Cardiff's Victorian arcades are one of the great pleasures of the city centre — a network of covered shopping streets running between the main roads that feels more Mediterranean than Welsh. Built between 1858 and 1902, they now house a mix of independent shops, cafes, vinyl record stores and the odd boutique that has no business surviving in 2020s retail, but does.
The Royal Arcade (1858) is the oldest and most refined; the Morgan Arcade (1896) has the best upper floor with its original Edwardian shopfronts intact; the Castle Arcade has the most dramatic ceiling. All are interconnected and you can spend a pleasant hour simply wandering through them without spending money. If you do want to shop, look for the independent bookshops, delicatessens and craft shops that have made Cardiff's arcades genuinely worth browsing.
The arcades are also how locals navigate the city centre — anyone who knows Cardiff uses them as shortcuts rather than walking the main streets in the rain.