Cardiff Travel During Major Events

Cardiff plays host to many prestigious events both sporting and in the performing arts.

Due to the increased traffic and parking requirements generated by these events, Cardiff Council has implemented a strategy to help visitors by providing special parking arrangements with a number of supervised Park & Ride facilities.

You can find the official Cardiff Council page dedicated to travel during major Cardiff events on the Cardiff.gov website.

Often major events in Cardiff will mean the central roads are closed and open to pedestrians only.

Due to the city centre road closures, the public are advised that ALL buses travelling in, out and around the city WILL be affected. More information is available from www.traffic-wales.com; Traveline Cymru on 0871 200 22 33 or www.traveline-cymru.info; Cardiff Bus at www.cardiffbus.com.

Main Cardiff road closures to watch out for:

The following roads are often shut to traffic during the time of a major event:
Kingsway from its junction with North Rd / Boulevard de Nantes to its junction with Duke St. Cowbridge Road East from its junction with Cathedral Rd to its junction with Westgate St.
Tudor St from its junction with Clare Rd to its junction with Wood St (access for residents & traders will be permitted)
Plantagenet St & Beauchamp St from their junctions with Despenser Place to their junctions with Tudor St (access for residents & traders will be permitted)

These roads are often shut in their entirety during the days of an event:
Duke St, Castle St, High St, St.Mary St, Caroline St, Wood St, Central Sq, Westgate St, Quay St, Guildhall Pl, Golate, Park St, Havelock St & Scott Rd.

Cardiff bus has now implemented its new “Iff” Card – essentially based on the same principals as the London Oyster card, it allows you to pay for travel in advance and thus cut out the necessity to pay the driver when hoping on and off busses.

The Iff Card does allow travellers to go into debt by £3 on it as a sort of safety buffer for if you get stranded or forgotten to top up. A bit like some of the pre-pay mobile schemes, and just like the mobile phone plans, it does need to be paid off next time you top up the Card.

Comments have been made on several sites about the implications of these cards, some comments suggesting that as we may be so close to touch free bank cards that this has been a bit of a premature move forward, whiles others suggesting the image of having a London style Oyster card system promotes the technological advancements of the city in general.

At present the £3 buffer zone is equivalent to 2 city journeys and application for the Iff Cards are available free through Cardiff Bus website where you can also see the full terms of use for the Cards: http://www.cardiffbus.com/smartcard.shtml

Cardiff Bay offers a range of boat trips ranging from 30 minute trips to all night party's. below are the brief intro's some of the operators use to try entice you onto the water.

Bay Island Voyages

"For an Exciting and Fun day out on Cardiff Bay make sure you book with Cardiff Bay's ORIGINAL RIB ride.

Operating highly sophisticated, rigid inflatable boats, we introduce you to an unprecedented combination of adventure and sensitive appreciation of South Wales’ offshore wildlife and scenery." - http://www.bayisland.co.uk/

Cardiff Aquabus

"Aquabus provides a uniquely identifiable fleet of vessels from luxury vessels to waterbuses with full design, construction and operation management from it’s highly qualified and experienced naval experts. "

"Cruise Cardiff Bay, the Rivers Taff and Ely and the Barrage Embankment in comfort and style. Our luxury cruise vessel Seren-y-Bae provides the perfect backdrop for any occasion, whether it's drinks with friends, a family dinner, corporate or private function." - http://www.cardiffaquabus.com/

Cardiff Cats Waterbus

"The Waterbus operates throughout the year in Cardiff Bay giving visitors to the

"Cardiff a unique view of the City from the water!
The Waterbus sails between Cardiff's waterfront and the Penarth end of the Barrage.
Passengers can visit the multi-million pound Cardiff Bay Barrage, or if travelling from Penarth spend time at Cardiff's developing waterfront.
Or why not just enjoy a leisurely sightseeing cruise around the Bay.
The Waterbus is also available to Charter, and many schools and colleges make use of the Waterbus as a valuable educational resource, but it's not all work, in fact it's all about FUN" - http://www.cardiffcats.com/

Cardiff Sea Safaris

"Boat Trips in Cardiff Bay

Welcome to Cardiff Sea Safaris, Cardiff Bay’s ultimate powerboat experience, providing fast and fun boat trips in Cardiff Bay and the Bristol Channel. Book with us for the best fun to have in Cardiff Bay with our qualified skippers and Cardiff Bay’s newest and the UK’s fastest passenger carrying rigid inflatable boats (RIBS). Our two 9m Ribcraft boats Cobra and Viper are both identical in every way, each being powered by two 300hp Suzuki marine outboards, these boats are capable of speeds in excess of 85 mph!!" - http://www.boattripscardiff.co.uk/

HMS 69

"HMS69; the ultimate party boat cruise experience and one of Cardiff Bay’s favourite features!

