Cardiff Bay Boat Tour
4

Cardiff Bay Boat Tour

By Cardiff Cruises
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Ages 0-99, max of 55 per group
Duration: 45m
Start time: Check availability
Mobile ticket
Live guide: English
More


  • Recorded commentary
  • All taxes, fees and handling charges
  • Entry/Admission - Cardiff Cruises
What's not included
  • Food and drinks


Start:
  • Cardiff Cruises, Mermaid Quay, Cardiff CF10 5BZ, UK
    Lower Boardwalk, Mermaid Quay
End:This activity ends back at the meeting point.

    • Wheelchair accessible
    • Pushchair accessible
    • Service animals allowed
    • Near public transportation
    • Transportation is wheelchair accessible
    • Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
    If you have questions about accessibility, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 12155P1

    • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
    • Refunds will not be issued if tour is missed due to late or non-arrival
    • Please note: you must reconfirm directly with the supplier, refer to voucher for details
    • Most travellers can participate
    • Please arrive 15 minutes before departure
    • This experience requires good weather. If it’s cancelled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund
    • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 55 travellers

    • For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience.

    If you have questions about this tour or need help making your booking, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 12155P1

    From
    £12.80
    per adult
    Select date and travellers
    Revenue impacts the experiences featured on this page, learn more.

