Maritime themed hotel with unique design bringing big city flair to small town Wales

Albion / Aberteifi / Ceredigion / Wales / Great Britain

Hotels with a theme can really be a hit or a miss. It can easily feel a little gimmicky and seem like you are staying at an amusement park hotel (which doesn’t have to be bad. It can be great fun of that is your vibe). And then there are themes that are executed with the ”right” amount of theme-related design and storyline. Where there is an attention to detail and a authentic story that the theme is built around. Like this hotel, the Albion Aberteifi.

The story behind the Albion started with James Lynch and Sian Tucker moving from London to Wales and created über-popular ”camp site” or ”outdoor hotel” (really difficult to know how to best describe it) called Fforest back in 2006. It is located a short drive (or a little longer walk) from Cardigan. They have since expanded their business with a warehouse converted into Scandi-influenced apartments, the lively riverside restaurant Pizzatipi (run by their sons) and now also the Albion Hotel.

The Albion is situated in an old warehouse, right by the river Teifi. The theme is honoring the maritime heritage of the building and the town. The 12 rooms are all named after Canadian settlers and their vocations which is clearly stated on each door. We stayed in the room named after Evan Owen who was a Cooper (I had to look up what that means. It is someone who builds or repairs casks or barrels) who emigrated in 1819 with the ship named the Albion (hence the name of the hotel) to New Brunswick, Canada.

The interior is a combo of repurposed wood and lime-washed walls where old pencil drawings and text referring to price of rope and sailcloth are still left to be found on the walls. Furniture and accessories have been sourced for years to create the right mix for this unique hotels, with lamps from a farm in Suffolk, antique chairs found in Norfolk and tableware and crockery from Finland. According to owner James Lynch, the inspiration has come from Dutch painter Vermeer. That explains the dark, muted and moody look.

Our room was made up to look like a captain’s cabin which fits the theme of the hotel like a glove. The floors were old oak planks more than 150 years old which have been paired with untreated raw-looking walls and traditional, colourful Welsh wool blankets and textiles. In a way, it feels like Scandi- and Japanese design traditions have been gently incorporated into the otherwise traditional, local design. And the result is magical! For me being helplessly sea sick, this is a ship I don’t mind boarding.

Welcome to Albion, right by the river Teifi in Aberteifi. Or Cardigan as the town is called in English.

The lounge/reception area is what first greats you when you enter the hotel

At Albion they know the importance of a proper welcome drink. Just go you the bar and order what you wish. I felt obliged to try their in-house brand of gin. It did not disappoint, especially after having driven on tiny Welsh roads for hours.

The different rooms are named after travelers that emigrated to New Brunswick in Canada in XXXX with the ship named Albion. We stayed in Evan Owen’s room, who was a maker of barrels.

Our room. To be honest, it felt more like a cabin on a ship than a hotel with the low ceiling and nautical elements. And I love the lime-washed walls.

I am obsessed with these beautiful Welsh throws and the fabric on the headboard, woven at *Malin Teifi*, located upstream along the river.

The floor boards in our room. You can see that they have lived.

Our bathroom, has the same nod the nautical theme as the room.

The feature I liked best in our room was this one, the Dutch door that opened…

…to this view. I could stand there for ever to watch the tide come and go.

When staying at hotels I love to sneak around with my camera in hand. This is from the bathroom next to the breakfast room. It is so pretty. Especially in this light.

Did I say that I was obsessing a little with these textiles?

One of the shelf in the breakfast room. I want everything in this photo.

So how could a perfect day look when staying at the Albion? Like this! Start with the amazing breakfast served on this rustic-looking Finnish tableware.

After breakfast we drove east to Aberaeron for a stop at Watson & Pratts for a second (ok, third) coffee and to stock up on some goodies for the drive.

We turned south to the other side of the peninsula for a hike along the dramatic coastline…

…heading towards one of the prettiest beaches in Wales. And here it is, the stunning Barafundle Bay Beach.

M couldn’t wait to get his trunks on and dive right into the fresh water.

Swimming makes you hungry, so we drove to the town of Little Haven on the west coast for a stop at Lobster & Môr to get our hands on…

…the freshest lobster roll ever. According to the woman in the shop this lobster was alive just one hour earlier. I am ready to take off my sun glasses and get to work.

After lunch, drive to the Blue Lagoon. And old abandoned quarry that has been filled with sea water.

A great place for a swim. But if you ask me, the Green Lagoon would be a better name since the water shimmers with a greenish tone. But I guess it doesn’t have quite the same ring to it.

After the swim, time to return to Aberteifi in time for dinner at Pizza Tipi. A riverside restaurant run by the same owners as Albion, and located just across the river from the hotel.

And after dinner, just return to the hotel room and enjoy the sun setting over Aberteifi.

RG inside info

This place is perfect if you…

…appreciate the combo of small-town and big city. The location is a typical small, Welsh market town by the coast and the look and vibe of the hotel is something you would normally find in any big city. If you like a building with a past with a hint of hipster, don’t miss to book a stay at the Albion.

My favorite thing about this place…

…is the design. I love when I get to stay at hotels that are truly unique when it comes to design. It is so great to see how they have incorporated the traditional Welsh patterns and methods into the design and how they have made it look contemporary and not dated or misplaced. The bespoke pattern throws, blankets and pillows are for sale in the cute little hotel shop.

What not to miss when staying here is…

…to explore. This part of Wales has so much to offer. Great beaches, cute little seaside towns, great food and stunning nature. Since I love to swim I want to highlight two great places for a dip, Barafundle Bay Beach which is about an hour to the south and the Blue Lagoon (which I think should be named the Green Lagoon, but that is another story) about an hour west of Aberteifi. Don’t forget your swimming gear!

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