I thought I should do a post on this because I have become quite a frequent visitor to Wales’ capital city. I started writing this when I was on the way to Cardiff for the very last time as a visitor – the next time I stay I will officially be a university student there and I am so excited for it. The city is so diverse, and I know David and I have only just scratched the surface of exploring it.
Anyway, back to the actual purpose of this post – how do you decide the best route to get to Cardiff from London? Well I can tell you now, there’s no easy answer to that. It all depends on what day and time you are planning to travel. Some ways are slower but more convenient, some quicker and a fair bit more expensive. I will tell you all about the ways I have travelled here and at the end of this post I will give my honest opinion on the method I prefer most.
Method 1: By train
I have probably travelled to and from this city by train the most. I would recommend getting a 16-25 railcard if you can, or another of the rail cards available to you. I got mine for just £10 as my cousin has a season ticket, but they are normally £30 for a whole year. Bearing in mind you get 1/3 off your travel when you use this card, for longer journeys like this you pretty much pay that off in one journey which is great!
I will almost always get the train after work on a Friday into London and take the first Super Off-Peak train out of Paddington to Cardiff (at the moment it is 19:15). This would get me into Cardiff Central around 21:30 which yes is pretty late but I think it is a good compromise for how much money you save getting the cheapest ticket available. It is a lot quicker to get the train than any other mode of transport, and probably the most comfortable too if you want to be working on a laptop or something.
I always request a seat around a table when I’m on the train because it gives you so much more room, especially if other people aren’t really using the table you can spread out as much as you want. The tray tables are okay but I found I couldn’t open my laptop properly so it was quite hard to work with. I also find a seat next to the window to be better, not only can you gaze out the window without looking like you are staring creepily at someone, you can also wedge all sorts of stuff into the space between you and the side of the train, perfect for me as I always like to have some snacks to hand.
Method 2: By bus
The good old Megabus is another way of getting from Cardiff to London. This option is so cheap, you can get a bus from Cardiff to London for as little as £4.50 – that’s crazy! There are other bus companies that offer services, however I have only ever been on the Megabus. I have only ever got the bus out of Cardiff to go home, I haven’t ventured out of London with it because being stuck in Friday rush hour traffic is not really my idea of fun… Coming back on a Sunday afternoon though is great, the stated travel time is around 4 hours and I’ve only been later than that once.
The bus comes into London Victoria Coach Station, which is about a 5 minute walk from the Underground station so not far at all. As a future uni student I think I will be using the Megabus a lot more because it is so cheap, I will actually be able to afford to go home semi-regularly!
Method 3: By car
I have only visited Cardiff twice by car, both were very different experiences…
The first time I went by car was with David’s parents to see him a few weeks after he’d settled in. We left early Saturday morning and had a pretty good journey. However, the second time my grandparents picked me up from work on Friday and drove up to Cardiff, and that took years. As I said before, Friday night rush hour is not only a real thing, but it should also be named Friday night rush 5-6 hours because it was one huge traffic jam pretty much the whole way to Cardiff.
Obviously being driven in a car is the chilliest way to travel, but that doesn’t make it the shortest. I don’t think I could drive myself to Cardiff and back on my own, it would be way too tiring, but I praise the people who do.
Obviously how people like to travel is different for everyone, but I think I have got the best method of travelling to and from Cardiff for my commitments at this time. As you may have gathered, I catch the train up there Friday night and then return by bus on the Sunday. I could do trains both ways, but I’ve tried to cut the cost as much as possible whilst still making sure I don’t get to places at stupid hours.
I hope this helped at least one person who may have been struggling to decide how best to get between two of Britain’s capitals, but as always if you have any questions or suggestions don’t hesitate to contact us!
Happy travelling!
Zoe and David x
Written by Zoe
Not-So-Trendy Travellers 