    Similar experiences

    Itinerary
    • Mermaid Quay, Cardiff CF10 5BZ, UK
      Lower Boardwalk, Mermaid Quay
    • 1
      Enjoy a relaxing tour to Cardiff Bay and Mermaid Quay with the Cardiff Bay Boat Tour. Cardiff Bay was created by the Cardiff Barrage in South Cardiff. The regeneration of Cardiff Bay is now widely regarded as one of the most successful regeneration projects in the United Kingdom. Witness remarkable landscapes and locations such as the famous Wales Millenium Centre, the Welsh Assembly, the Dr. Who Assembly the Barrage and it's lock gates, it's old docks and the Wetlands Nature Reserve. You can also choose to join the tour from the Barrage and visit Mermaid Quay, famous for it's shopping and leisure district.
    About the operator
    Don’t take it from us – here’s what people have to say about this operator:
    • Cardiff Cruises
      268
      Cardiff, Wales
      Joined in September 2014
    • davidsR209GK
      0 contributions
      4.0 of 5 bubbles
      Pleasant journey
      A pleasant journey with commentary from near the Castle to Mermaid Wharf. Sadly, litter all along the banks rather spoilt the view. Pay by cash or card.
      Written 11 February 2025
    • Camper06179812090
      0 contributions
      2.0 of 5 bubbles
      Disappointed
      Very disappointed Firstly the boat arrived late, things happen but not even an apology Secondly the food was poor quality stale bread and poor quality food. £42,50 is an absolute joke The boat is small for the amount of people on there
      Written 15 December 2024
    • cherylmZ2621MB
      0 contributions
      1.0 of 5 bubbles
      Afternoon tea at sea for my mum's birthday 😔
      Disappointing trip for my mum's 73rd birthday. Gluten free bread was very stale tasting, the scones were dry, the cream was warm and sour. The tea water had a hint of disinfectant taste to it. The sandwiches were dry and some crispy on the edges! Wouldn't recommend this trip sorry.
      Written 8 June 2024
    • Dreamer39271437261
      0 contributions
      4.0 of 5 bubbles
      Beautiful Boat tour of Cardiff Bay
      We did the 45mins boat tour. The views were lovely. The only thing I would say is that they need to turn up the volume of the audio, so you can actually hear clearly what it's saying about the history etc. there were very few people in the boat and even then we couldn't hear it clearly. Best to do the tour on a sunny day, it would be more enjoyable.
      Written 23 April 2024
    • Hannah W
      0 contributions
      5.0 of 5 bubbles
      Fascinating tour
      Really enjoyable and informative trip around the Bay. Warm welcome made up for the awful weather! Learnt all sorts of things about the history and nature of Cardiff Bay
      Written 6 February 2024
    • Meirion H
      0 contributions
      4.0 of 5 bubbles
      Nice if you get good weather
      Nice trip in general but a little bit over priced for what you get if we'd of looked at the others I'm sure the cheaper option would've been just as nice
      Written 18 October 2023
    • I1969RQmikey
      0 contributions
      1.0 of 5 bubbles
      Disappointed due to misunderstanding
      Due to misunderstanding because of wording on invoice when booking in advance the ferry had ceased running /The invoice states 5-5.30 implying the boat is available during this time however it means the boat leaves at 5pm and takes 30 minutes for trip to Quay .Extremely disappointed especially after receiving text after the crew had gone home. Finally managed to contact them by phone only to be told there was nothing to be done I have requested a refund but to date have received not even an acknowledgement despite being advised on the day to the contrary This was suppose to be means of transport back to Quay area where we were to eat in a restuarant This was an outing to celebrate my wife having just completed 12 months of chemo hence the real disappointment as we missed trip and meal
      Written 22 August 2023
    • 976johnsonw
      0 contributions
      5.0 of 5 bubbles
      Cardiff bay - A different look
      We enjoyed the boat ride. It gave us some beautiful memories. 45 mins trip that gives you a overall look and feel of Cardiff bay
      Written 26 April 2023
    • 455rhiaw
      0 contributions
      2.0 of 5 bubbles
      Bit of a shambles
      The trip was rescheduled which is fine, but it meant that we were the only people on the boat, despite this we weren’t allowed to put any music on. We weren’t welcomed or introduced to the crew or anything, it felt very much like public transport. My friend bought a glass of prosecco (one of the little one-glass-per-bottle things) and a mixer drink and was over charged, £33. We think the person put through a normal size bottle of Prosecco. Hopefully they’ll be in touch about a refund for the prosecco as it isn’t acceptable.
      Written 26 April 2023
    • Cardiff_Jet_Setter
      0 contributions
      5.0 of 5 bubbles
      Fantastic Flat Holm cruise
      Flat Holm Island trip from Penarth Marina was a wonderful experience. The type of thing everybody should do ! We had a lovely afternoon out on the Lewis Alexander. The crew were friendly and informative (Barry and Harry) and despite the weather being appalling it just added to the sense of adventure. On arrival at Flat Holm we were greeted by the enthusiastic warden and his band of jolly volunteers, all of whom were keen to impart their knowledge of the island to us. Excellent value, really interesting with outstanding views from the boat and island. We enjoyed it so much we may go again next year. Thank you Cardiff Cruises. Top marks
      Written 26 July 2022
    • MalcolmM734
      0 contributions
      3.0 of 5 bubbles
      Still on the motorway when we should have been on your Bay Cruise.
      I would like to rate your Bay Cruise which we did pay for in advance, but we got caught in a traffic jam on the M 4 near Swindon and unfortunately we were still on the English side of the bridge when our time slotted cruise sailed. So sadly we miss our chance of sailing with you. We did eventually make it to Cardiff 2 hours later then planned. Next time we visit Cardiff, taking your Bay Cruise will be priority. Given you an Average Score, but expect it would be higher if we had been able to take our place on the boat.
      Written 20 July 2022
    • Interrobang
      0 contributions
      1.0 of 5 bubbles
      Lack of safety - do not travel with this operator!
      I traveled to Flat Holm on Cardiff Cruise's boat, Lewis Alexander. I would strongly advise you not to travel with this company. Their lax attitude to safety resulted in three passengers on my trip having nasty falls. They don't have equipment for getting passengers off and on the boat at Flat Holm. There was a drop from the deck to the jetty, so they just put out a stool, which kept sliding down the sloping jetty. No handles, no stability. One gentleman took a nasty tumble and hurt his shoulder and leg. On re-embarking, they didn't even bother with the stool. The distance from jetty to deck was greater than knee-height. Any elderly person, or anyone with a disability, would have found this impossible. I tried to raise this with a member of the crew, but he didn't even acknowledge me. On the trip back, one lady found out to her cost that the bench she was sat on wasn't secured to anything. A wave hit the boat, and she was deposited onto the deck. It was all we could do to stop the bench from colliding with her. As we tried to raise the alarm with the crew, this lady's husband fell trying to help her up. The crew were completely unconcerned about all this. If they're not careful, there's going to be a serious accident. Also their time keeping wasn't great. We had to be at the barrage 30 mins before the pick up time, but the boat didn't turn up until past the pick up time. We then had to wait for a change of skipper, so that we got much less time on Flat Holm than advertised.
      Written 17 June 2022
    • Lrn R
      0 contributions
      5.0 of 5 bubbles
      Fun and informative
      Very spacious boat with commentary on the surroundings. Lots of seating up top and inside. Really enjoyed ourselves and was a great 45 minute tour
      Written 30 August 2021
    • GrandTour733820
      0 contributions
      5.0 of 5 bubbles
      Very interesting
      Nice little trip these is a speaker to tell you what all the places are , you get free WiFi toilets on board also drinks and snacks available
      Written 26 July 2019
    • stephenn870
      0 contributions
      4.0 of 5 bubbles
      Boat trip
      Was enjoyable enough. Cheap and interesting. Pointed out landmarks. Weather wasn’t with us but nothing could be done about that. If you are in the area and fancy something different do this
      Written 23 July 2019
    See all 268 reviews
    These reviews are the subjective opinions of Tripadvisor members and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

    Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

    Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

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    4.0
    4.0 of 5 bubbles232 reviews
    Excellent
    107
    Very good
    48
    Average
    26
    Poor
    17
    Terrible
    34

    Ann-Marie T
    Ankara, Türkiye17 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Aug 2022
    The boat (the Marianne) was very nice, with a snack bar and an upper and lower deck, suitable for different weathers. On the lower outside deck it is impossible to hear the pre-recorded tour guide. We moved upstairs and heard it on the way back. The views of the bay are nice and it was lovely to be on the water, but the trip was shorter than we had expected and somewhat pricey for the trip involved. The staff and crew were professional and helpful. We booked online and our email confirmation came after ht trip, so I had to phone to make sure our names were listed.
    Written 8 August 2022
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

    Máthair
    Cardiff, UK1 contribution
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Jun 2021 • Family
    Really lovely boat trip! I traveled with my 4 yr old and the round trip of 45mins was perfect. With the stop at the barrage, it wasn't too long for a young child. Lovely staff members on board. My only criticism was that although I had pre booked our ticket online the day before, people were able to pay on the day and were allowed in on a first come, first served basis. However, my booking was only valid for that time slot and if the boat was filled to maximum capacity before I got on it, I woukd lose my booking. Maybe, let people with pre booked tickets on first and then letting paying on the day passengers on, would resolve this. All in all, an enjoyable experience.
    Written 8 June 2021
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

    H Jones
    Cardiff, UK2 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Aug 2022 • Family
    Love how polite the female staff that attended to us was, beautiful experience but boat needs a bit of cleaning and refurbishment as it looked outdated. Again the speakers were sounding muffled and we couldn't hear anything. Drinks of £1.09 were sold at £2.48, I mean this was a family boat trip with kids on a very sunny day, drinks could be cheaper.
    Written 1 September 2022
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

    Nathan
    1 contribution
    2.0 of 5 bubbles
    Jul 2022
    Arrived over 30minutes earlier than required as my daughter is autistic so always good to get onboard first if possible and to get a place upstairs, was told to just wait and sit down and that our boat was the next one after the one which was docked. As time went on and it got to the time where our boat should have been there I started to wonder was the boat already there ours? By this time a huge queue of French students and others had already started to board. I called over the same person with the Cardiff cruises t-shirt on and asked him to double check that this boat was or wasn't ours, he then said 'oh yes this is your boat, you best get on' had i not checked again with same person we would have just sat there and missed our trip. Then to make matters worse as we went to get on another worker stood at gate and said no more people were allowed on. I said i had pre-booked tickets days and days ago and that i was getting on that boat. He then had to go to ask advice from another colleague (whom i had also contacted on our arrival but said she didn't know how to check my booking!!). The lady said oh yes you should be on this one. We were last to get on and ended up downstairs at the back overlooking the engine section, on a boiling hot day the smell of the fuel as boat set off was intense and soon enough i had to ask a few of the French students to move up so myself and my daughter could move away from the smell. The whole thing was a complete mess from beginning to end. I spoke to another couple who also were told that the boat was not the one they had booked when it was and they had to wait another 40minutes to board the next trip as the trip they had pre-booked was full. Absolute mess and the three people I spoke to who worked for Cardiff cruises had absolutely no idea what they were doing.
    Written 12 July 2022
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

