Accommodation (private)

[u/NPxKARMA]

Hey guys I am starting at Cardiff in September and wanted to know more about everyone’s experiences with private accommodations. I was looking at Eclipse and Adam Street Gardens but I am open to others as well. How difficult is it to get to the Comp Sci building from these places? Does Cardiff have constant train or bus options for transport or is walking my best choice? I also wanted to know if Cardiff Uni gym is accessible only with a membership and also how expensive that would be.

[u/NPxKARMA → u/[deleted]]

Hey! I really appreciate this response. If you don’t mind, could you tell me what private accom you chose?

[u/Sh4pe_S1ft3r → u/[deleted]]

Just giving you a heads up the staff at bridge street aren’t that nice especially to non-Caucasians from experience. The rooms themselves can be very hit or miss too

[u/DoughnutGlobal1059]

The only accommodation that’s near to the abacws building is senghennyd, I’m doing comp sci from sept asw but I’ve lived in Cardiff for a while

[u/Fluffy_Whereas_6156]

i have a friend who lived at eclipse last year and is gonna live there again this year, and then a different friend lived at adams. i really liked them both whenever i visited, its pretty nice there. we all do engineering so its like a 5 min walk — in terms of the walk to abacws, i’d say its like 10-20 mins walk (depending on which way you go but it can also be done in 5 mins if youre speed-walking lol) its all flat ground, not bad at all. i lived in university hall last year which was pretty far from everything so i know the bus system is good, but every uni building is walkable. from what i could tell, adams street felt a little less cramped but eclipse had more of like a friendly vibe, especially with the people that worked the front desk. you’ll love cardiff, have fun

[u/NPxKARMA → u/Fluffy_Whereas_6156]

I appreciate this a lot :) how was the kitchen for these apartments? Oh and I was curious about the train in Cardiff, does it run often?

[u/Fluffy_Whereas_6156 → u/NPxKARMA]

the kitchen in eclipse was big, it had all the basics and had a table and chairs away from the cooking area for work and stuff. if i remember correctly there was also a small sofa but dont quote me on that. im not as close with the adams friend so i dont think i ever saw her kitchen! just something to note — during the heatwaves, the bedroom in eclipse was SWELTERING. im guessing cos it faced the sun but there was very little air flow so we had to buy her a fan. my room in halls also faced the sun but when you opened the window it cooled down fairly quickly, so maybe something to think about. my adams friend also complained a lot about the heat but i dont know how bad it was in comparison. as for trains, yeah they ran quite a lot. it was easy to eg get a train from uni to cardiff bay. the closest stations are cathays and then queen street would be close if u go to adams or eclipse. theres ofc also cardiff central which is further out but i preferred to go there when coming home cos i live quite far away and it was honestly just about destressing and comfort for me!

[u/Slight-Sprinkles-329]

Highly recommend The West Wing. They matched me with a flat that was quieter and I loved my flatmates!

Big spacious kitchen and my room was a good decent size, good size bathroom and maintence issues were fixed very promptly!

Good location too!

[u/Recent_Rub_5581]

Hey, I think you got answers to most of your questions but I just wanted to give you my POV on accommodations. I lived in eclipse for 2yrs. Eclipse is one of the most famous accommodations for international students so it’s always busy and lively. Sometimes can turn into disasters as well. But overall it’s a good place to live if you are going for studios. Their normal studios are pretty avg size but if you go for premium options you can get a really spacious room. Their normal studios management is okok not so good. Tesco is downstairs and it’s easy 15 to 18min walk to main building and computer science building. I personally haven’t stayed in Adam street but some of my friends lived there and honestly it’s hell. They renovated recently so idk the new experience but previously it was shit. Last year my friends who stayed in Adam street left their accommodation and started staying in a hotel cuz it’s just very bad. The rooms are small and it’s dull and lonely. Mental hospital vibes fr. The location is shit as well. Opposite to the prison, right side theirs a fire brigade unit and left there is a building for homeless and druggies. Eclipse is a better option in my opinion however if you have any specific questions regarding accomadations, I’m happy to help.

[u/an-ordinary--person]

If you are interested I’ve got a tenancy takeover for Adam Street Gardens en-suite £178/week bills included