St. Fagans National Museum of History — Attraction in St. Fagans

Fabulous place, you cannot do it all in one day and it's being continually added to and lovely staff and volunteers. A must see and a gem of a place to visit.

The only reason why it has 4 and not 5 stars is the map, signage, information and the cafe running out of food early afternoon. I've put these at the end of this post.

Fir some reason, I cannot label the photos today, I will see if I can revisit later!

Entry: free entry, but prebook £6 per car to park on site.

Covid Safety: Prebook only. Covid social distancing signs and gel.

Weather: the site is open air, sunblock when hot weather even when cloudy, sensible shoes and clothing for different weather conditions.

Accessibility: good. Lift one end. Disabled toilet with shower the same end. Lpos near the cafe. Disabled parking relatively near the centre. Wide even entrance, automatic doors and graduated paths most areas. Steep steps in part of the castle and garden area.

Refreshments: most closed at the moment, the site is large and we headed back to the cafe in the main building early afternoon and most of the food had run put.

Shop: good range of goods, ££-£££

Staff and Volunteers: very friendly and helpful, but many not well versed in the exhibits, some were a mine of information.

What to see: exhibits in the main building, houses from different centuries starting with reconstruction of an Iron Age Chieftons double roundhouse through to the 20th century. The Castke, Lord Plymouths Country Home and the Gardens. Delightful woods and a working farm.

Adventure Playgrounds: forest adventure and several play areas.

Areas for and suggestions for Improvement: The map does not match the paths. Waymarker posts are few and far between (they could also do with having the numbers on them). Exhibition Centre was not in sequence and the information was puzzling at times, could do with location maps for some of the finds clearer and a little more detailed information sections. Information we had a lot of questions in various sections and some guides knew veery little and the information was not in the guide files. Example, there was a fabulous full dinner service with gold rims in one farmhouse, but no information on any of the plate or in the guide file as to the manufacturer and no one the guide new to radio for the information. The site is huge, most refreshment places were closed. We made our way down to the cafe and managed the last 3 sandwiches, plus Baba Brith and Welsh Cakes. The hot foid section was closed. Staff were lovely but we surprised at such a major attraction running out of food early afternoon.

Suggestion trail a number of visitors or give them recording machines to see how they find their way around and what...

Amazing jewel in the crown of Welsh museums and missed by so many people. If visiting Cardiff, take the time to visit here, you will not be disappointed I guarantee it. There are a large number of historic buildings drawn from all over Wales and rebuilt here for your convenience. Next to these are many recreations, all wonderfully displayed in beautiful surroundings. Visited in spring and it was busy, I can only imagine how much more beautiful and therefore crowded it gets in summer. The staff, for the most part I found to be intelligent, friendly and knowledgeable about the house or building they are hosting for the day. There is so much to see and of course entry is free! They do charge for a map and actually this is recommended. It is a sprawling site and it is very easy to miss some of the exhibits. The main house also open to the public seems to have seen better days, very few rooms open to the public now, I could swear there was more access when I visited as a child. Absolutely fascinating though they really need to spend some money on the gardens of the main house, the greenhouses in particular really jar with the beautiful surroundings. This is in the works I was informed. There is a small street with shops, one exhibits only, the others working shops selling sweets and the like. Different sections seem to be seasonal so check in advance if your heart is set on a particular building. There is good access for those with mobility issues but be advised, some of the properties do not allow wheelchairs or pushchairs inside. In some areas this seemed a prudent move, in others a little over the top. But be prepared to walk, the site covers quite a few acres and can be muddy if wet. The cafe shop inside is reasonable but can get very busy. There is also a hideous child's play area near the main building. I get it, they need more revenue but the treetop walkway really distracts. There are other ways to engage children and this is a charged attraction. Overall, amazing and really strange this isn't more well known outside Wales.

P.s.

An amendment to my earlier review. The buses that used to go to st fagans, no longer do. Ignore the appalling information online, you will be left to switch buses in Ely or dropped off nearby where a dangerous 15min walk awaits on a small road. It's disgraceful, if you don't have a car forget it unless you want grief and if you have mobility issues and have no car, don't even attempt it. You have...

This is one of my favourite places to visit and I keep going back for more. St Fagans is a wonderful open-air museum offering a glimpse into the past.

There are many furnished historical buildings from all over Wales which allow you to get a real feel of what it must have been like to live in them. There are detailed information boards for each building offering lots of information about the buildings' origins and previous inhabitants, in both English and Welsh. No matter how many times you visit, you are almost certain to spot something which you hadn't seen before (despite it always being there!).

There are a couple of cafes and restaurants across the site and plenty of toilet facilities available. We used to enjoy visiting Gwalia Tearooms but this has been closed for the past few years. There are also a variety of shops onsite offering a wide range of products. The bakery sells wonderful bread and we always stop there to get a loaf.

The castle is a wonderful place to visit and offers large grounds and gardens to enjoy a relaxed stroll.

The museum also hosts a variety of events throughout the year so it's always worth checking the website before visiting. On my most recent visit, there were a variety of Christmas-themed activities and many of the buildings were decorated with traditional Christmas decorations from the many different periods.

All the staff here are very friendly and are always happy to share their knowledge and answer any questions you might have.

There is a large car park at the main entrance, including disabled spaces. There are also overflow spaces available. You can expect a queue for the car park on weekends in the summer, particularly on bank holidays.

There is a small parking fee but access to the museum itself is free. Parking is free for blue badge holders and motorbikes. There are also buses running between the museum's main entrance and Cardiff city centre, although these have become less frequent in recent years so you will definitely need to check the timetable beforehand. Buses also run from the nearby village of St Fagans (stopping near the...