International Travel:Departure TaxNone.
Main AirportsCardiff International Airport (CWL) (tel: (01446) 711 111; website:
www.cwlfly.com) is 19km (12 miles) from Cardiff.
To/from the airport: A rail link connects the airport with Cardiff Central station. The ’Airbus Xpress’ bus X91 runs between Cardiff city center and the airport. Taxis are available through local operator
Cardiff Airport Taxis (tel: (01446) 710 693). Car hire is available.
Facilities: Restaurants, shops,
bureaux de change, ATMs, children’s play area and executive lounge.
Getting There by WaterMain ports: Fishguard,
Holyhead (Anglesey),
Pembroke and
Swansea, all of which have
ferry connections to the Republic of Ireland.
Getting There by RailThere are two mainline routes into Wales. One runs from London Paddington to Fishguard along the South Wales coast (branching at Whitland to serve Haverford West and Milford Haven), while the other links Holyhead with Chester and northwest England. In addition, the line from Cardiff to Chester (via Newport, Hereford and Shrewsbury) links the south Wales cities with Abergavenny in Gwent and Wrexham in Clwyd. There are also two smaller cross-country lines: these run from Shrewsbury to Welshpool, Barmouth, Harlech, Porthmadog and Pwllheli; from Shrewsbury via Welshpool to Aberystwyth; and from Craven Arms (on the Shrewsbury–Ludlow line) through Llandrindod Wells and Llandovery down to Swansea.
There are also a large number of local steam railways, rescued by railway enthusiasts during the Beeching era, known collectively as
The Great Little Trains of Wales. The most famous of these is the one at Ffestiniog, Porthmadog in Snowdonia, which has lovingly restored locomotives and carriages from the last century. Others include the
Welshpool and Llanfair Railway (in north Powys), the
Talyllyn Railway (near Barmouth in Cardigan Bay) and the
Bala Lake Railway. Passport tickets are available, giving access to all the railways for the whole season. For further information, contact
The Great Little Trains of Wales (tel: (01286) 870 549; website:
www.greatlittletrainsofwales.co.uk).
Getting There by RoadThe best road approach to Wales from southern England is via the M4 motorway, which runs from west London to Newport, Cardiff and Swansea, almost to Carmarthen. The A5 links London and the Midlands with the ferry port of Holyhead, and the A55 links Holyhead with Chester. The best cross-country road is probably the A44/A470 from Oxford to Aberystwyth. Many of the smaller roads are slow, and in upland areas may become impassable during bad weather. The latest traffic information is available from
Traffic Wales (tel: 0845 602 6020; website:
www.traffic-wales.com).
Getting Around Towns and CitiesAll the main cities have local
bus services. There is a good network of local
train services radiating from Cardiff.
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