Millennium Stadium

Lonely Planet review

The giant Millennium Stadium squats like a stranded spaceship on the east bank of the River Taff. Attendance at international rugby and football matches has increased dramatically since this 72,500-seat, three-tiered stadium with sliding roof was completed in time to host the 1999 Rugby World Cup.

Not everyone is happy with it: one critic called it 'an absurdly overexcited structure…that rears over the surrounding streets like a sumo wrestler'. The stadium cost around £110 million to build - money that some feel could have been better spent elsewhere in the city - and big matches paralyse the city centre. But when the crowd begins to sing, the whole city resonates and all is forgiven.

The stadium has seven restaurants and 22 public bars (drinking is allowed during rugby matches but not football matches). The grass turf is actually grown on thousands of palettes (at RAF St Athan in the Vale of Glamorgan), which can be taken up for big concerts.

It's well worth taking a tour - you get to walk through the players' tunnel and sit in the VIP box. The entrance for guided tours is at Gate 3 on Westgate St.