I was a major fan of this lovely little travel agency. While offering all the same holidays as…read moretheir contemporaries, they were exceptionally polite and lovely. Good customer service.

Arthur Conan Doyle's autobiography will be known as "Arth", and I've been asked to write it, so…read moreI've agreed, in principle, to Pen Arth. So people say it's a separate town that's independent and self-sustaining, but honestly it's really just a suburb of Cardiff named Penarth which is only three miles from Cardiff Central station which kind of proves my suburb point. Anyway, it's a cute little station in the middle of the Suburban town and has regular stations going up to Cardiff. One of the problems is that the car park here is for drop off and pick up purposes only. Also the hours for the ticket office are extremely limited, closing at 2 or 3 in the afternoon, worse even at other times, but still. It makes the station pretty tricky to work with, and difficult. I give it the extra star just because it's got some cheap houses here, but it is pretty run down like the other stations.

Penarth Railway Station is, I've always thought, exceptionally small considering the area it's…read morebringing people to. Penarth is hardly a busy and bustling city station, like Cardiff. This railway station has but one platform, and is the end of the line (at least there's never any confusion). Services run to Tredegar and Bargoed only, but all trains pass through Cardiff Central and Cardiff Queen Street. Trains leave every 15 mins during the day, 30 mins at night until 11pm. Can you tell I use this station a lot? Although it is sometimes staffed (weekdays until 2.30pm), most of the time the main building is closed and passengers have to leave and enter the station platforms via a side gate. This station is small, but functional. At least you'll never be stuck waiting there for too long.

The end of the bridge is here, hence the name…read more South Wales is big on trains, and has a large population most of whom use trains, and that is why this is the fifth busiest station in Wales. The others are all in the Cardiff area - including Newport - except for Swansea which is not that far to the West. Anyway it's definitely a busy station and it's pretty modern because of that, and looks like it was just built recently, although there are still some older elements to it. It's a nice station and it's fit for purpose.

This is the station serving the South Wales town of Bridgend, the first major stop westwards after…read moreCardiff, the junction for the branch line to Maesteg and the terminus of trains from the Vale of Glamorgan line which run via Cardiff Airport's station. The station dates to 1850, when it was opened along with the rest of the South Wales Railway from Chepstow to Swansea. The line was built by Brunel, and was operated from the start as part of the Great Western Railway. The original station building - an attractive stone building in a domestic Italianate Style - still survives, on the Down Line (to Swansea), although in the 1980s a new entrance and ticket hall in glass were erected at one end. The buildings on platform 2 (towards Cardiff and London) also date from the early 1980s. The original buildings of 1850 are Listed at Grade II. As well as the hourly 125 mph (200 kph) London-Swansea service, the station is served by the hourly Maesteg-Cardiff trains, and is the terminus for the hourly trains from Cardiff via the Vale of Glamorgan Line, which terminate in the newly built platform 1A. It is also served by the regular services to and from West Wales and the North West of England. The ticket and information offices are on platform 1 at the entrance, but the toilets and large (privately-run) buffet are on platform 2. The station has step-free access throughout, although passengers requiring assistance are advised to telephone in advance for wheelchair ramps, etc. The station has limited cycle-storage facilities, a taxi rank and a large 100-space car park (charges apply). The station serves a wide area and is the fifth busiest in Wales, with over 1.1 million passengers a year.

BOOKED A HOLIDAY TO THAILAND this morning in the Pontypridd store . Both my partner and i was very…read moresurprised with the,professionalism and time given to us by the store manager Gareth . Never have we had the customer care given to us by other agents ! We will definitely make all future holiday bookings with Gareth and team ! THANK YOU! REGARDS James & Nick Farrugia

My experience of Marconi Holiday Villages is mostly limited to the on-site pub. My primary reason…read morefor visiting this pub was not because I am a beer guzzling wench, but to play a gig - the Sprocket fest to be precise. The Sprocket fest is an annual bikers festival held on the site over the weekend. The pub itself is a good size, with a small children's playground outside and inside views over a pool! Unfortunately I didn't bring my bathers. Apparently the site has several pools, although I only saw the one, which looked incredibly clean and inviting. After finishing our set, I had a wonder around. You wouldn't know that you were only a stones through away from the Capital. Even though this was a bikers festival it was serene and the views were gorgeous. I havn't stayed here, so I can't tell you what the bungalows are like, but they looked really sweet from the outside, some have sea views and small gardens and according to their website 'chalets' vary from 2-3 bedrooms. Camping I was told on my visit is now limited to two or three days a year after a particularly rowdy bunch from Cardiff turned up one evening. This is sad because the night I visited Marconi Holiday Villages was one of those rare nights where camping was allowed and the set up looked fantastic. As a keen camper and even living so near by, I would certainly consider camping here if it ever became an option again.

