Cardiff & Vale Tour

Our Cardiff & Vale tour takes you around the highlights of Cardiff and The Vale of Glamorgan, and will show you as many of the attractions and sights around Cardiff and Vale of Glamorgan. The tour does not stop for any significant amount of time at any of the locations, and no entry to any of the attractions are included, how ever there will be plenty of opportunities throughout the tour to get out of the car, stretch your legs and take photos if you wish

Stop at: Cardiff Castle
Details: A truly spectacular Castle, sitting proudly right in Cardiff City Centre imperiously looking over the city. Whilst not being the tallest or largest structure in the City, it is is still one of the largest buildings and dominates the surrounding area.
Pass by without stopping

Stop at: Principality Stadium
Details: The Principality is a 74,500 all seater multi use arena in the heart of Cardiff City Centre. It is the 2nd largest stadium in the world with a retractable roof. Only the 80,000 capacity AT&T Stadium in Texas, home of the Dallas Cowboys, is bigger. There are however, a couple of stadiums in America whose capacity is expandable above the Principality’s Capacity. Nothing anywhere else in the world comes close. Krestovsky Stadium (66,881) in St Petersburg Russia, is the closest outside North America in terms of capacity.
Pass by without stopping

Stop at: Cardiff Bay
Details: Once the location of the worlds busiest docks, Cardiff Bay has been transformed into leisure location. The construction of the Cardiff Bay Barrage created a 2km square kilometre lake, which has become the focus of the area. Today Cardiff Bay is home to restaurants, bars, and public spaces which host a number of events throughout the year
Pass by without stopping

Stop at: Penarth Pier Pavilion
Details: Opened in 1898, the Victorian Pier was used by paddle steamers to bring passengers too and from the popular Penarth Beach. The Pavilion was opened in 1930, and was refurbished in 2013. The Art Deco Pavilion has been used for many different things in its time, including a nightclub, restaurants and a snooker hall. Today it is home to Penarth & District Gymnasts Club. It is short compared to other piers, as the length of the pier was restricted so as not to interfere with the deep water shipping lanes accessing Cardiff Docks.
Pass by without stopping

Stop at: Cosmeston Lakes Country Park
Details: Cosmeston Lakes, is a country park located to the East of Cardiff, between Penarth and Barry in The Vale of Glamorgan. Owned and run by The Vale of Glamorgan Council, the park covers over 250 acres and is built on an old Limestone Quarry. The quarry provided the limestone used during the construction and renovation of a number of buildings in Cardiff. During development in the 1970’s, remains of a settlement over 600 years old were discovered. The Vale of Glamorgan Council began to rebuild the village in Cosmeston Lakes Country Park. Today the village is known as Cosmeston Medieval Village, and is set in 1350. The Village is now open to the public but, archaeological excavation of the site continues. New discoveries are being made regularly.
Pass by without stopping

Stop at: Barry Island Pleasure Park
Details: Although no longer an Island, Barry Island has been a popular destination for holiday makers and day trippers for 150 years. In 1896 the Island was joined to the Mainland by a railway line. Prior to this access was only by walking across mud flats at low tide, or by ferry at high tide. Despite this it was still a popular destination due to its sandy beeches. By 1934 up to 400,000 visitors visited the Island a week, and on August Bank Holiday Monday 1938 a reported of over 250,000 visited the Island in one day. Today Barry Island is possibly most famous as being one of the main locations of popular BBC TV series Gavin & Stacey
Pass by without stopping

Stop at: Llantwit Major
Details: Llantwit Major is a small town with a big history, that is a mix of the old and the new. Located in the Vale of Glamorgan, approximately 15 miles West of Cardiff, this ancient town has been inhabited for over 3000 years. Being one of the oldest towns in Wales, it has no less than 15 listed buildings. With a population of just over 13,000, that makes it 1 listed building for every 866 residents. Possibly one of the highest ratios in the UK. Its beach, Colhugh Beach, is a popular with surfers and fossil hunters alike. Some of the finest fossils from the Jurassic Era in Wales have been found on the beach which is also home to the remains of an Iron Age Fort.
Pass by without stopping

Stop at: Cowbridge
Details: About 15 miles East of Cardiff on the A48, lies the town of Cowbridge. which dates back to Medieval times. Recent excavations have shown it to be the site of a Roman Settlement also. The town is still laid out in its original Medieval format, and parts of the 13th Century town walls are still visible. As is the Southgate to the town. Originally a Market town, a weekly cattle market was held in the town for 200 years, only recently ending. Today, most of the town still retains an old world charm. The majority of the town’s buildings being either Medieval or Georgian. Its ancient charm, pretty buildings and its easy transport links to Cardiff make Cowbridge one of the most sought after places to live in Wales, and can regularly be found either at the top, or near the top of a list of Wales most expensive areas to live.
Pass by without stopping

Stop at: Dyffryn Gardens
Details: Dyffryn House and Gardens are both Grade II listed. They are a Victorian Country Mansion and landscaped gardens located just outside Cardiff. The Estate dates back to the 7th Century, but the house and Gardens are much more recent. Dyffryn House was built in 1893, with landscaping of the gardens commencing in 1894. Work was completed 15 years later, in 1909. Dyffryn House is impressive but, the reason most people visit the estate is the Gardens. The landscaped gardens are a collection of plants from around the world. Covering 55 Acres, it has formal lawns, individual garden rooms inspired from around the world. There are also a number of sculptures around the garden.
Pass by without stopping

Stop at: St Fagans National Museum of History
Details: St Fagan’s Museum of Natural History, used to be known as St Fagans Museum Welsh Life. Before that is was known Welsh Folk Museum. It is located in the grounds of St Fagan’s Castle on the western edge of Cardiff. The Museum is where you can step back in time and explore Welsh Life throughout history. In 1977, the grounds of the Museum were designated as a World Heritage Site, and the Castle was named a Grade 1 Listed building. The castle is actually a 16th Century Elizabethan Mansion. This was built on the remains of a 13th century medieval castle. Today, you can still see some of the 13th century fortifications Called a Castle, it is actually an Elizabethan Mansion from the 16th Century. Although it was built on the site of a 13th Century Medieval Castle, and some of the fortifications can still be seen. Different events are held throughout the year at St Fagan’s Museum of Natural History. These range from Easter Egg hunts, demonstrations and even concerts.
Pass by without stopping

Stop at: Llandaff Cathedral
Details: Constructed in the 12th Century, Llandaff Cathedral was built over an existing church. Believed to be an ancient Celtic church, of unknown age. It is one of two Cathedrals in the Cardiff, and is located in Llandaff, a City within a City.
Pass by without stopping

Stop at: Castell Coch
Details: Nestled in the hills just outside Cardiff, Castell Coch is a fairy tale gothic revival castle. It was built in the late 19th Century by William Burges, who is responsible for much of the Victorian architecture in and around Cardiff. Although the current castle is young for a Castle, being less than 150 years old, it is built on the ruins of of a former castle. The original castle on the site was built just after 1081, following the Norman Conquest of Cardiff. Abandoned shortly after, the Norman Motte was used as the basis for a new castle in the late 13th Century. The second castle was destroyed in the early 14th century. The site lay untouched for a few centuries until the ruins passed by marriage into the Bute family in 1760.
Pass by without stopping