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Fresher’s guide to going out in Cardiff

Sarah
Sarah

Starting your University journey is an exciting time. You’re going to be meeting new people, joining societies, taking on new responsibilities, and most importantly– getting your degree! Whilst at some moments this can be a stressful time, there will still be plenty of opportunities to have fun.
Whether you like a drink or not, Cardiff’s student nightlife has a lot to offer. If you love to dance, enjoy your 2-4-1 cocktails, or prefer a good natter in the seating area, listen up for my top recommendations…

Sarah and friend

Sometimes getting ready is the best bit!

Moving on from the ‘getting ready antics’ in your halls, or house, which is usually spent celebrating someone’s birthday, taking too many pictures, listening to overly loud music or all of the above, I’ll start with my absolute fave – Live Lounge. Funnily enough, it’s usually the place people go before moving onto another club, but let’s be honest, everyone wants to stay in LL! It’s in the heart of the city centre, making it easy to get to and from. Last entry is at two, and the best bit is that it’s free to get into! If you love cheesy classics, ranging from Beyoncé to Oasis, then you’ll love it here. Live Lounge also play live music… hence the name. This usually runs until midnight, so get there early to catch it!

sync

Sync at Tiger Tiger is a massive student night too!

If you’re wanting to go somewhere a little more ‘dressy’, where you should probably leave your trainers at home, there’s always places like Revs (Revolution). They’re known for their selection of flavoured vodkas. A word of warning, the watermelon shot does not taste of watermelon! Situated right opposite the Castle, Revs is very central. Especially on student nights, where it gets busy in town, there’s always plenty of cabs and Ubers available. And if you’re in a big group, the less you’re going to have to fork out individually to get home.

Similar places include Glam (where I worked as a fresher bartending), which runs many student nights. There’s also Pryzm, which is ideal if you’re in a group with lots of opposing music tastes. There’s literally around 4-5 rooms of completely different music, ranging from 80’s disco, to house, to R & B. I love it here at Halloween! Places like this are usually great for socials…

Fancy dress

Fancy dress fun at Pryzm…

If you prefer more of the bar setting, there’s plenty of them around too. Mill Lane, situated near the public library, has a mix of bars and clubs. I personally like Peppermint because of the comfy outdoor seats, but that’s just me. Oh and the fact that I bumped into Jordan from the Maguluf Weekender back when I was a Fresher!

Whilst not every place is going to be for you, I’m pretty confident that during your time spent at Uni you’ll find a place that you love!

Of course it’s important to stay safe too – don’t go crazy on the pre-drinking, try to stick as a group, and always save some cash for the taxi as it’s not fun trying to split a load of notes with the driver! It’s also worth knowing that Dragon Taxis runs a Safe Taxi scheme for Cardiff Met students in emergencies.

Oh and if you like to dress up, bring all the fancy dress costumes you own when packing. It’ll save you a tonne of money whilst living here, and also a lot of time queuing up outside costume shops the evening of Halloween etc… believe me, happens every year.

Make the most of it, you’re going to have a blast!

Looking for more useful info for starting uni at Cardiff Met? Check out the rest of our Fresher’s Guides. You can also check out more of what Cardiff has to offer in the video below: