I’m back in Venice. DD and I had nice flights in both directions on Easy Jet. Both were airbus 319/320.
The hotel in Cardiff was fine but I wouldn’t say it’s a Cat 7. DD did enjoy the lounge. It looks to be in the process of renovation. Restaurant and bar area were nice. Food was good. Location was convenient for what we wanted. It’s dated. The staff on the front desk is a mix of good and not so good. I had been sent an email saying I was upgraded to an executive king. It wasn’t until we were ready for bed I realized we definitely didn’t have a king. They moved us the next day. We had a better view. It never had decent air conditioning though. The weather was fine and you really couldn’t tell until warmed by the heavy comforter. It felt like it was only the fan. We dialed it below 20 but the condenser never came on. I mentioned it at the front desk but it never changed. It would have been fine with a light cover but all they give you is the comforter. No sheet.
I’d consider trying Swansea property if I went again. Loved being close to the coast. Lounge wouldn’t be necessary as there are lots of seaside restaurants. It was only a cat 5 so it costs less.
We got a pass to visit castles that are part of the Cadw properties. We also went through the Brecon Beacons to get to Builth Wells. It was a beautiful drive. In fact, we had perfect weather all week. On the return we stopped at Peny fan, a popular walking site to a peak vantage point. On the trail you pass lots of sheep. This time of year they have the little lambs with them. You also pass horses and their foals. We climbed a fair amount but not to the top. Going up is hard on the quads. Coming down is hard on the shins.
Since the wedding was Saturday we stayed in for the morning to watch it before heading to Caerphilly Castle. It was great having Anna as my personal driver.
One of the young women in the lounge suggested we drive 2 hours to Tenby. It’s a colorful seaside resort town. On the way we passed through Swansea, and Mumbles. I thought Mumbles worth a return visit more than Swansea. We also took the time to park and visit the beach at Three Cliffs. Definitely a plus. We got there just in time to experience the tide at it’s near low point. The car park has the checkin office for some cottages and a decent spot to enjoy pasties and ice cream.
Laugharne Castle and Tenby were next. Just enough time to walk around and snap a bunch of pictures. We thought about dinner but we’re still full from the pasty. We drove back to Cardiff and were glad to arrive just before dark. Tired and hungry. The hotel had a decent fish and chips on the bar menu.
May was great time to visit.
Google maps gave us several options back to the Bristol airport. All similar time of travel. We picked one through the countryside. Well I picked it because I was the navigator. Anna was the one dealing with the country lanes not quite wide enough to have a white line down the middle. This was all fine though you need to know there are no gas stations for a last stop fill up before turning in the rental. We drove a bit past the airport for gas and then returned.
It was a beautiful introduction to Wales and the route from Bristol.