My review of Hotel Indigo Cardiff – Staying in one of the Welsh Capital’s iconic arcades
Tucked away inside one of Cardiff’s old arcades, you’ll find the Hotel Indigo Cardiff quietly waiting to welcome you in.
Knowing shockingly little about Cardiff (I’ve only really spent time in North Wales before now!), and it’s indoor shopping architecture before visiting, I have to admit, I missed the entrance on my first pass! Happily though, using a bit of common sense and a touch of Google maps I made my way into the cosy corridor and found the hotel reception.
We spent the weekend in one of Hotel Indigo Cardiff’s double rooms, staying two nights with breakfast included. I also had a complimentary meal at the on-site Marco Pierre White steak restaurant, which I’ll be reviewing in this blog.
There’s lots of good things to say, both about the hotel and Cardiff as a city for tourism, so I’ll try and get straight to it! I have to say though, one of the highlights of my visit was finding out how the hotel has really embedded itself in the city’s culture, community, and businesses.
Disclaimer: Although I stayed at the Hotel Indigo Cardiff for a PR trip, all opinions expressed in this blog are unbiased and 100% my own.
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Where is Hotel Indigo Cardiff?
Just a step from the bustling high street of Cardiff, the Hotel Indigo Cardiff is nestled quietly inside the Dominions Arcade. As I may have mentioned, Cardiff is known as the City of Arcades, so being able to stay inside one of these iconic old arcades was quite a novelty.
Cardiff of course, is the Capital of Wales, located in the South of the country.
I found the hotel’s location to be perfect for exploring the city. Located right in the heart of Cardiff city centre, Hotel Indigo is only a few minutes walk from several big attractions, including Cardiff Castle, which is just a 5 minute stroll away.
I also found that because it is situated off the street, in what is probably the quietest of Cardiff’s famous arcades, it had a sense of calm upon entering.
It feels like a place where you can sit back, relax and forget you’re in the middle of a city.
How to get to Hotel Indigo Cardiff
Getting to Hotel Indigo Cardiff is fairly straightforward, as it is located very centrally within the city.
If you are planning on getting to the Hotel Indigo Cardiff by train, you’ll want to get a ticket to Cardiff Central Station, which is only five minutes walk to the city centre.
Cardiff Central has a number of direct services to other towns and cities in Wales, as well as towns and cities in the North and West of England, such as Manchester, Chester, Liverpool, and Birmingham.
I travelled from Cheshire by car. The journey was just under three hours, most of which was motorway. It was a very easy drive, and even approaching the city during rush hour, I didn’t find myself contending with too much traffic at all.
Parking at Hotel Indigo Cardiff
There is no on-site car park at Hotel Indigo Cardiff unfortunately. You can however, park at the NCP Greyfriars car park, which is located to the rear of the hotel.
The NCP isn’t the cheapest car park in the world, coming in at around £25 a day at the time of writing this, however it is secure. The hotel provides a discount of 25% on parking for guests who park at this particular car park.
Top tip: Be sure to get your parking validated at the reception desk inside the hotel on the day you leave to get the discounted rate.
Hotel Indigo Cardiff – first impressions
I arrived at the Hotel Indigo Cardiff in a bit of a fluster. I actually got there at around 8am, as it was a Friday, and I needed to get set up for working remotely at 8:30am, before I could properly get into full weekend/travel blogger mode at 5pm!
I was really pleased to find a friendly face at reception, who let me know that my room would be ready in no time at all (by 9am to be exact!), despite being very early for check-in. I was also made more than welcome to sit in the cafe area in the lobby and set up there for the time being.
The decor in the reception area definitely has a boutique and quirky feel, with some quaint nods towards the local streets and Welsh heritage. A favourite feature was the rather iconic sheep, mid phone call sitting by the reception desk.
The Reception Manager, Jacques, who was extremely helpful and attentive throughout our stay, endeared the electric blue sheep to us even more by recounting the story of how it came to be.
Apparently big sheep ornaments don’t come cheap, and sadly this one’s ear got knocked off during the hotels refurbishment. Instead of forking out for an expensive new ear, a rather handy handyman glued the telephone to the sheep’s missing ear and history was made!
Rooms at Hotel Indigo Cardiff
The Hotel Indigo chain (part of the IHG Hotel Group) places heavy focus on the neighbourhoods in which they build their hotels. Hotel Indigo Cardiff is a perfect example of this, with rooms belonging to one of three themes: ‘Made in Wales’, ‘Welsh Industry’, and ‘Music’.
Having previously stayed in another Hotel Indigo in Durham, I could really appreciate how the design of each location was completely unique and reflected their respective neighbourhoods. I’m definitely here for combining the uniqueness of the decor and locations, with the predictability of quality that comes with staying at a larger chain hotel.
We stayed in one of the ‘Welsh Industry’ themed double rooms on the 4th floor of the hotel. The room was a nice size, with plenty of space to store luggage out of the way, a large double bed, armchair, flat screen TV, and desk area.
