Austins Self Service Guest House

For a low-cost stay in Cardiff, this guesthouse worked well. My room was clean and quaint, and the bathrooms were clean too. The location is great, and the room was about what I'd expect for the price. You can hear through the walls, though that's understandable in an older, inexpensive place. The WiFi was down while I was there. I contacted them and was told they were working on it; email replies came within 24 hours. As a woman travelling alone, I felt safe here, though of course that can vary from person to person.

The room felt like a hostel: very basic, no TV, poor bedding that could use proper quilts, and the heating didn't work.

Be careful if you pay for this place through another company. I paid Expedia, but while I was staying there the guesthouse took extra money from me. I tried to get it returned without success, and nobody had warned me this might happen. I feel they charged me again for a stay I had already paid for. Beware, please.

For the price, this was a very good place to sleep for a night. The room and bathroom were clean, it was quiet, and the single room had fresh sheets, towels and loo roll. The radiator was a welcome help after I got soaked in the strange weather. There was a kettle and coffee in the room, handy for waking up. Check-in was quick and easy, and the staff were kind and helped me extend checkout. The shower was hot with decent pressure. One downside was a side toilet on my floor blocked with poo and loo roll and wouldn't flush. The other toilet was clean and working. It was my first time in Wales and I'd happily sleep here again.