Cardiff

The Welsh capital: Cardiff Castle with its Roman walls and Victorian Gothic rooms, the free National Museum, Cardiff Bay's Senedd and Millennium Centre, and the Principality Stadium for rugby. Signs are in Welsh and English. 1 hour 50 from London Paddington by train and an hour from Bath; Castell Coch and the Brecon Beacons (Bannau Brycheiniog) are near.

Highlights

• Cardiff Castle
• National Museum Cardiff (free)
• Cardiff Bay waterfront
• St Fagans open-air museum (free)
• Castell Coch
• A rugby match at the Principality Stadium

Things to do

• Cardiff Castle and the city arcadesMorning · 3h
• Cardiff Bay and the SeneddAfternoon · 2h 30m
• St Fagans National Museum of HistoryMorning · 4h

Tours & tickets

When to go

Best time: May – September

• Six Nations rugby — International rugby on weekends from early February to mid March: Wales at Cardiff's Principality Stadium, Scotland at Murrayfield in Edinburgh, England at Twickenham. Match weekends fill hotels and trains in those cities.