Cardiff Bay Barrage

Great start for a walk across the barrage. Plenty of parking, though be careful as many of the car parks are operated by a notorious local parking company. Locks are interesting to watch when in use and are quite busy. An optical illusion" is painted in yellow on the locks visible from the yellow X at the barrier to lock 3."

My first trip to see the Cardiff Bay barrage and I was impressed. There is a spacious car park next to the lock which is inexpensive/ You can watch boats going in and out of the lock either going to or from their safe moorings behind the barrage. One or two of the buildings look like they need an overall but the modern buildings are in keeping with the area and have done a lot to rejuvenate the area. There are special car parks for boat owners to park their vehicles when visiting their craft. There are also coffee shops and restaurants to visit too.

Absolutely fantastic, the structure created for the sea ferry and crossing takes your breath away. We walked around the Bay following the Bay walkway and saw some amazing views over the bay. The wildlife is phenomenal

A wonderful marvel of engineering and a mighty sight when in operation.Hosts a wonderful walk from mermaid quay up to Penarth via the Wales coast path, which is superb on a sunny day.All right by the Sea on one side, and the bay on the other.Well worth a trip.

A great place to see the sun setting. And to watch the Barrage letting the yachts and boats in and out

Nice little opening and closing bridge connecting Cardiff to Penarth. Made a small video showing the bridge in action as well. Nice tourist attraction if you are visiting the city of Cardiff.

Great simple enjoyable trip out. Two mile walk along traffic free road to or from Penarth. Witnessed the locks and bridges open, was fun. Really lovely walk on a pleasant sunny day. Bike hire available too if your not fancying the walk. An unexpected delight.

You can park on both sides of the barrage (not free) more parking available on the Cardiff side,then go and watch boats go from inside the bay out to sea. When large boats go through you see the barrage lift up. Bike hire available but it's a pleasant walk around the bay. You can walk past the Welsh assembly building, the Norwegian church, plus many other attractions. Take a boat trip up the river Taff to the heart of the city and see the magnificent rugby stadium then up the river Ely pass the boat club to see the abundance of wildlife that lives on its bank. I tend to go to the barrage to fish for all the usual channel species and accasionally catch a decent Bass. But on other visits I love to take the grandchildren for a walk around and the boat trip which I never get bored with.

We took the bus over to Penarth, had a cup of tea in town and walked back over the barage. If I lived here I would be biking and hiking this way regularly. Lovely and refreshing walk.

Sailing out through the barrage is always an easy experience. Professional staff maintain the operation in a friendly manner. Always willing to help if they can.Each lock is very deep, and the pump out is smooth. Once the outer gate opens it is an easy bit of navigation out to the buoyed channel.Returning through the barrage is equally easy, however it is important to ensure that you have good moorings, especially if near the inbound gate. The water does become quite rough.