    Brian E
    Swansea, UK2 contributions
    1.0 of 5 bubbles
    Sept 2023 • Couples
    The 11am Cruise we took on Wed 13th Sept was total ruined for us by the 30+ screaming school kids that turned up at the last moment on a school trip. The commentary was unintelligible to us thanks to the constant background noise of the overexcited children that showed little or no interest in the trip.
    I would definitely not want to take one of your cruises again after the stunt you pulled of dumping a school trip on us and would not recommend your cruise to anyone else.
    Written 18 September 2023
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

    FH
    5 contributions
    1.0 of 5 bubbles
    Aug 2022 • Family
    Booked for family on the Bay tour which was advertised as 45 mins. Arrived on time prior to the sail time (5.30-6.15pm), weather was poor and visibility low due to mist rain. Greeted by a less than enthusiastic staff member. He informed us that we were the only ones on the boat for that trip. They ushered us on (2 teens, myself, and my mother, 79, with walking aids due to a knee replacement). The boat pulled away and the onboard commentary was so faint we didn't have any clue about what it was saying. No pre- safety chat or any interaction with anyone else. They went to the barrage and back in 25 mins. We felt that we had inconvenienced them booking the trip and they wanted to get home.
    Extremely poor service. We laugh about it now, a waste of money, a joke of a tour. They couldn't be bothered to make light of a poor situation. Why they couldn't phone me and cancel due to the weather escapes me? They would have been doing us all a favour and I could have spent the £26 on something else.... perhaps on my increasing energy bills!!
    Very, very, very poor really. A little common sense could have avoided this review. Beware!
    Written 21 August 2022
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

    Meander24459982446
    1 contribution
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Aug 2024 • Family
    It was a very windy day and the sea was very rough. The boat was tossed about but the driver was really good at managing the boat. 10 out of 10 ! It was exhilarating we all got soaked It was so much fun made us all laugh and we all enjoyed it and relived the experience for a good few days after. Brilliant can't wait for another adventure. Oh by the way the sea lions were beautiful!
    Thank you and I would recommend it to everyone me being 74 years!!!!!
    Written 27 August 2024
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

    Clara_M2570
    Poole, UK5 contributions
    2.0 of 5 bubbles
    Jun 2022 • Couples
    A 'live' tour guide would have been good, with someone narrating and interacting with the crowd.

    The tour itself is on a tape played on a loud speaker which was poor quality and jumped back to partly repeat itself three times, so we heard about certain things again when we were nowhere near them and they were no longer on our left or right. It became a bit of a joke by the end.

    Ten minutes of the tour was also spent on the other side of the bay waiting for any more passengers.

    It was a shame as it could very easily have been improved, but it was not worth the money despite it being only around £10.
    Written 3 July 2022
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

    Kalobu78
    7 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Jun 2022 • Family
    Trip length 45 minutes was perfect, not too short not too long. The price was reasonable so Ideal for families, the boat was comfortable, the guided tour was great and the fact there were drinks and snacks available to purchase on board was a huge bonus. Finally, having a toilet was a godsend. We loved it!
    Written 21 June 2022
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

    Dexter
    Cheltenham, UK70 contributions
    1.0 of 5 bubbles
    Jul 2021 • Couples
    My partner and I were told that we had to wear masks if we went inside during our trip. We were quite happy about this. Unfortunately a large crowd entered the interior during our journey, NONE were wearing masks and they had no respect for social distancing. Nothing was said to them. The crew were not wearing masks either. In a time of rising Covid cases I find this completely unacceptable.
    We would have sat outside but there was no room.
    Very disappointing.
    Written 19 July 2021
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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    *Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.

    Cardiff Bay Boat Tour provided by Cardiff Cruises

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