Car Hire Cardiff

Guide

The Welsh capital has a lot to offer, while there are many ways to tour the city, car hire in Cardiff is always a good alternative to using public transport. We can help you find great prices for Cardiff car hire by comparing a number of popular suppliers like Hertz, Enterprise, Budget, Europcar and National. Enterprise car hire in Cardiff is always a popular choice, three depots are located in the city center. Cardiff car rental depots are available at the airport, just use the search feature above to find rental deals at Cardiff Airport.

The capital city of Wales is an unusual mix of modern commercial areas and historic attractions. Several redevelopments have added a lively character to the city and it serves as a good launching point for the Pembrokeshire coastline and National Parks inland.

The impressive Cardiff Castle, built almost nine hundred years ago, is the centrepiece of the city today. Within its gothic towers is an opulent and lavish interior, well worth visiting. Settlement in this location can be traced back to Roman times and several ancient structures are found within the city.

Cardiff sits along a re-developed waterfront, and it is here you can appreciate the city’s strong maritime past. Today several sculptures and elegant pieces of architecture have been placed here and it has a cosmopolitan atmosphere, offering great shopping and first-class dining, accommodation and entertainment. Cardiff is a clean and modern city, with fine wide streets and many ‘green’ areas. Llandaf Cathedral is one of the city’s most striking buildings.

Just out of the centre is the enormous, ultra-modern Millennium stadium, built for the 1999 World Cup rugby. The National Museum of Wales, and the Welsh Folk museum are other worthwhile attractions.

Cosmeston Park Medieval Village, near the city, is a curious re-creation of rural Welsh life from days gone by, complete with farm buildings, bakehouse, peasant's cottages and domestic animals.

The lovely Pemborkeshire coastline is easily reachable if you decide to rent a car in Cardiff, typified by quaint little fishing villages and cosy B&Bs. Wales conjures up images of rolling hills and valleys, and these can be seen best in the Brecon Beacons national park, not far north of Cardiff.

Most visitors to Cardiff arrive on a three-hour train ride from London’s Paddington station, which is conveniently linked to Heathrow airport by an express train. The rail service is fast, regular and comfortable. By car the journey takes longer, heading out on the A4 from London.

The major suburbs in Cardiff are: Canton, Cathays, Coryton, Culverhouse Cross, Ely, Grangetown, Heath, Llandaff, Roath and Whitchurch. Service buses do run to these areas but a hire car in Cardiff will give you more freedom to roam. 

To & From

For anyone in a hurry, Cardiff has an international airport in Rhoose that is mainly used for charter flights, although there are some scheduled flights from Aberdeen, Amsterdam, Belfast, Brussels, the Channel Islands, Dublin, Edinburgh, Glasgow, the Isle of Man, Manchester and Paris. The airport is just a 20-minute journey from the city centre. For international visitors, your best option is to arrive at London Heathrow airport where it is convenient to get to London Paddington Station and hop aboard one of the frequent and fast westbound trains to Wales.

It's also easy to get to Cardiff by car, and it takes about three hours to drive from London to Cardiff. The M4 skirts northern Cardiff, and connections from the M5, M32, M48, M49 and M50 are easy.

There are hourly trains from London to Cardiff, which take about two hours; most cities in Wales are linked to England by direct rail service. Services depart from London Paddington station.

Long distance buses are the cheapest way to travel to Cardiff or Wales in general. There are frequent InterCity services to and from London, Manchester, the Midlands, West Country and the southern coast. From London, they leave from Victoria Coach Station.