes you a way out of Cardiff proper...

 

In Cardiff itself, the Castle is worth a visit...they have self-guided in part/guided in part tours...a guide brings you through the house and the grounds you cover with a recorder device keyed by number to stops around the property...

 

We thought the National Museum was just okay...

 

The Welsh Senate (Senedd) was quite interesting...it's a beautiful modern building down near the harbor and we got an excellent free tour (we were there on a weekend when it was not in session)...

 

The Museum of Welsh Life also known as St. Fagan's was really quite interesting..but does require a bit of walking...it's a large outdoor park in which they've relocated old buildings from all over Wales...

 

Aside from finding a taxi, there are also regular buses from the harbor area up to the Downtown/Cardiff Castle area...There is also a bus run by the HOHO bus outfit that, for a small fee, will take you from the Castle or from the National Museum up to St. Fagan's...but, beware, you need to be aware of the bus schedule and the length of the trip...

 

Oh, aside from the buses, there is also a boat that for a few pounds takes you on a ride down (or up) the river between the harbor and downtown...

 

Since your port day ends at 4:00...and you likely have to be back to the ship by 3:00 or 3:30, you may find there is enough for you to do just in Cardiff itself to fill your day.

 

Have fun...

 

Steve

 

Glad you had a great time in Cardiff, and that I was some help....

 

David