The room was furnished in a typically industrial style, very much in keeping with the theme. Think metal , wood and leather finishes, with exposed bulbs providing the subdued lighting. I found the low lighting and dark furnishings to be cosy, but some brighter ceiling lights would have been nice to have for practicality.
The desk perfectly comfortable to set up for work for the day, and the hotel’s wifi was more than adequate to cope with the demands of a Graphic Designer, uploading files and taking the occasional Zoom call. There were USB charge points above the desk too, which was an added bonus!
Welcoming touches
The staff at Hotel Indigo Cardiff really do go above and beyond to make you feel welcome. It was lovely to find a welcome message on the mirror (written in Welsh, of course) and some sweet treats to help you settle into the weekend.
The brownies and macaroons did not make it past the afternoon…
Local products inside the rooms
As I’ve already mentioned, Hotel Indigo like to champion the neighbourhoods that they are part of, and this carries through to the products that they use in their hotel rooms.
Everything from soaps to teas have been sourced from local businesses and producers. I think it’s great that local businesses are being supported in this way, and it also introduced me to some great new products and brands. I’d definitely purchase some of the soaps and shampoos from Myddfai for example, (my hair felt SO soft after using the shampoo and conditioner in the bathroom), in the future.
The Bathroom at Hotel Indigo Cardiff
The more hotels I visit, the more I find myself becoming a bit of a shower snob.
There are few things in life I despise more than a disappointing shower. Thankfully, there was nothing to worry about here at the Hotel Indigo Cardiff. The shower was double width, with both a rainfall and standard shower head option, and most importantly, the water came out nice and hot!
The bathroom as a whole was nice and spacious, with plenty of room to move and had a nice big mirror. The local toiletries are in refillable dispensers, so whilst you can’t pinch them and pack them in your bag for another trip (come on, I know you do it too!), it is a nice way to avoid plastic waste and keep things a little more sustainable.
The industrial decor carried through into the bathroom too, with the metro style tiles (very on trend) adding a quirky pop of colour.
Toiletries provided in the bathroom were shower gel, shampoo, conditioner, hand soap and lotion. All from the Welsh luxury toiletry brand, Myddfai.
Food at Hotel Indigo Cardiff
Food! The most important part, am I right?
Hotel Indigo Cardiff features a fantastic dining option in the form of the rooftop Marco Pierre White steakhouse and cocktail bar, that you needn’t leave the building to enjoy! There is also an on-site coffee house, Bute & Co. which has the look and feel of an independent coffee shop, but also sits under the Hotel Indigo brand.
Breakfast at the Marco Pierre White Restaurant Cardiff
Breakfast at the Hotel Indigo Cardiff is served up in the Marco Pierre White restaurant. The breakfast service is a combination of table service for hot food options, and a continental buffet.
There was plenty to choose from in the continental selection, and everything I had was fresh and high quality. I particularly enjoyed the thick Greek yoghurt with berries and warm pastries.
The hot food menu wasn’t extensive, but still had a good variety to choose from, and all the usual dishes you’d expect. There was a ‘Full Welsh Breakfast’ which Matt indulged in on the first morning of our stay. I’m yet to discover what the difference is between this and an English breakfast, but nonetheless I’m told it was very good!
I tried ‘The Favourite’, which was poached eggs, avocado and smoked salmon on sourdough. This was a really nice hot alternative to a fry up, I’d definitely order it again.
Dinner and Cocktails at the Marco Pierre White Restaurant Cardiff
As part of my PR trip to the Hotel Indigo Cardiff, I got to enjoy a complimentary meal at the Marco Pierre White steakhouse restaurant and bar.
The restaurant is situated on the top floor of Hotel Indigo Cardiff, and can be accessed from your room without having to step foot outside of the hotel – particularly handy if you decide to go out on the 2-4-1 cocktail offer!
Being on the top floor of the Dominions Arcade, the restaurant has a wonderful, and underrated terrace, with amazing views over Cardiff city centre. Inside the restaurant, there is chic monochrome decor, accented with purple lighting and lots of wall art celebrating the man behind the restaurant, Marco Pierre White.
Appetisers
Appetisers we’re simple but delicious. We had warm sourdough bread, that has that wonderful hollow texture and ‘crack’ when you break it apart, with a generous portion of salted butter.
The olives were high quality too, large and juicy like the ones you’d expect to find in Greece.
Starters
We ordered from the a-la-carte menu at the Marco Pierre White Restaurant. For my starter I chose the ‘finest quality smoked salmon’, which comes with brown bread and butter, and a good amount of seasoning.
The salmon was excellent quality. The bread that came with it appeared to be white though, not brown. I assume this was just a supply issue and I wasn’t really fussed about the substitution. Overall I’d give this starter maybe a 7 out of 10.
Matt chose the french onion soup (another dish I’d had my eye on), and I have to say, I got food envy! The soup was rich, comforting and full of flavour, topped with a good layer of croutons and Gruyere cheese. Definitely the winner of this course!