Aboard the HMS 69 you, your friends and your family can celebrate under the stars with the exuberant HMS69 crew. Enjoy a three hour tour of South Wales’ idyllic Cardiff Bay where you can experience the water based sights and sounds of Europe’s youngest Capital city. The Boat itself features on board DJ’s, a vast dance floor, barbecue food, electric atmosphere and a rockin’ bar." - http://www.hms69.com/

Pedal Power Cycle Hire

What they have to say:

"Explore Cardiff and beyond by bike, or take a trip down the famous Taff Trail. Choose from our selection of bikes, trikes and multi-user cycles. We also rent out kids bikes, tag-along cycles, trailer buggies and baby seats for kids.
All bikes are maintained to a high standard and come equipped with a helmet, lock, pump and a survival pack including repair kit, tools and spare inner tube.

Here at Pedal Power we have something for everyone allowing virtually anybody of any age or ability to be able to cycle. Pedal Power HQ in Sophia Gardens is home to an impressive range of accessible cycles designed for disabled adults and children. The helpful Pedal Power staff and volunteers can assist you in finding a cycle that is suitable for your specific needs"

"We run a cycle hire service open to the public 7 days a week, where you can hire a wide range of cycles. We have gents bikes, ladies bikes, kids bikes of all sizes, as well as a range of baby seats, buggies and tag along bikes."

Pedal Power have 2 centres from which cycle hire is available:

View Larger Map

More information is available at thier official site: www.cardiffpedalpower.org

The OYBike System is a street-based rental station network that allows you to hire and return a bicycle via your mobile phone.

The OYBike system is availabile at key locations.

Bicycles are secured to on-street bike stands using cables that are attached to the bicycle (and which double as security locking cables when the bicycles are being hired).

Each bike stand is released and returned though a specially developed keyboard and LCD display.

You can return bicycles to any OYBike rental system. Simply press the “return bike” button, plug the cable back into the system and confirm bike is secure to complete the process

To use the OYBike system you will need to pre-registerand subscribe.

More information on the official site: www.oybike.com

Cars, Cardiff and Parking

Cardiff is accessible via the M4, the main motorway connecting the capital of London to Cardiff ( according to wiki.answers.com -"about 2 hours 30 minutes if you drive like a granny" - but Wikipedia claim 3 hours although rather dependant on which area of London your traveling from) and carries straight on through to Swansea.

Cars arriving from the East: Leave the M4 at junction 32 and follow the A470 (1st exit at roundabout) into the centre of Cardiff.

Arriving from the West: Leave the M4 at junction 33 and join the A4232 (3rd exit at roundabout). You can then either exit the A4232 at the next roundabout and follow signs for Cardiff city centre, or alternatively, stay on the A4232 and it will eventually lead you to Cardiff Bay.

Drivers Arriving from the South West: Drive North along the M5 motorway and then follow signs for South Wales and the M4.

Cars from the Midlands and North: Head for the M50 motorway (junction 8 on the M5 motorway) and then onto the A40 (signposted South Wales, Monmouth). Continue along the A40 until you reach Monmouth when the road becomes the A449. Continue along the A449 until you reach the Coldra roundabout. Here you should take the 5th exit to join the M4.

To embed this map in your website copy the code in the box below and add it to your site:

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Tips:

• Don't forget the bridge charges a toll to cross (cash only)! This is £5.40 at the moment for a car and usually increases by 10p each year.
• St Mary's Street which is one of the main most central streets in Cardiff has recently become almost entirely pedestrianised as older maps may still show this as being a drivable road, its best to plan around this.

Other car parks:

Castle Mews Car Park (short stay 08:00-18:00)

North Road Car Park (long stay 08:00-18:00)

Havannah Street Car Park (24 hours)

The Barrage Car Park (24 hours, 3 hours Maxium stay)

Further information on these can be found on http://www.cardiff.gov.uk/content.asp?nav=2870%2C4048%2C4194%2C4255&parent_directory_id=2865

BBC Traffic Webcams for South Wales:

"Beat the jams with these traffic cams - they cover the M4 from the Second Severn Crossing to Kenfig and other major routes in South East Wales. Select a camera for one of the key locations below or see the full list on the right hand side."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/southeast/travel/trafficcams.shtml

Article sources:

http://www.cardiffhalfmarathon.co.uk/index/race_day_parking.htm
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_far_is_it_from_London_to_cardiff
http://www.cardiff.gov.uk/content.asp?nav=2870%2C4048%2C4194%2C4255&parent_directory_id=2865
http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/southeast/travel/trafficcams.shtml

Cardiff Train/Rail Travel

"Cardiff Central railway station (Welsh: Caerdydd Canolog) is a major British railway station on the South Wales Main Line in Cardiff, Wales.

