South Wales FAQs

We get lots of mails asking various questions about South Wales. We've put together this page to try and help you with some of the more commonly asked questions.

WHERE IS WALES? - Wales is part of the United Kingdom (which consists of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland). Wales is not part of England. The UK is situated off the north coast of Europe. Wales is west of England approximately 150 miles from London.

WHEN WAS WALES? - This is a really interesting question best answered by a book of the same name - "When was Wales" by Gwyn A. Williams. A good read if you want to find out more about Wales' history, people and culture, though the book is now out of print.

WALES IS PART OF ENGLAND ISN'T IT? - No, England is just one part of the United Kingdom, as is Wales. Referring to England when you mean the UK is the quickest way to upset the Welsh!

WHERE IS THE NEAREST INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT? - Wales has it's own International airport - Cardiff, Wales (CWL) with flights throughout Europe and the UK. Transatlantic flights to North America are rare though there has been a weekly service to and from Toronto in Canada in the past. However, there is a holiday charter route to and from Florida starting in the summer of 2004. The best way to reach Wales directly by air is via Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS). There are several flights a day to and from Amsterdam with a journey time of 1 hour. KLM and Northwest Airlines do combined fares across the Atlantic to Cardiff via Amsterdam. KLM quite often do good offers via their website.

The alternative is to fly to London Heathrow (LHW). This airport is only 150 miles from Cardiff and has worldwide connections.

I'M COMING FROM THE USA. WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO GET TO SOUTH WALES? - see question above. The best way is to fly into Cardiff via Amsterdam, or into London Heathrow.

Arriving in Cardiff Wales airport you have the whole of South Wales within 2 hours drive away. From London or Heathrow the best way is to travel by high speed train either from Reading (there is a coach from the airport to Reading station) or from London Paddington (use the Heathrow Express to get to Paddington, though the Express is VERY expensive). One of the quickest routes is by Express Coach bus from Heathrow to Cardiff or Swansea. It's direct and takes about 3 hours.

WHAT IS THE BEST WAY TO GET AROUND? - you can manage without a car, by using public transport between Cardiff, Cowbridge, Bridgend and Swansea. However, a car will give you more flexibility and will allow you to reach those hidden gems.

WHERE CAN I HIRE A CAR? - You can hire a car at any of the major airports, London Heathrow, Gatwick or Cardiff Wales Airport, or in the main cities in South Wales. It is best to book a car for your arrival. This site has given us very good online prices in the past. More recently we've used easyCar. The prices are amazingly cheap. The downside is that you have no choice of vehicle, and that you have to wash and clean out the car before you return it, but if you want good value this is it. In my experience they do give you a choice of Manual or Automatic gearbox when you pickup but this is not guaranteed. There is also a great big Easycar sticker down the side of the vehicle which is totally NAFF. Here cheap does mean cheap. If you want to blend into the area then this hire company is not for you. However, if you don't mind the disadvantages and cost is all important then you can't do better.

HOW FAR IS IT TO DRIVE FROM THE AIRPORT TO SOUTH WALES? - Cardiff Wales airport is within 2 hours drive of all of South Wales. From London Heathrow it's about 2 - 3 hours to get to the eastern part of South Wales and perhaps another 1½ hours to get to Swansea and beyond.

WILL I BE SAFE DRIVING FROM THE AIRPORT? - it depends - if you are used to driving on very crowded, multi-lane highways with a manual gearbox (stick shift) then you will be fine. The evening rush-hour on the M4 and the M25 (the main routes that you would use to get to South Wales) can be manic. It is not unusual for the whole motorway to be going at 60 - 80 miles per hour yet be jam-packed with vehicles. Friday night heading towards Wales from London is to be avoided. If you are not used to manual gearboxes and driving on the left then the train is your best bet, then hire a car in Wales. Pre-book your hire car and ask for an "automatic". For further information on driving in the UK try this information page.

WILL I BE SAFE OUT AND ABOUT IN WALES? - as long as you follow any normal common-sense precautions then you will be fine. For example don't walk through the rougher inner-city parts of Cardiff alone at night with your thousand dollar camera around your neck! You may think that you look unobtrusive, but you don't. Personal attacks are quite rare.

I'M COMING TO LONDON FOR A VACATION. WHY SHOULD I BOTHER TRAVELLING TO SOUTH WALES? - London may appear to have it all but after a few days you should get out and see the real country. South Wales is ideal. Its within an easy distance - about 2 - 3 hours. It's a real vibrant booming area with a real mix of modern facilities, and history and Celtic culture. From the coast to the mountains it has something for everyone,

whether its walking along the coastal paths, browsing the museums, shopping or climbing the Brecon Beacons. You will not regret it!

CAN YOU SEND ME SOME BROCHURES?- Unfortunately we can't. However if you visit the

Welsh Tourist Board web-site they have a brochure request facility.

WHAT'S THE WEATHER LIKE IN JANUARY? - cold and wet.

WHAT'S THE WEATHER LIKE IN JULY? - warm and dry - though often warm and wet!

WHAT'S THE WEATHER LIKE IN NOVEMBER? - windy and very wet.

MY GREAT-GRANDFATHER'S NAME WAS THOMAS, OR EVANS, OR JONES, OR WILLIAMS AND HE CAME FROM SOUTH WALES. CAN YOU HELP ME FIND SOME INFORMATION ON HIM? - Afraid not - there are many thousand of families in Wales with these surnames.

WHERE CAN I STAY IN SOUTH WALES? - see our Hotels and Accommodation pages.

WHAT CAN I DO? - see our Things To Do page.

WHERE CAN I EAT? - see our Pubs and Restaurants pages.

WILL YOU PUT A LINK TO MY WEB-SITE ON YOUR SITE FOR MY RESTAURANT, OR PUB, OR HOTEL IN SOUTH WALES? - see our Add A Link page for information on adding a link.

WHY DOESN'T WALES SEEM TO DO WELL AT RUGBY - WALES' NATIONAL GAME? - if we could answer this question we wouldn't be writing web-sites for you!

IS THE SEA-WATER SAFE AROUND SOUTH WALES? - basically no. Swim in it if you're hard enough (it's very cold), but don't if you have any open cuts. And don't drink it. However, it looks worse than it really is due to the high levels of sand and silt. However, be sensible.

ARE ANY OF THE SOUTH WALES NEWSPAPERS ON THE INTERNET? - yes, try icwales.icnetwork.co.uk this is the site of the Western Mail newspaper that covers all of South Wales. You can also try www.thisissouthwales.co.uk. This is the site of the South Wales Evening Post.

I WISH TO ADVERTISE IN A SOUTH WALES NEWSPAPER, HOW DO I CONTACT THEM? - try the Western Mail newspaper or South Wales Echo. Contact details can be found at http://icwales.icnetwork.co.uk/2700contact