Tucked well away from the giggling hoards of "bras and belts" tottering down St Mary's Street, right near the beautiful Bute Park, the castle, the New Theatre and seconds from the shopping centres and arcades, when it comes to Cardiff locations this hotel couldn't be in a better place.
From the outside the building looks fairly ordinary, but inside it's seamlessly stylish from the gleaming foyer to the crisp sheets on the beds. There are 129 bedrooms, meaning that this isn't exactly a boutique hotel and you won't find quirky little touches like seashells by the hand-basin. What you do get at the Park Plaza is a sumptuous, contemporary décor with state-of-the-art facilities and professional service from the friendly team of staff.
The Laguna Restaurant and Bar offers a fresh and original mix of local and international flavours. So whether you want the honest flavours of roast Welsh lamb, or you'd rather something lighter like a paella, you'll find something to treat yourself with.
As if that weren't enough, the good-looks and charm of the Park Plaza are topped of with a top of the range gym and spa. Alongside the 20 metre, virtually chlorine-free swimming pool, there's also a Jacuzzi, steam room, class studio and 8 massage & treatment rooms. So if you truly want to indulge, or just distract yourself from the lure of the mini-bar, you'll find plenty to do.
If you think you like the sound of the Park Plaza Hotel, just email us with your name, address and daytime phone number to be in with a chance of winning a weekend in Cardiff.
Or if you'd rather not leave it to chance, book your stay here.
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The hotel’s owners, who must’ve stayed in hundreds of different hotels in their years touring, have used their own experiences as a yardstick. They’ve made it the kind of hotel they would stay in themselves with everything from the warm hospitality down to the Egyptian cotton sheets absolutely top-notch. So… if you still haven’t found what you’re looking for - this is it! 
After a storming run in the early 90s when everyone’s favourite floppy-haired Aussie soapstar was playing the rainbow-coated wonder, Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat finally closed its magical doors in 1994 and the West End mourned the passing of one of its brightest lights… ok, well maybe it spared a fleeting moment in its glamorous whirlwind of press nights and parties to notice the posters had changed. 
For those who don’t know the story, it’s a light-hearted adaptation of the biblical story of Joseph: favourite son of Jacob, seer of dreams, wearer of multi-coloured clothing and flasher of dazzlingly white smiles. (Or is that just something Lee brought to the role? Dental hygiene probably wasn’t so hot in biblical times.) It’s a high energy, extremely child-friendly, non-stop musical – after all, why waste time talking when you could be belting out another brilliant song? 
Lee's brilliant Joseph is accompanied by the pint-sized Preeya Kalidas in the role of the narrator. She’s got a smashing set of pipes on her – they may have had to put her on heels the size of circus-stilts so that people in the stalls can see her, but she’s charming and she brings her own brand of sass and sauciness to the show (very mild – don’t worry, parents). 
There is one drawback to Joseph and that’s the terrible face-ache you get from grinning so much. Seriously, this show should come with a health warning. You might think it won’t happen to you, but everyone turns into a big, goofy kid in that theatre for the entire two hours. But then, a totally slick performance of an amazing musical with buckets of imagination and a phenomenally talented cast doesn’t come round very often – so if you want to see it anytime before 2011, you’ll need to book soon.
This not a quirky, boutique hotel - you won't find outlandishly
themed rooms, ice bars or antique railway sleepers carved into loo
seats. The City Inn would have to battle hard to fit into that oh-so
fashionable niche... a bit like Angelina Jolie trying to fit into Kate
Moss's size zero drainpipes. So why try?
The hotel has plenty of facilities: 24 hour room
service, a fitness suite, internet access and free car parking, not to
mention the popular City Café with it's al fresco terrace for summer
days. Above all, though, it's their policy on recruitment that makes
the City Inn better than other similar sized hotels out there. There's
a real focus on warm and friendly customer service here, from the
smiling staff who greet you as you walk in to the cheery waitresses and
room service staff. In fact, it's part of their ethos that they only
employ "people people".
A stone’s throw from the London Eye and the London Aquarium, with a fabulous view of the Houses of Parliament across the river, the Marriott County Hall is hard to beat when it comes to iconic London settings. The fabulous County Hall building is an icon in itself in fact. 
It's as opulent on the inside as it is grand on the outside too, with luxurious rooms that combine old-world grandeur with contemporary design flair. When you’re not relaxing between the crisp sheets, you can indulge in Champagne afternoon tea or visit the luxurious Club & Spa. It’s the largest health club and spa in any London hotel. Take a dip or go for some serious indulgence with pampering treatments like Hot Stone Therapy or even an Oriental Tranquility Massage.
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