Mains
Steak is one of those meals that I enjoy immensely, but rarely have at home, mainly because I can never get it right myself. So, when I do find myself in a restaurant that specialises in a good quality steak, I always pick that option from the menu!
There were a number of prime cuts and speciality steak options on the menu at the Marco Pierre White in Cardiff. After a bit of deliberation I decided on one of the signature steaks – the fillet steak with garlic butter, which comes served with chunky chips, Fricassée of woodland mushrooms, toasted sourdough, buttered leaf spinach, and of course, garlic butter.
I asked for my steak medium rare, and it came out just to my liking. The steak was melt-in-the-mouth delicious! The chips were fantastic too, piping hot and they stayed that way throughout the whole meal. As you’d expect with this one, there is a strong garlic flavour to the steak and the accompaniments, so maybe not a great choice for a first date!
The spinach and mushrooms were a nice change from the usual veg or salad that you might get elsewhere, nothing I’d rave about necessarily, but they went well with the overall garlic taste of the dish.
Matt chose similarly, going for the signature fillet steak served with garlic king prawns. It was very similar to what I had, just with the greens and mushrooms swapped out for garlic kind prawns and a serving of béarnaise sauce.
Again, the steak was the star of the show here, cooked and seasoned to perfection, and quickly devoured.
We would definitely come back here and order steak again.
Desserts
The dessert menu at the Marco Pierre White restaurant was a little on the safe side, with all the old favourites that you’d expect featuring – cheesecake, sticky toffee pudding, chocolate mousse etc.
Whilst it would have been nice to see a couple of more unusual or unique options to pick from, the classic British choices on here all sounded delicious.
I decided to go with the savoury option, and chose the cheese and biscuits. The cheese was excellent, and there was plenty of it. I was expecting to enjoy the blue cheese and the mature cheddar, but the real surprise here was the Wensleydale with cranberries. I don’t normally enjoy fruity cheeses as much, but this one was rich, creamy and had just the right hint of sweetness.
I’d happily order this again in a heartbeat!
Matt went for the classic cheesecake, with a fresh blueberry sauce. He said it was very indulgent and decadent, with a nice fresh fruit hit from the blueberry.
All in all, not the most exciting dessert, but you shouldn’t mess with a classic! Delicious!
Hotel Indigo Cardiff’s independent cafe – Bute & Co Coffee House
One of my favourite areas of the Hotel Indigo Cardiff was the Bute & Co Coffee House. Although the brand belongs under the Hotel Indigo Cardiff umbrella, it very much feels and operates as a local independent coffee house.
We got chatting to the lovely Eloise, who recently took to the helm of Bute & Co Cardiff, and it was great to hear about all of the plans she has to turn the coffee shop into a real community hub.
As well supporting local businesses by stocking a range of locally produced teas, coffees, cakes and sandwiches, Bute is passionate about sustainability. All Bute & Co takeaway cups, lids, boxes and straws are compostable as they are made from made from plant based material, Vegware.
Coffee
One of the things that Eloise is introducing to Bute & Co is a specials menu, that will feature seasonal beverages and treats.
She kindly made the current specials, a turmeric latte and mixed berry iced tea, for us to try. The turmeric latte was deliciously spiced and creamy, definitely worth visiting Bute to enjoy! I’m excited to see what other creations come through on future specials boards at Bute & Co.
Community
As I’ve mentioned, Hotel Indigo is passionate about supporting the local neighbourhoods that they are part of, so it was great to see some of the initiatives being undertaken in Bute & Co to support this.
A recent addition to the Cafe is a ‘What’s on in Cardiff’ board, where local businesses, events and artists are free to advertise any upcoming events that are happening in the city.
What I liked about this the most was that many of the ‘things to do’ were activities that you wouldn’t find easily on TripAdvisor or other mainstream channels. Here you’ll find much more of the underground and indie events.
Eloise has some fantastic recommendations, connections and insights into the best things to do in the city too. I’d thoroughly recommend dropping into Bute & Co to grab a coffee and find some unique Cardiff activities if you are in the city!
Top things to do near Hotel Indigo Cardiff
Hotel Indigo Cardiff is perfectly located within the city centre to explore a number of Cardiff’s best attractions. I’ve listed a few of my favourites below, but there are a number of private tours and activities you could also choose from, such as these:
Visit Cardiff Castle
A highlight of our weekend in Cardiff was visiting Cardiff Castle.
We were kindly gifted tickets which gave us entry to all of the ticketed areas within the Castle. History lovers will have a field day here, as the history of Cardiff Castle dates back as far as Roman times, with some of the original Roman walls still in tact.
What I liked about Cardiff Castle the most was being able to walk between different historical periods in the different areas of the Castle. The air raid shelters in particular were fascinating and haunting, with recordings from the wartime piped through the dark, claustrophobic tunnels, you could imagine how frightening it must have been!
You can enter the Castle grounds for free, but I’d absolutely recommend getting tickets for the museums too for a full experience.
