Essentially, the Wales Millennium Centre is cross between a theatre and a community centre, but it’s the architecture that’s the most striking thing about it. Its huge frontage is dominated by a poem written in English and Welsh and the lighting at night makes it look even more impressive.
The architecture inside is fascinating too and everywhere you look you see evidence of the brief that the architects were given – that the building must be “unmistakably Welsh and internationally outstanding”. As such most of the materials for the centre’s construction were sourced in Wales. The foyer area is free to enter and has a performance space, a café and areas to sit and watch the world go by. The building was opened in 2004 by HM The Queen.
If you want to sample the theatre side of the centre you can buy tickets for a show, but we’d also recommend the regular behind the scenes tours to get a feel for the whole place and see the auditorium. There are also more specialist tours now available at the Wales Millennium Centre including a “Techie Tour” looking at lighting and sound and an “Architectural Tour” with one of the lead architects on the project. These tours are only available a handful of times a year.
Outside the centre, you can’t miss the huge water feature which has a mirrored surface and was featured in the British TV show “Torchwood” as the fictional HQ.
The Millennium Centre is open daily from 10am. Admission to the foyer and cafe areas is free. Admission to the auditorium is only with a show ticket or on a guided tour. Tours run daily and are £5.50 per person or £4.50 concessions. The Cardiff Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour stops next to the Millennium Centre and is an ideal way to get to Cardiff Bay and see the rest of the sights of the city.
Location & Contact
Address: Wales Millennium Centre, Bute Place, Cardiff CF10 5AL
Tel: +44 29 2063 6464
MORE ON THE WALES MILLENNIUM CENTRE
Cardiff Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour – Stops at the Millennium Centre
Millennium Centre – Official Website
Cardiff City Guide – From our sister site, Free-City-Guides.com
Hotels near the Wales Millennium Centre – Great rates from Hotels.com