Richard McComb enjoys the presidential life – in Cardiff.
When it was suggested that I might like to go to Cardiff, I politely suggested that I wouldn’t like to.
I couldn’t imagine there was much worth seeing, still less to stay in. I mean, it’s Cardiff. It’s grim. Isn’t it? Coal dust and rugbyists. There would be chips to eat, obviously, and deep fried pizza.
And then I found myself sitting in the sun on a summer’s day having lunch on Cardiff Bay, just round the corner from the wonderful Wales Millennium Centre, home to the Welsh National Opera. It wasn’t a great lunch but it was all right. Actually it was pizza, but it hadn’t been saturated.
But even if it had been, it could not possibly have soured my trip to Cardiff. Not even Visit Cardiff could do that, despite doing its best to be totally unhelpful. Emails and phone calls to the tourism bods fell on deaf ears.
Maybe something got lost in translation. After all, the phrase “would you like some publicity in one of the country’s most influential regional newspapers” can be ambiguous.
Still, there were no such mix-ups with the Hilton Cardiff, which is slap bang in the middle of the city near the castle, five minutes in a taxi from the station. It may be part of a mega-hospitality brand but I have to say the service at all levels was fantastic, from the chap sweeping up the front of the building to the reception staff and the restaurant waiters.
I couldn’t have been made to feel more welcome. Within a few minutes of checking in, all my preconceptions about chippy Cardiff were blown away. And that takes some doing. The Australian cricket team has stayed at the Hilton in the past and it is not hard to see why they were bowled over with the location and facilities of the Cardiff hotel.
I was swept up to the top-floor Presidential suite which offers great panoramic views over the city and the not so distant hills. After a couple of glasses of Champagne and a nibble of some chocolates, I was virtually in love with Cardiff and chased myself around the private dining area and sitting room several times.
The hotel’s top suite is a great open space and wraps around most of the semi-circle tower at the front of the building. There’s lots of wood decor and cool suede furniture to lounge about in. It’s a ideal place to pretend to be a pop star, a captain of industry or a lucky journalist. If it all gets too much, you can always chill out in the jacuzzi in the spacious bathroom.
Like other guests in the executive rooms and suites, customers living it up in the Presidential pad also have use of the hotel’s executive lounge, where pre-dinner drinks and canapés are served. Again there are great views from here and it’s possible to see two castles as you kick back in one of the comfy chairs. There aren’t many hotels you can do that from.
Continental breakfast can also be taken here or downstairs in the comfortable Razzi restaurant. The best tables are in the Razzi’s conservatory-style annexe, which is great for people watching, especially in the evening when Cardiff goes out to party, an activity it appears to engage in most nights of the week.
It’s a good spot for dinner too. The cuisine is modern British.
I had a starter of fillet of mackerel on tomato focaccia bread with tartare sauce and a rib eye steak. The rump of lamb, served with a port and tarragon jus and fondant potato, looked good.
There is a well-priced wine list that offers some half bottles, which is handy if, like me, you happen to be dining alone.
Cocktails can be taken in the STEAMº bar just across the hotel foyer.
The hotel has its own swish health club, to which guests have complimentary access. The complex includes a 20-metre swimming pool, which at first is a disconcerting site due to its setting on the second floor. I’ve no idea where the water goes when they drain it. They must have a big plug.
There is gym equipment for the masochistic city tripper but I opted for pampering rather than cardiovascular excess and enjoyed a wonderful half-hour back and neck message, courtesy of Stacey, in one of the club’s discreet treatment rooms.
It is only a two-hour train journey from central Birmingham to Cardiff and the cultural links between the two cities, thanks to the success of Welsh National Opera, means (my previous misconceptions now quashed) a visit to the Welsh capital makes complete sense.
The Wales Millennium Centre, dubbed the armadillo, is fantastic. The stunning metal, slate and wood design by architects Percy Thomas Partnership (now Capita Percy Thomas) has bedded in well after six years.
The building has provided the futuristic backdrop for Doctor Who and Torchwood. But it is what goes on inside the building that is the real attraction. Birmingham may be one of the touring WNO’s second homes but there is something special about seeing a company perform its magic in its own spiritual home.
It may be a little late in the day now for October, when the shows include Fidelio and The Magic Flute, but it’s only a relatively short break until next February when Johann Strauss’s Die Fledermaus and Verdi’s Il trovatore are staged.
The Wales Millennium Centre is only 15 minutes by bus from the Hilton, although if you are staying in the Presidential suite, a relative snip at just over £600-a-night, then you might want to splash out on a taxi.
You can rest assured that after a flight of operatic fantasy you will able able to rest comfortably, and be amply cosseted, at the Hilton.
Travel Facts
* Hilton Cardiff, Kingsway, Cardiff. Tel: 02920 646300. Standard rooms are from £140; executive suites £280. For further details and reservations, go to www.hilton.co.uk/cardiff or email: reservations.cardiff@hilton.com
* Richard McComb travelled from Birmingham New Street to Cardiff courtesy of Cross Country Trains. For details on fares and promotions, go to www.crosscountrytrains.co.uk
