NCN 88 - South Wales Coast

The terrain is flat to gently rolling for the first half, through Marshfield and into Cardiff, with the more testing kilometres coming after Barry Island as the road climbs and dips between Rhoose, Fonmon and the villages south of Llanmaes. Almost all of it is on road. The line visits Cardiff City Centre and Cardiff Bay before swinging south through Penarth Marina and Cosmeston, so the urban sections are long and sequential rather than brief interruptions.

Cardiff is the obvious resupply point and sits just past the halfway mark at around 29 km; the settlements thin out noticeably west of Barry Island, with Fonmon, Pancross and Llanbethery offering little. Navigation through the Newport and Cardiff conurbations requires attention, as the route threads through a succession of close-set districts. The final section from Monknash through Wick and Ewenny to Bridgend is the most rural and least supported stretch of the day.