Day 1 

Morning

The best place to get your bearings is Cardiff Castle. Originally a Roman fort, it’s now a mixture of buildings from all eras. Ultimately, it was the 3rd Marquis of Bute who transformed Cardiff Castle into the mock gothic extravaganza you‘ll see today. 

 

 

 

 

The Civic Centre is a collection of impressive buildings. The centrepiece is the magnificently domed, snarling-dragon-topped City Hall. Take a look inside, the interior’s great the Marble Hall is lined with columns of Siena marble and statues of Welsh heroes.

 

 

 

 

Next door is the National Museum of Cardiff is free to enter.  The museum is one of the finest in the UK.  See the Evolution of Wales gallery with moving dinosaurs, great for kids but the main draw for most people is the museums large collection of Impressionist and Post Impressionist paintings outside Paris. Cezanne sits next to Renoir and Rodin, opposite Monet, near Pissarro, over by Manet.

 

 

Afternoon

 For lunch you may want to try one of the many sandwich bars and cafés which dot the city.  Go to the hip New York Deli in the High Street Arcade - they do a mean bagel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 The Millennium Stadium is magnificent. The stadium dominates the city and has become an iconic symbol of not only Cardiff, but of Wales as a whole. Take a tour of the stadium which includes running down the player’s tunnel. Imagine yourself being greeted by 72,500 people eagerly awaiting the pain and the glory of rugby at its best. They even play the crowd cheering and the Welsh National Anthem. Quite stirring.

 

 

Cardiff is one of the finest shopping cities outside London.  But Cardiff knows how to stand out from the UK city crowd. You’ll see how if you explore the Victorian Arcades. There are six in total, stuffed full of the quirky and the unusual. Snug coffee shops sit next to esoteric club clothing boutiques and chic high end fashion stores.                                                

 

 

Evening

 Eating out in Cardiff is an experience in itself. The city offers an eclectic mix of cultural traditions and different types of cuisine. From Hawaiian to Japanese to Welsh.

 

If you can’t decide what nationality to eat, head towards the café quarter, home to a host of trendy restaurants, bars and clubs.  For more restaurant ideas go to www.visitcardiff.com.

 

 

 Later on Cardiff is packed full of pubs and clubs, with chic cosmopolitan wine bars jostling alongside more traditional Victorian places and massive beer barns.  Any visit should include an opportunity to sample a pint of the city’s very own beer - Brains SA - brewed in the heart of the city. For the dance floor athletes amongst you: go to the Welsh Club, aka Clwb Ifor Bach and enter into musical delights from Hip Hop all the way to Indie.

 

For more on live music in Cardiff, check the BBC's excellent guide.