I have only ever flown with Thomson, the Swedish travel company, but this isn't unusual. I never…read moreuse the allied services of companies that operate an airline as well as arrange holidays, rental cars etc etc... My approach to going on holiday is to book the cheapest flight that I can find on the net, and then wing the rest when I get there. To my mind it's more fun this way, and not in the least bit scary as I've done it enough times to know that I'm pretty unlikely to come a cropper, and will always find somewhere safe to stay... even if it's a bus station! I have had a few close calls, and have also ended up paying a lot more money for accommodation than I'd like, but all in all, I've definitely saved money on average, and have met some really interesting people that I wouldn't have had cause to talk to had I booked everything in advance. So, Thomson! Great company! I've flown with them a few times and I've never been disappointed. The standards are high, and difficult to beat. The budget airlines like Ryan Air don't come close. I'd be a happy person if my internet searches came back with Thomson offering the cheapest flights to my desired destination every time!

Thomson offer some great late deals, city breaks and package deals. I wouldn't choose them for a…read morelong holiday but for great late packages you can get a real bargain. I prefer to arrange flights and accommodation myself so the idea of paying extra for a middleman to book these for me seem wrong, also you can spend much more time planning the journey which ends up being more enjoyable than a 20-30 minute conversation that is supposed to try to help you find the package you want.

Quaint little bit of old Porthcawl, the harbour still has a couple of fishing boats bobbing about…read morein it (or wedged on the mud flat when the tide is right out). Like the whole place, it's a bit ragged round the edges, a bit unkempt, like the disused old dockside warehouse buildings waiting, probably vainly, for a trendy arty community to go and revitalise them. But, in a funny sort of way, this is part of the charm of the place, it's seaside, but not upmarket, trendy or snooty, but down to earth (wind and sea), a place for everyone.

Porthcawl Harbour and the surrounding area are a tourist attraction in the middle of Porthcawl,…read moresituated between the the esplanade and eastern promenade. Alongside the harbour itself - which is reasonably small, holding around 50 boats is a purpose built lifeboat station, which is often open to the public to explore. 'Cosy Corner' is a green, park area, which has previously been home toa theatre, cinema, roller skating rink and ballroom. It is now quite scruffy and run-down, but is pleasant enough on a summers day. The Jennings Building, a grade II listed building which is Wales' oldest maritime warehouse, is currently home to the PADS Skate Boarding Centre, which can be visited for a few quid. There is a giant chess board area near the lifeboat station - but no pieces, so immagination is required! At the end of Porthcawl Pier there is a lighthouse, which is approximately 140 years old. The Pier and the area surrounding the harbour are popular spots for sea fishing. There is a small bait and tackle shop near the lifeboat station. A small Sidoli's cafe and ice cream shop stands near the harbour. There are one or two outside tables, but this mainly caters for take-away ice creams. You can sail on the historic ships the Waverley, the world's last sea-going paddle steamer, and the Balmoral from this area during the summer months.[3] The whole of the harbour quarter has been identified as an important area as part of the Porthcawl Regeneration Strategy. The Porthcawl Sea Festival, Summer Markets and Surf Cult Festival often focus on this area - and they are best enjoyed on busy, sunny summer days.

I had a sexy girlfriend in the Cardiff area, I called her by Cardiff Bae…read more This is the station that is closest to Wales Millennium Center, and it only has a single platform, so it's very much a tiny little low-key station only one mile away from Cardiff Queen Street, which is a much bigger station. It's pretty old and good for the area, but they're planning to completely remodel and redo it and in 2023 there will be a much fancier station here supposedly. Right now it's literally an old house on a platform and it's super cute, but super strange. I am sad that I may never see it again thanks to Corona and remodel plans.

Cardiff Bay Railway Station is like taking a step back in time. It's so small and quaint that you…read morecan almost imagine yourself being bungled into a train with a suitcase and a brown label with your name around you neck as you're sent away into the country before the bombs start falling. Only one train goes back and forth from this station, between here and Cardiff Queen Street. Back and forth and back and forth all day long, every 12 minutes - 6 minutes there and 6 minutes back. The train itself is even old fashioned, with its doors that you have to lean out of the window to open form the outside. None of these fancy flashing button for this leg of the journey! Although fun and something a little bit different (I'm assuming here that they're going for a traditional system, not that the train is just old and dilapidated), this service is not really suitable for people with prams, luggage or for those in a wheelchair. Fortunately there's a bus service that is just around the corner. The station is also a little out of the main hub of the Bay; although it's easy to find, yo do end up walking past a little bit of a ghost town to get there. Trees growing out of boarded up buildings and the like (although it would make a lovely photograph).