Mercure Cardiff Holland House Hotel and Spa - Cardiff, UK

01:42 Blogs by FA 17 Comments


I had often heard of how beautiful Cardiff was and since I've got relatives living in the town who have been very keen on meeting us since the past 2 years, we finally decided to avail the winter holidays to visit them. So it had been in the plan since many months but it kept on getting delayed due to ten thousand reasons. This time fortunately, we just thought of it and the plan worked out.

The original distance from my home in East Kent was supposed to be 4 hours but due to the diversions and lots of traffic going to Heathrow and a mini break, the travel time almost doubled. We finally reached Mercure Holland House Cardiff after a 6.5 hour journey. 


The hotel has it's own paid car park and there's also ample parking available near the hotel so it's totally up to you what to prefer. The council parking was cheaper so we parked the car outside the hotel and it cost us £2.4 for 2 hours (since we arrived at 4:00 pm) and 4.2 for 4 hours in the morning (8:00 am - 12:00 pm) as the parking was free 6:00 pm onward till 8:00 am. However, one problem here was that we weren't able to pay for the parking for the morning, the night before and neither do they accept payments through mobile so my husband actually had to walk out of the hotel early in the morning to pay and display. If you want to avoid that, then use the hotel parking. They have a 24 hour car park and I think it costs £12 but I'm not very sure as I didn't use it myself. However, the cheapest option would be if you park the car at the Capitol Mall as they charge £6 for 24 hours. I wish I had known about that earlier. 

After quite a long trip, we decided to relax instead of leaving the hotel to see the area around. Well, actually BabyN' and I stayed inside throughout the evening while the daddy bought some food for us from a nearby restaurant

This luxury 4-star hotel in Cardiff has it's own gym, sauna, steam room, spa, Jacuzzi and a swimming pool and I definitely had to avail these facilities. Before giving birth to BabyN', I regularly used to enjoy relaxing in the Jacuzzi while my husband used to go for a swim so I was really looking forward to it. 

The water in the swimming pool was slightly cold for BabyN' so I stepped inside the Jacuzzi and took him along. It was awesome! I already had a modest swimwear suit but I had sent that back home and couldn't get that back so I had to buy a new one. I researched a bit but since I was looking for a modest one that covered the entire body, I ended up buying a workout dress which served the goal perfectly well. 

Mercure has changing and shower rooms, separate for men and women, and they also provide towels there.
Our room was a decent sized classic double room and the amenities inside included TV and WiFi, bath robes, safe, fridge with bottled water (both still and sparking), hair dryer, kettle, tea/coffee with milk and sugar, mugs and toiletries and towels in the washroom. The good part was that the washroom had a shower cubicle as well as a bath. Not all hotels have that so this was a plus point and it was a good sized bathroom.
Also, the sofa that you can see in the photo at the start of this post, turned into a double bed. We could have easily shifted BabyN' there at night but he still shares the bed with us. However, he enjoyed jumping on it until he slept. The next day we had an early morning and so we all got to witness the sunrise from our hotel room. What a beautiful sight it was! I was really hungry by that time so we headed to the restaurant, Urban Bar & Kitchen on the first floor for breakfast.

It was a buffet styled full English breakfast which included juices, milk (plain and soya), various cereals, assorted fruits, different kinds of cheese, beans, hash browns, mushrooms and tomatoes. Flavoured fruit yogurt, honey and jams, bread, croissants and cinnamon rolls but there was also a live cooking station where the chef freshly prepared Egg Royale and Omelette for us. They weren't prepared earlier but you can choose it from the menu placed on your table and order it and personalise it according to your preference.

Our check-out was just before 12:00 pm and it was smooth and quick. The hotel also has a lift for luggage because there are a few steps down the way towards the car park. I had a fantastic stay at the Mercure Cardiff Holland House Hotel and Spa in Cardiff. It has an ideal location as it's in the city center and all the attractions are at a walking distance from the hotel. I really liked the room size and the fact that I got to see stunning views of the sunset from my room on the 11th floor of the building. I have stayed at the Mercure hotel in another country earlier and had a fabulous experience this time too. 

Have you ever been to Cardiff or stayed at Mercure hotel elsewhere?


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17 comments:

  1. Awesome! I have always thought about doing a hotel review for a blog ~ you've given me the gumption. This was a great article and we need more of them :)

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  2. This is cool - I want to get more into lifestyle branding as well. Showcasing hotels looks really fun and your post is awesome!!

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  3. I have never been to Cardiff before but it looks like a lot of fun and this hotel is beautiful! Take me there lol x

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  4. I am not familiar with this hotel, but I really like the rooms! It's very spacious plus the bathrooms are clean. It's perfect for families.

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  5. Looks like a fun place! good looks yum

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  6. Not familiar with this hotel since i'm in the united states but it looks very nice. What a great opportunity to do a hotel review!

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  7. The hotel looks neat and nice. I lovw road trips and the last time I did one was three years ago. I am looking forward to my next hotel stay next month in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.

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  8. Thanks for the information. If I'm need of a hotel, I will definitely consider Mercure, as I didn't really know much about it before.

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  9. I've never been to Cardiff, but the breakfast buffet at the hotel looks yummmmy! The room looks really cosy too :)

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  10. Wow! I am planning for a trip to cardiff in the near future... Easter holidays!. Yay! Should consider this hotel...
    JazakAllah for sharing

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  11. Looks like a fab stay! I would love to see what outfit you went with for going in the jacuzzi! It wasn't the regular modest swimwear outfits?

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  12. Oh wow that hotel looks great. Will keep it in mind if we end up visiting cardiff.

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  13. Never been to Cardiff! But I am in need of a mini break soon! I love a good jacuzzi too !

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  14. Looks like an awesome place. I'm so glad you enjoyed your stay. I do enjoy watching the sun rise and set.

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  15. Your blog is full of entertainment and helpful information that can allure to anyone anytime. Continue posting! click this link now

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Thanks for stopping by. :-)