After a couple of weeks of wet and windy January weather, we decided to cheer ourselves up with a stay at the Voco St David’s Hotel overlooking Cardiff Bay. The Welsh weather may not be great by at least we can look on from a warm bar with a glass of wine in our hands.
It was over 15 years ago when we last stayed at the St David’s Hotel. So it was going to be interesting to see how this 5-star landmark hotel had fared. We had heard rumours that the hotel was looking a bit tired. The hotel opened in 1999 and was part of the Rocco Forte group. Since 2018 it has been part of the IHG group and operates under the Voco brand.
We stayed a Sunday night during January and paid £113 for a double room (including breakfast). We booked through the IHG website.
Arrival And Check-In
Drop-off is easy and there’s a dedicated but small car park next to the hotel. Although parking doesn’t come cheap, £24 per day. The reception staff were friendly and we were offered a cup of tea on arrival. As Mel is an IHG member we were upgraded to a corner room on the top (7th) floor. Also, we were given a couple of complimentary drink tokens, one of the benefits of signing up for the various loyalty schemes.
The lobby atrium is still impressive, the design reminds us of a cross between a luxury hotel and a sci-fi prison block.
We did arrive about an hour and a quarter before the official check-in time of 3 pm but the room was ready which was good. Early check-in is something that many hotels are starting to charge for as part of the post-Covid clawback (especially in the US). Glad to see it’s not a trend that growing in the UK!
The Room
The corner room had windows on two sides and a balcony. However, with 40mph winds, it wasn’t really balcony weather. The room was a fair size with a large bed, coffee machine, kettle and smart TV. It was very clean but some of the furniture was worn in parts and would benefit from an upgrade. Saying that it was still a good room with fantastic views of Cardiff Bay.
The only other small criticisms were the shower pressure which wasn’t the best (maybe due to being on the top floor) and the air conditioning was on the noisy side but not an issue unless you are an incredibly light sleeper.
The Restaurant And Bar
The Admiral Restaurant & Bar is just off the lobby and it is also the venue for breakfast. Again, the staff in the restaurant were very good and genuinely friendly. We first went to the bar in the afternoon where we were entertained by a woman who was confronting a man about the other woman he was currently having a drink with!
The staff did handle it well and quietly escorted the girlfriend/wife to somewhere less public. Although most of the bar did want to find out what was happening in this ‘Eastenders’ soap like performance.
Later that evening we did have dinner in the restaurant and as you can see the main courses were very reasonably priced. Especially for a 5-star hotel. The quality of the food at dinner and breakfast was also surprisingly good for a hotel.
The bar staff could also make a decent cocktail.
Unfortunately, we did not get a chance to try the pool and spa as we didn’t have access until after 5 pm. Not sure of the reason for this.
Overall, we did have a great stay and would recommend the Voco St David’s Hotel. Our minor criticisms were far outweighed by the positives of the hotel. As mentioned, we booked and paid for all aspects of the stay ourselves and were not sponsored in any way.
