Cardiff International Pool - Saturday 26 January 2019

Date: Saturday 26 January 2019
Venue: Cardiff International Pool
Who Went: Just me

Rationale for Trip

For the ninth year running, I wanted to start the year with a visit to Cardiff International Pool, to enjoy the fun pool and water slides there. During Christmas 2018 I set my mind firmly on going to Cardiff International Pool one Saturday in January 2019. For various reasons, I ended up going on Saturday 26 January 2019.

Getting to Cardiff

I got up fairly early in order to catch the 08:33 GWR train from Bath Spa to Cardiff Central. Having got to Cardiff Central around 09:40 I had a much-needed regular Americano and Pret's Shortbread at Pret A Manger, Central Square before I caught the 10:14 number 9 bus from Westgate Street to the Sports Village.

Cardiff International Pool

Cardiff International Pool is located at the Sports Village. I finally left the bus near Cardiff International Pool just after 10:30. Unfortunately, the leisure pool was not due to open until 11:00, and tickets for the leisure pool could not be sold until 11:00. To fill time, I had an Americano at the café there. By the time I was ready to purchase my leisure pool ticket, there was a really long queue for the reception. Eventually it was my turn to be served. Having purchased my ticket, I was able to proceed to the changing room at last. Being my tenth visit to-date, the place was already familiar to me.

The leisure pool area has the following features:

Red flume

Starts by taking sliders around a bend to the left, into a clockwise spiral. This is followed by an anticlockwise
spiral, and you land in catch tray. Slow.

Orange flume

This begins with an anticlockwise spiral, followed by a clockwise u-bend, to land in a catch tray. Faster.

Yellow flume

Starts with a bend to the right, into an anticlockwise spiral, and finally a straight drop (fairly steep but not vertical), landing in catch tray. Faster still.

The above three flumes are closed tubes all the way down. They don't have names, unlike the flumes at Splashdown Poole.

Space Bowl (blue)

A short flume takes you around an anticlockwise loop, into the space bowl. After whirling around, you fall into a 2.5 metre deep landing pool, which you must swim out of as quickly as possible. For that reason, you must be able to swim to be allowed on this.

Children's Play Structure

A multi-level play structure. This includes a short green water slide (closed tube), but that slide is for children only, just like the rest of the play structure.

Leisure Pool

This includes a river run.

There is no roller coaster water slide (such as the Master Blaster at certain other water parks I've visited), but then again, you can't have everything I suppose.

The slides were made by Aqua Leisure International, and commissioned in December 2007. Labels on the catch trays of the red, orange and yellow flumes show the following information:
Red flume: 850 Series Ride A
Orange flume: 850 Series Ride B
Yellow flume: 850 Series Ride C

Session Overview

Having changed, the time was around 11:30 when I entered the leisure pool. Without further ado, I took to the slides. Due to my desire to have as many goes on those as possible, I spent my entire time queuing for, and sliding them, and didn't go in the pool or river run at all. Unfortunately, throughout the time I was there, the slide queues were way too long for my liking. From the launch level, the queues tailed back down the stairs at least one part-way landing, and sometimes as much as two part-way landings. Furthermore, on my first go of all, only the red, orange and yellow flumes were open; the space bowl was closed, but it was expected to open. I began by sliding the red, orange and yellow flumes once each. By now the space bowl was open, so I queued for that, and when it was my turn, the lifeguard asked me if I could swim. The space bowl was worth waiting for, because it was great fun going down the short flume, being whirled around rapidly inside the giant bowl, and finally dropping through the centre hole into the deep tank. After that, due to the queue lengths, I had time to slide the red flume, orange flume, yellow flume and space bowl in sequence just another three times over. I finally left the pool area around 15:05, feeling really disappointed at such a low slide count in over three and a half hours.

Summary of my sliding in actual order:

Red flume, Orange flume, Yellow flume and Space Bowl in sequence four times over.

Cumulative summary of slides:

Slide	Total
Red flume	4
Orange flume	4
Yellow flume	4
Space Bowl	4
TOTAL	16

Afternoon Snack

Having changed, and thus left the building, I walked to nearby Morrisons. Around 15:30 I finally reached Morrisons Café, where I enjoyed a much-needed pulled pork wrap, accompanied by a few ready salted crisps. Although a long time had now passed since I had last eaten anything, this is all I wanted for now. I also had a mug of coffee.

Remaining Time in Cardiff

Afterwards I caught the 15:55 number 9 bus from International Drive (opposite Morrisons) to the city centre. Having left the bus at Wood Street, I went to Krispy Kreme, in St David's Centre, where I chose a Nutty Chocolatta doughnut and a small Americano. My Nutty Chocolatta doughnut was filled with pure Nutella hazelnut spread, dipped in chocolate flavour coating and topped with white chocolate flavour and hazelnuts. Yummy! It felt extra satisfying to be eating this particular type of doughnut, whilst wearing grey Nutella sweatshirt with pride there. Furthermore, this was my first time of having a doughnut or coffee at a Krispy Kreme doughnut and coffee shop for 2019. When I left Krispy Kreme, I looked around a couple of shops within the St David's Centre.

Journey Home

Back at Cardiff Central station, I caught the 17:30 GWR train to Bath Spa. I finally reached Bath at 18:34, and home a few minutes later.

Highlights

Sliding the red flume, orange flume, yellow flume and space bowl at Cardiff International Pool again.
Doughnut and coffee at Krispy Kreme, St David's Centre, Cardiff late afternoon.

Lowlights

Not being able to buy my ticket until the leisure pool opened at 11:00.
Disappointingly low slide count due to the queue lengths.

Summing Up

Altogether a great day out, my first time of going water sliding anywhere for 2019. It's a pity the slide queues were so long (too long for my liking), and consequently I had just four goes on each of the four slides. That's my lowest slide count to-date for one visit; appallingly low considering I spent over three and a half hours in there. Still you can't win them all I suppose. At least I thoroughly enjoyed all my goes on the slides whilst I was there, particularly the Space Bowl. Hopefully, when I return in future, I'll have a better slide count.

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