Very helpful friendly staff. Excellent pool. Great location for the shopping and for the local train service - we visited friends in Heath using the train rather than getting the car out. But I felt the place is in danger of losing it. It does have a slightly tired feeling in the decor and the weekend we were there only one lift was working which caused some congestion at times.
I have been staying in this hotel on business since it first opened as part of the Macdonald chain. When Mercure took over, standards started to slip- noticeably so during my latest visit.
The hotel needs freshening up and refurbishing in some areas- worn and tired carpets, etc. The television in my room did not work properly this time either.
However, the large beds are very comfortable and the bathroom was spotlessly clean.
Check-in and out was smooth. The hotel is still good vale for money for the business and leisure traveller. Free internet connection in bedrooms is very useful.
We've been to this hotel before (when it was a MacDonald Hotel) and gave it a 5* review. This time, we were disappointed, expecting the same experience I guess, and a 5* experience is hard to live up to a second time.
The room was still lovely, although the bathroom was looking a little tired, but clean and modern nonetheless. It was the service that let the hotel down this time. Any hotel that expects you to cook your own toast in the morning doesn't deserve 5* in my opinion. I hate those machines, you have to stand there watching your bread go through, it's like watching paint dry, while the rest of your food gets cold. Or, you get your toast first, and then it's cold by the time you've got your breakfast. The breakfast, in terms of quality, choice and service, was nowehere near as good as our previous visit.
We also requested a cot in the room, and when we arrived it wasn't in there. It's only a small thing in the scheme of things of course. We would prefer to stay at the Future Inn in the Bay now, it's cheaper and does just as good a job.
If you've already booked, don't worry, it is a lovely hotel, clean and modern, it's just a let down for us to see that it isn't as good as it used to be.
We booked this hotel as I had stayed here before three years ago and was not dissapointed this time either.Booked it back in March as a two nights for one package which was fantastic for a family of 4.Four nights with breakast for less than £270!Rooms were spacious,and the kids loved the pool an breakfast.Ideal location for the Urdd eisteddfod and for shopping.
The only downside was they had over priced us on the childrens menu which we were charged £7.95 on the bill and should have been £6.They also charged for the unlimited drinks the children had,which meant we were over charged £5 more than the bill should had been.The staff resolved it straight away,but they knew the price was incorrect!!!!
The staff were very helpful,and professional.
Thanks again for a wonderful stay,and will be recommending.
P.s.The windows could do with a clean as other guests have commented,but a bit of a tall order as they are so high up!
Thoroughly enjoyed my stay here. Too bad it was only for a couple of nights. The design of the hotel from the lobby to the restaurant to the room was very contemporary and spacious. The location was within walking distance of the shopping district in Central Cardiff.
The staff were very friendly and even provided an ethernet cable for use in the room. Wired internet is free in the room while you have yo pay for wi-fi in the public areas such as the lobby. Staff were welcoming and helpful, offering to call for taxis upon leaving the hotel for the evening and upon check-out.
Didn't get a chance to check out the fitness centre and the swimming pool, though I know they exist. The food was excellent and would recommend people get their breakfast included as it's all-you-can-eat and can get your money's worth.
The room itself was more spacious than expected as it included a couple of extra chairs for watching tv or eating as opposed to using the bed. Found it really difficult to find the switch though for the lamps beside the desk - was really far away (near the washroom) and didn't make sense to me why it was there. The bed was really comfortable and spacious and had no problems sleeping. The windows (as commented already by others) could definitely use some work as they were dirty and would always be an issue when taking a picture of the city. One window was even had a crack mark like in a windshield. The washroom was very nice with a separate tub and shower.
Definitely my first option when I return to Cardiff!
I booked a spa break for this hotel through a spa website. It was a christmas gift for my mum and what a wonderful choice! I had upgraded to a suite and had called ahead to ask for the best room possible as it was a gift. When we arrived they had given us the presidentail suite, which was amazing. Everything here was great. We each had 2 treatments wich were very good, we also ate in both of the nights and the meals were wonderful as was breakfast. The hotel does not look very attractive from the outside but it is a different story on the inside where it is clean and modern with wonderfull views and great facilities.