It is the largest and busiest station in Cardiff itself and in Wales. It is one of the major stations of the British rail network, being the tenth busiest station in the United Kingdom outside of London (30th busiest overall), based on 2007/08 total entries and exits.

It is located near the Millennium Stadium in the city centre and is one of 20 railway stations in the city and one of two in the city centre, the other being Cardiff Queen Street which are both the hubs of the Valley Lines urban rail network with several lines in Cardiff and the surrounding valleys.

Cardiff Central is a Grade II listed building managed by Arriva Trains Wales who also operate services to West Wales, Holyhead, Crewe and Manchester. First Great Western run intercity services to Bristol and London, and regional services to Bath, Taunton, Southampton and Portsmouth, whilst CrossCountry operates trains to Gloucester, Birmingham, Nottingham and Edinburgh. Cardiff Central serves as an interchange between the rest of South and West Wales to major British towns and cities. The station currently handles more trains per day than London Paddington." - Wikipedia

Useful links for train times and fares:

http://www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk/

http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/stations/CDF.html

The Cardiff Central Rail Station, can be viewed on the map below:

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Cardiff Bus Travel

“Cardiff Bus (Welsh: Bws Caerdydd) is the dominant operator of bus services in Cardiff, Wales and the surrounding area, including Barry and Penarth. Its hub is Cardiff central bus station. The company is wholly owned by Cardiff Council and is one of the few municipal bus companies to survive the effects of UK bus deregulation in the late 1980s.” - wikipedia

“Fares
Cardiff Bus operates an exact fare policy and no change is given. The city used to be divided into four fare zones for the purpose of fare calculation, but on 5 April 2009, Cardiff Bus introduced a flat fare of £1.50 for a one-way journey or £3 for all-day travel in Cardiff and Penarth, or £1.40/£2.80 for travel within Barry. Special fares apply for travel between Cardiff and Barry, Newport, the Airport and Llantwit Major.” - wikipedia

The official Cardiff bus website:
“Welcome to the Cardiff bus website. Here you'll find helpful information about using the bus in Cardiff, Penarth and Barry. There are easy-to-follow route .." - http://www.cardiffbus.com/

The main bus station is situated next door to Cardiff Central Rail Station, which can be viewed on the map below:

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How to Travel From Cardiff Airport to Cardiff City Centre
By John Joe

Cardiff Airport in Wales, UK is located just over twelve miles from Cardiff City Centre.

Road

Drivers can follow the M4 until they reach J33 and then exit and drive along the A4232 until they reach the airport. Drivers can find the airport by inputting the airport's post code or zip code into their SAT NAV system, the code is CF62 3BD.

If passengers are going on holiday they may decide to leave their car in the long stay car park at Cardiff Airport. Visitors may decide to park at one of the airport hotels and stay over the night before their early morning flight. If passengers on return have a late evening flight they may decide to book into an airport hotel rather than face the long drive home after their plane lands. Either way, the hotels can offer car parking for hotel patrons.

When dropping off or collecting passengers from the airport, please use the short stay for this arrangement.

Taxi

There are variety of options when wishing to book a transfer or taxi from the airport. Remember and confirm prices with the driver or book in advance before you arrive.

Business travellers may wish to use the Carda firm which offers a business person everything they need for a transfer once they arrive at the airport. Another firm which offers business travellers the use of their taxis which include power chargers for phones and laptops and even blacked out windows is business class executive travel.

Cardiff Air Taxis can help the disabled with ease of transport which includes persons with wheelchair. Please arrange this ahead of arriving at the airport.

If there is a large group of you arriving for a special event such as a wedding. You may wish to consider using Caverndish Minibus service which offers minibuses with up to sixteen seats.

Families with six persons in their travel plans may decide to use Atlas taxis as they can offer vehicles which have hold up to six passengers.

Bus

You can catch a bus or coach if you prefer this style of travelling by using the National Express service. You may wish to use the air bus which has a dedicated number if X91 and runs from the airport to the city centre. There are a variety of local services which also service the airport by bus companies such as First, Shamrock and EST bus service.

Rail

Passengers will be please to know that there is a train station based at the airport. The station is named Rhoose Cardiff International Rail Station and connects passengers to Central Station in Cardiff and also runs until Bridgend. You can carry on your journey by train to another part of Wales by transferring trains once you reach Central Station.

Car Hire

Car rental firms which offer car hire at Cardiff Airport are National, Avis, Hertz to name but a few. You can arrange car hire in advance before your arrival into Wales.

John Joe is writing on behalf of Car Hire UK at Cardiff Airport at http://www.bluecarhire.com.
They can offer car hire at Cardiff Airport.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=John_Joe
http://EzineArticles.com/?How-to-Travel-From-Cardiff-Airport-to-Cardiff-City-Centre&id=3684014