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 Wales – South and Mid Hotels
South & Mid Wales. Cross the Severn Bridge and you are soon in the Wye Valley or the Vale of Usk with the Brecon Beacons, where we have several recommendations, and Black Mountains beyond. Or drop down to Cardiff, where there are highly recommendable places to stay, and Swansea, or rather Penarth, an unlikely setting for an excellent boutique hotel and spa. The best hotels in South and Mid Wales are privately owned and full of personality, with excellent, good value food. Look out for local lamb, Black Beef and superb farm-produced cheeses. The hotels are listed by price category, and their order bears no reflection on our preference.
 Reviews by Fiona Duncan |
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| Luxury: Contemporary styling beside the sea at Penarth |
| Location: Penarth, Glamorgan: five miles from Cardiff, overlooking the sea |
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| A great new addition to the Welsh seaside scene, Holm House is a former ship owner's residence, superbly converted into a small 12-room hotel with spectacular views across the Bristol Channel, and an intimate spa. With a mixture of contemporary styling and '20s extravagance, the interior is both quirky and opulent with imaginative, beautifully equipped bedrooms. You will find a warm welcome and exceptionally high standards of food and service: highly recommended. |
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| Luxury: Idiosyncratic, feel-good hotel in a magical setting |
| Location: LAUGHARNE; on the marshes outside the town, 15 minutes drive from Carmarthen |
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| This laid-back, individual hotel has been created from an old farmhouse and outbuildings, with huge kitchen garden for the chef, a hip bar and dining room and Côte d’Azur style terrace, plus spa and cinema and monthly music and literary evenings with well known artists. There’s plenty of style inside, but little sign of a hotel when you arrive on these faraway marshes, while Laugharne itself, imbued with the spirit of Dylan Thomas, is as quirky and magical a place as you can hope to find. |
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| Mid Price: stylishly converted old inn with lovely rooms |
| Location: Skenfrith, Monmouthshire: on B4521, 9 miles west of Ross-on-Wye |
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| Tucked into the Welsh Marches, by an old stone bridge on the river Monnow in an unchanged village, the Bell is a former 17th-century inn where contemporary and cosy now happily coincide. There are wonderful walks from the door, a Jersey cream tea on your return, excellent food and wine in the flag-stoned, candlelit dining room and eight adorable simple-sophisticated bedrooms. A marvellous place. |
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| Mid Price: Family-run fishing hotel on the Usk |
| Location: Crickhowell, Powys: in the Usk valley, between Abergavenny and Brecon |
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| A superb example of a family-run (now third generation) country house hotel: a stunning location; caring, hands-on management; unpretentious yet with high standards. With lovely terrace views, the Victorian Italianate house stands in large exotic grounds above the Usk, with its own salmon and trout fishing. Inside: smart yet relaxed, traditional yet stylish, with excellent food. Perennially popular. |
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| Mid Price: Charming restaurant with rooms near Brecon |
| Location: Builth Wells, Powys: on the A470, 20 minutes drive north of Brecon |
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| One of Wales's growing group of exceptional restaurants- with-rooms, where commitment and attention to detail are second-to-none. Here, Colin and Melanie Dawson have converted a Georgian house on the main road (so not silent, though little traffic at night) into a small restaurant, two sitting rooms and three guest bedrooms, all contemporary in style. Both are chefs, and their food wins many plaudits. |
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| Mid Price: Great gastropub in the Brecon Beacons |
| Location: Felin Fach, Powys: in Brecon Beacons, just off A470 |
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| An old inn, close to the main road in stunning walking terrain, that gained a new lease of life as a gastropub, and remains a fine example of its type. Squashy leather sofas round the fireplace in the bar/lounge; stylish food at pine tables in the barn dining room; good linens, pillows and towels in the simple country-style bedrooms. Informal and laid back combined with high standards. |
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| Mid Price: Boutique chic comes to rejuvenated Swansea |
| Location: Swansea: in city centre, as part of the Maritime Quarter |
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| Swansea’s first boutique hotel kick-started the gentrification of the formerly run-down marina area and remains the city's leading property several years on. The rooms are sleek, the champagne bar a magnet for the local glitterati and the restaurant reassuringly buzzy. But Morgans is also a pretension-free zone: think bacon butties at breakfast and staff happy to share a joke. |
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| Inexpensive: Modernist annexe to Morgan's |
| Location: Swansea: in city centre as part of the Maritime Quarter the city centre as par of the Maritime Quarter |
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| Hip, modern and unabashedly contemporary with flat-screen TVs, wooden floors and suede curtains, Morgans Townhouse is essentially an annex to the main hotel and shares its bar/restaurant facilities. It's aimed solidly at the urban market with rooms priced to compete with the likes of Premier Travel Inn but a real sense of individual style. |
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| Inexpensive: A boutique seaside hotel with a strong sense of Welsh identity and sea views on the promenade |
| Location: ABERYSTWYTH; on the Victorian promenade, facing the sea |
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| On the site of a former rundown 1970s B&B, the new owners have ploughed £1m into redeveloping the Gwesty Cymru into an eight-room hotel and a 30-cover restaurant. The property has a very Welsh feel with lots of bilingual signage, Welsh slate and local produce, but it also retains a cosmopolitan air with an outdoor terrace for al fresco dining and colour-coded rooms, featuring artworks by local artists. Businesslike service will make it a favourite for Welsh Assembly staff relocating from Cardiff to the Ceredigion's resurgent seaside resort. |
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| Mid Price: Remote Georgian country home with fabulous food |
| Location: ABERAERON; close to this town and at the top of the Aeron valley, overlooking heritage coastline |
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| Close to the Georgian harbour town of Aberaeron, Ty Mawr sits in twelve acres of parkland, perfect for rambling walks. Its nine rooms are elegantly proportioned with huge bathrooms, while vivacious hosts Martin and Catherine welcome guests like old friends. Dinner choices are made over an aperitif in the drawing room and feature hearty but delicate dishes of game, fish, lamb, beef and fresh vegetables, all sourced locally. Large parties and wedding receptions are shunned in favour of intimacy and its remote setting is best accessed by car. |
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| Mid Price: Refined restaurant with rooms set in peaceful Welsh valley |
| Location: WHITEBROOK; close to market town of Monmouth |
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| The Crown at Whitebrook has come a long way since its incarnation as a simple eighteenth century drover's home. Approached from a quiet lane at the top of the Wye Valley, its unprepossessing frontage gives no hint of the foodie haven within. The restaurant is awash with cosy leather sofas, low beams and soft lighting, providing an unpretentious setting in which to sample its sophisticated and well deserved Michelin starred menu. Small, functional rooms play second fiddle to a memorable dining experience. |
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| Mid Price: Handsome rural retreat with fine food |
| Location: Nr REYNOLDSTON;in heart of Gower peninsula, 12 miles from Swansea |
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| In the heart of the Gower peninsula, a stone's throw away from wild beaches and a short drive from the buzz of Swansea, Fairyhill has the air of a benevolent family home. Set in rustic parkland, owners Paul and Andrew have gradually revived this Georgian gem, sticking to a distinctly traditional if homespun decor. The restaurant offers sophisticated fare sourced locally, including Welsh black beef and salt marsh lamb. A candlelit terrace is reserved for balmy evenings while a cosy bar and wood burning stoves enliven winter nights. |
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