Optional · Cardiff City Centre
A Roman Fort Hiding a Victorian Fantasy
From the outside, Cardiff Castle looks every inch the classic medieval stronghold, built on the site of a 3rd-century Roman fort. Step inside, though, and it becomes something else entirely — one of the most jaw-dropping surprises in British architecture. In the 1800s, the eccentric and fabulously wealthy 3rd Marquess of Bute, together with architect William Burges, transformed the interior into a riot of Victorian Gothic fantasy: gilded ceilings, murals of monkeys and mythical creatures, and rooms so ornate they feel plucked from a fairy tale.
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The Arab Room
Widely considered the castle's masterpiece — a ceiling smothered in gold leaf and mirrored tiles, inspired by Moorish palaces, that took years to complete.
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The Roman Walls
Beneath the Victorian flourishes, you can still trace the original Roman fort walls — nearly 2,000 years of history layered into one site.
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A Wartime Shelter
During the Second World War, the castle's tunnels sheltered up to 1,800 people during air raids on Cardiff — you can still walk through part of them today.
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An Eccentric Marquess
The 3rd Marquess of Bute was reputedly one of the richest men in the world at the time — and it shows in every single gilded detail of this place.
