Cardiff

Residential summer courses are hectic and exciting events and don’t leave a lot of time for sight-seeing or sunbathing, however there are those precious days off, when where you are teaching may make a big difference.

The city of Cardiff, capital of Wales, provides a superb location for our course. The city has undergone a lot of development in recent years around the waterfront and also in the city centre and is now a vibrant and exciting place with lots to offer the visitor.

Our centre is at the University of Wales campus at Cyncoed. This is a specialist sports college on an attractive campus just to the north of the city centre, and within easy reach of the centre by bus.

South Wales

Apart from the attractions of Cardiff itself, the centre is close to the stunning countryside of South Wales – the exceptional coastline and the Brecon Beacons National Park being just two of its highlights.

Our programme will offer you and our students a great opportunity to discover Wales: as well as the history in and around Cardiff, we will travel to Swansea and the Mumbles, and visit the Dylan Thomas museum. You will have a chance to see the beautiful countryside of South Wales and experience the warm welcome of the valleys!

Cardiff

Cardiff (Caerdydd in Welsh) is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for Wales. Cardiff is a significant tourism centre and the most popular visitor destination in Wales.

Sporting venues in the city include the Millennium Stadium (the national stadium for the Wales national rugby union team and the Wales national football team), SWALEC Stadium (the home of Glamorgan County Cricket Club), and Cardiff Arms Park (the home of Cardiff Rugby Club).

The Cardiff centre
	Our courses are run at the University of Wales campus at Cyncoed, a specialist facility for the university's sports science departments. As you would expect, the sports facilities here are excellent for almost all sports, and include an indoor swimming pool. The programme will include opportunities for our students (and you) to practise their skills (or learn new ones) in football, volleyball, tennis and dance and all other sports can be arranged if the demand is there. In addition to that, we won't forget the more cultural activities and include art, and drama workshops, as well as IT access in our programme.

Accommodation and Facilities

The accommodation is in good quality single study bedrooms in university flats for 6 – 10 students sharing a common kitchen area. Each accommodation block has its own security access code.

Some of the accommodation is en-suite, while some have basins in the room and shared shower/toilet facilities. All accommodation is very close to the teaching areas and sports facilities. All staff accommodation is en-suite.

There is a small shop on campus selling snacks, drinks and toiletries etc. Within 10 minutes' walk there is small shopping centre with a good pub, a small supermarket, an off licence with a cash machine and a delicatessen.

Elac excursions
Cardiff is superbly located for a wide range of excursions. All staff will be involved at some point in accompanying students on excursions. There are 1 full-day and one half-day excursions included in the week's programme in Cardiff.
	The Big Pit Coal Mine, a wonderful trip back into the industrial past of Wales. The museum lies on the edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park Visitors wear the very same equipment – helmet, cap lamp, belt, battery and ‘self rescuer’ – used by miners. Once underground, you will be guided (a 50-minute walk) around the coal faces, engine houses and stables in the company of a former coal miner. Your guide will explain the different ways in which coal was mined and transported, and share some of his own experiences.
	Cardiff Castle Cardiff Castle is located in the heart of the city and enjoys a history spanning nearly 2000 years. The highlight at the castle is a guided tour of the spectacular castle apartments. They were created in the 19th century by eccentric architect William Burges for the very rich Third Marquess of Bute. Designed as a medieval fairytale home, the rooms are filled with ornate fireplaces, gilded ceilings, intricate stained glass and carved and painted animals throughout. Out in the grounds, you can have a picnic, visit the museum of the Royal Regiment of Wales and climb the Norman Keep.
	Swansea is Wales' second-largest city, and sits on the five-mile sweep of Swansea Bay. While Swansea has a long history, it has also evolved rapidly in recent years. The City Centre has extended seaward into the award-winning Marina and Maritime Quarter, where you'll find attractions including the National Waterfront Museum, Swansea Museum and the Dylan Thomas Centre. In the heart of the City Centre, you'll find over 230 shops, including new openings H&M and Disney. Swansea Market is the largest indoor market in Wales, where you can sample and buy local delicacies such as cockles, laverbread, and of course traditional welshcakes.
	Cardiff Bay (Europe's largest waterfront development with a wealth of leisure activities both on and off the water). Cardiff Bay is home to a number of attractions such as Techniquest Science Discovery Centre - ideal for all the family, Craft in the Bay, The Welsh Assembly at the Pierhead, Butetown History and Arts Centre, Goleulong 2000 Lightship, the Norwegian Church Arts Centre and the Wales Millennium Centre, a stunning international arts centre. Cardiff City Cardiff has been named as one of the top 10 cities in Europe. Over 319,700 friendly people live here and call it home. We have 149 pubs, bars and nightclubs (18 of them on the waterfront), 73 restaurants and 125 hotels.
	St Fagan's Museum of Welsh Life (one of Europe's leading open–air museums and Wales's most popular heritage attraction), stands in the grounds of the magnificent St Fagans Castle, a late 16th-century manor house. Traditional crafts and activities bring St Fagans alive, in workshops where craftsmen still demonstrate their traditional skills. Forty original buildings from different historical periods have been re-erected in the 100-acre parkland, among them houses, a farm, a school, a chapel and a splendid Workmen's Institute. Native breeds of livestock can be seen in the fields and farmyards, and demonstrations of farming tasks take place daily.

In addition to the excursions included in the programme there are a number of other trips which groups elect to do on their free day.

If you enjoy taking students on excursions, or you just want to ‘work more — earn more’, then let the Activity Co-ordinator know that you are keen to get involved.

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