Whilst the original main address for the hotel is St Mary Street, we also have an entrance on Westgate Street that has much simpler access to the lift to reception. Reception is on the second floor.
The St Mary Street entrance involves steps up and then down again to the lift (it’s a listed building and something we can’t change). The entrance on Westgate Street is a gentle slope from the door to the lift to reception, it is much easier if you are travelling with luggage.
** Due to major road re-structuring in Cardiff that took place during the lockdowns, please make extra preparations if driving to the hotel, it’s carnage even for us locals **. We definitely recommend using SatNav that has been recently updated with all road layout changes and the areas that are under our new 20mph limit.
Please plan ahead and be cautious of bus lane priorities that may cause you a driving fine.
For the moment, you cannot draw up directly outside the hotel on either St Mary Street or Westgate Street due to the introduction of a bus only restriction. We are awaiting a compromise/solution from Cardiff council. The best option for now is to park in the NCP on Westgate Street and then make your way to the hotel along Westgate Street to our alternate entrance.
Whilst you can access the hotel via Castle Street, the volume of traffic sometimes causes gridlock.
We suggest that you approach the city from junction 33 of the M4, take the A4232 to either the city football stadium exit or travel its length to Cardiff Bay. If travelling from east of Cardiff, junction 33 means over-shooting the city but it’s simpler.
The exit for the football stadium (Cardiff City Stadium) will bring you across the city from the west, using postcode CF10 1TL will bring you on to the part of Castle Street that is still accessible and then on to Westgate Street from the north, the NCP carpark is on the left approximately half way down.
If you travel the extent of the A4232 to Cardiff Bay, you are then approaching the city centre from the south, the simplest option from there is to come up Corporation Road and on to Clare Road (lower St Mary Street is often closed to vehicles at the weekend).
Come up Corporation Road, up Clare Road, travel straight over the junction on to Clare Street, then turn right at the junction of Castle Street, on to Westgate Street from the north end.
Like most Cardiff city centre hotels, we have no onsite parking but we are just a few hundred metres from several parking options.
We can offer preferential overnight parking rates at the NCP multi storey car park further along Westgate Street (technically Quay Street) at CF10 1DZ. It’s roughly a 5 minute walk to the hotel. The hotel can provide a discount code to be used at the car park that reduces the 24hr rate to £14.95. This is now paid at the car park, not at the hotel and may need the use of an NCP App to gain the largest discount. Unfortunately, NCP often change their terms for business users without communication to those affected, we do try to keep up. If you have any questions regarding parking, please check the NCP website. We have no facility to pre-book spaces but that can be done directly with NCP.
There are several other parking options across the city, some of which are less expensive, some which are cheaper initially and then costs escalate quickly. Most parking in Cardiff is expensive. All parking is at your own risk.
Staggeringly, Cardiff Council have shut down the previous Park & Ride facility and have no details available that we can give to you. It is always best to check the Cardiff Council website as details change without any prior notification.
*The hotels main address on St Mary Street is now a pedestrianised area with vehicle access only available between the early hours and until 10.00am – it is not suitable for arrival by car.
During large city events (especially rugby and concerts), most roads across the city centre will close to safeguard the large volume of pedestrians on the roads. Times and extent of road closures are always determined by Cardiff Council and are often decided with a short notice period.
(see event day road access further below)
Road Closures for November rugby
Cardiff Council website has not been updated as expected (last checked 15th November) – the following link may have information added at some point
Travel advice for major events (cardiff.gov.uk)
What we do know is that the NCP Car Park we normally use on Westgate Street is now forced to close completely during the road closures. The car park will close with no movement in or out.
The information we have from the council is as follows:
Full City Centre Road Closures (listed below):
Sunday 17th Nov – 16.10pm KO Wales vs Australia Closure midday – 2010pm
Saturday 23rd Nov – 17.40pm KO Wales Vs South Africa Closure 13.30 – 21.45pm
From early in the day’s (7am) Scott Rd & Park St will be managed to prepare Gate 5 and to protect queuing fans.
The following roads will be closed as part of the full city centre road closures each day.
- Kingsway from its junction with North Road to its junction with Duke Street.
- Cowbridge Road East from its junction with Cathedral Road to its junction with Westgate Street.
- Tudor Street from its junction with Clare Road to its junction with Wood Street (access for residents and traders will be permitted via Fitzhammon Embankment.)
- Plantagenet Street and Beauchamp Street from their junctions with Despenser Place to their junctions with Tudor Street (access for residents and traders will be permitted.)
- Saunders Road from its junction with St Mary Street.
- Customhouse Street throughout its length (access to private car parks will be permitted).
- Penarth Road from its junction with Saunders Road to the entrance leading to the rear of the Central Train Station.
- The following roads will be closed in their entirety: Duke Street, Castle St, High Street, St Mary Street, Caroline Street, Wood Street, Central Square, Westgate Street, Quay Street, Guildhall Place, Golate, Park Street, Havelock Street and Scott Road, Green Street.
Additions:
Sophia Gardens & Civic Centre: Access to part of the Civic Centre will be controlled throughout the day from 7am, with access allowed only for event parking, limited commuter parking, loading and access to private car parks
Roads affected include: King Edward VII Avenue, Museum Avenue, City Hall Road, College Road and Gorsedd Gardens Road.
Checkin at the hotel is from 3.00pm, checkout before 11.00am
Early checkin or late checkout is subject to availability. The cost is £10 per hour or part thereof if you have booked direct with the hotel or via the hotel website. Other charges apply if you booked through an agent. Early arrival must be arranged with the hotel and paid prior to arrival date.
We offer free baggage storage from 12 noon on the day of arrival and up until 2pm on the day of departure. We have a finite amount of space to store luggage safely and this is always subject to availability. When we are able, we will store bags prior to 12 noon on the day of arrival or after 2pm on the day of departure at a charge of £4 per bag. The baggage charge is a donation to a local children’s charity. Storage of bags that spans beyond 5pm on the day of departure will need to be arranged elsewhere.
Event day road access:
During events at the Principality Stadium, a large number of road closures take place to allow the use of the roads for pedestrian access to and from the stadium. This forces all buses and large volumes of traffic onto the roads that remain open. Cardiff roads are not built for high volumes of traffic and congestion should be expected.
The road closures will include all vehicle access to the hotel and to the NCP car park in Westgate Street.
We recommend that you either arrive into Cardiff early or park in an alternate facility. John Lewis car park, St David’s shopping centre car park, the NCP at Pellett Street and NCP at Adam Street will be unaffected by the road closures other than high volumes of traffic. We cannot gain discounts at any of the alternate car parks.
The hotel will be working hard to try to get you in to your room early but that is dependent on many things, not least that the rooms will be in use by other guests the day before you arrive. Baggage storage options are explained above.
Park & Ride facilities in Cardiff are very flaky, we cannot guarantee that any services will be available. There are usually event day parking facilities available. These are operated by Cardiff Council and are subject to change at short notice.
