Cardiff Bay
Cardiff, United Kingdom (Wales)
A drinking and dining hub with a fantastic array of restaurants and bars at Mermaid Quay, in a stunning waterfront location, and home to the Wales Millenn…
Places in Cardiff Bay
- Summer Palace One of the best Chinese restaurants in Cardiff, serving exceptional Cantonese and Peking cuisine for more than 30 years.
- Mermaid Quay restaurants A stunning waterfront location in the heart of Cardiff Bay with 30+ restaurants, bars and cafés.
- Cardiff waterfront restaurants Restaurants showcasing some of the best meat and fish in Wales, including dry-aged Cefyn Manor beef and Carmarthenshire lamb.
- Cardiff Bay waterfront cafes Cafes along the redeveloped harbourside, popular for coffee with views of the Wales Millennium Centre.
- Mermaid Quay waterfront bars Bars at the stunning waterfront location in the heart of Cardiff Bay.
- Cardiff Bay Barrage and Victorian arcades The Cardiff Bay Barrage walk and Victorian arcades, free to browse, reflect the city's blend of industrial and Victorian heritage.
- Wales Millennium Centre An architecturally striking cultural centre in Cardiff Bay, home to opera, theatre, and Welsh national performances.
Practical notes for Cardiff
- Best time to visit
- May to September offers the mildest weather for exploring Cardiff Bay, Bute Park, and the city's outdoor arcades — and the best conditions for Eryri (Snowdonia) mountain trails if you add the northern leg.
- Getting around
- Cardiff city centre, Cardiff Bay, and Pontcanna/Canton form the main visitor triangle, all connected by short bus or taxi rides, with Cardiff Castle anchoring the centre. The centre is walkable; a car is essential for Eryri (Snowdonia) National Park and its mountain villages, roughly three hours north.
- Currency
- Pound Sterling (£)
- Language
- English and Welsh (both official).
- Timezone
- GMT (UTC+0, UTC+1 in summer)
- Current trends
- Cardiff's dining scene continues to split geographically, with Cardiff Bay's Mermaid Quay anchoring waterfront restaurants and bars while Pontcanna, Romilly Crescent and Canton's high street sustain the city's highest concentration of independent restaurants, cafés, wine bars and delis outside the centre. Kitchens across Wales keep championing hyper-local produce, from dry-aged Cefyn Manor beef in Cardiff to Snowdonia mountain restaurants sourcing Meirionnydd lamb.
Other neighborhoods in Cardiff
- Pontcanna — Highlighted for bars, historical sites and gardens, home to tiny, fiercely independent tapas bars.
- Canton — Its main high street has the highest concentration of independent restaurants, cafés, wine bars, and delis outside the city centre.
- Cardiff city centre — The historic heart of the Welsh capital, anchored by Cardiff Castle and the Victorian shopping arcades.
- Betws-y-Coed, Eryri (Snowdonia) — A gateway village to Eryri (Snowdonia) National Park, roughly three hours north of Cardiff and the usual base for hiking and mountain excursions.
Read the full Cardiff guide