Near Cardiff test centre
Rated demanding from its real manoeuvre load, 14 roundabouts and 18 turns across 40 navigation steps.
This is an independent 22.2 km practice loop near Cardiff test centre, taking roughly 34 min to drive. It is NOT an official DVSA examiner route, the DVSA does not publish those, but it uses the same local roads and junction types an examiner is likely to choose.
Along the way you'll meet Thornhill Road and Gabalfa Interchange. Knowing the approach, lane and exit at each one before you arrive is the difference between a planned manoeuvre and a last-second reaction, and last-second reactions are where avoidable faults come from.
On this route you’ll practise independent driving and sustained concentration. Driving it a few times before your test builds the muscle memory that frees up attention for observation and decision-making on the day.
The loop is anchored by 20 catalogued landmarks, including shops, named junctions, churches and pubs, so you can navigate it from recognisable features rather than a memorised turn list. Rehearsing it in this way means that on test day the area already feels familiar, and your attention is free for the traffic rather than the map.
Whatever the route, your practical test follows the same national shape: an eyesight check, a couple of vehicle-safety questions, around forty minutes of general driving, one reversing manoeuvre chosen by the examiner, and roughly twenty minutes of independent driving following signs or a sat-nav. Practising on roads like these is how you make each of those elements feel routine rather than new.
Treat this route as practice, not a script. The value is not in repeating one fixed sequence but in getting comfortable with the road types, speed changes and junction patterns of the area around Cardiff test centre, so that whatever order your examiner chooses on the day, none of it is unfamiliar. Drive it a few times, focus on smooth observation and planning, and it becomes one more stretch of road you already know, which is exactly the kind of preparation that turns nerves into confidence.
If you are practising with a supervising driver rather than an instructor, take it steadily: agree the manoeuvre spots in advance, keep to a comfortable pace, and stop to talk through anything that felt rushed. And remember the basics that apply on every road, mirrors before any change of speed or direction, signals in good time, and a following distance that gives you room to react. Those habits travel with you long after the test is passed.
What you’ll actually do on this loop, counted from its turn-by-turn directions.
This route helps you practise:
The full 40-step drive on real, named roads (about 22.2 km). An indicative practice loop, not an official DVSA route — the roads and junctions are real, the sequence is a rehearsal.
Drive east.
19 m
Turn right.
26 m
Turn left onto Lambourne Crescent.
Lambourne Crescent55 m
Turn left to stay on Lambourne Crescent.
Lambourne Crescent186 m
Turn left to stay on Lambourne Crescent.
Lambourne Crescent87 m
Turn right onto Parc Tŷ Glas.
Parc Tŷ Glas305 m
Turn left onto Tŷ Glas Avenue.
Tŷ Glas Avenue912 m
Enter Thornhill Road and take the 2nd exit onto Beulah Road.
Thornhill Road21 m
Exit the roundabout onto Beulah Road.
Beulah Road734 m
Turn right onto Heol y Deri.
Heol y Deri1.3 km
Turn left onto Pantmawr Road.
Pantmawr Road882 m
Turn left onto A470/Northern Avenue. Continue on A470.
A4702.9 km
Take the exit.
North Road130 m
Keep left at the fork.
321 m
Keep right to take A48/Eastern Avenue.
A483.4 km
Take the Llanedeyrn exit.
A48295 m
Enter Llanedeyrn Interchange and take the 1st exit.
Llanedeyrn Interchange6 m
Exit the roundabout.
122 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Circle Way East.
86 m
Exit the roundabout onto Circle Way East.
Circle Way East3.7 km
Keep right to take Circle Way West.
Circle Way West259 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Llanedeyrn Road.
64 m
Exit the roundabout onto Llanedeyrn Road.
Llanedeyrn Road489 m
Turn right onto Carisbrooke Way.
Carisbrooke Way932 m
Turn right onto Cyncoed Road.
Cyncoed Road994 m
Turn left onto Celyn Avenue.
Celyn Avenue900 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 1st exit onto Lake Road East.
17 m
Exit the roundabout onto Lake Road East.
Lake Road East34 m
Make a sharp right to stay on Lake Road East.
Lake Road East36 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 3rd exit onto Llandennis Road.
54 m
Exit the roundabout onto Llandennis Road.
Llandennis Road467 m
Enter the roundabout and take the 2nd exit onto Fidlas Road.
18 m
Exit the roundabout onto Fidlas Road.
Fidlas Road967 m
Turn left onto Tŷ Glas Avenue.
Tŷ Glas Avenue632 m
Turn left onto Parc Tŷ Glas.
Parc Tŷ Glas491 m
Turn left onto Lambourne Crescent.
Lambourne Crescent70 m
Turn left to stay on Lambourne Crescent.
Lambourne Crescent105 m
Turn left.
26 m
Turn left.
19 m
You have arrived at your destination.
Directions for the Cardiff · Residential + A-road practice loop loop. Always drive to the road and conditions you see, not the list — signs, signals and other traffic take priority.
These are the real named features along the loop, straight from our route catalogue. Use them to recognise where you are and to anticipate the hazard each one brings, not to memorise a fixed order.
Decide your lane and exit on the approach to each of these, get set up early.
Watch for 20 mph zones, crossings and children near these.
Useful navigation anchors on the loop.
Pedestrian crossings and parked cars are common nearby.
Easy landmarks to navigate the loop by.
Frequent stop-start traffic and pedestrians, keep your speed down.
Local junctions
Take each junction on its merits, good observation, clear signalling and the right speed on approach. Rehearse the sequence so nothing surprises you on the day.
Navigate by these 20 catalogued landmarks rather than a memorised turn list, an indicative loop, not an official DVSA route.
Marks & Spencer
Start near Marks & Spencer.
Specsavers
Continue to Specsavers.
Thornhill Road
Continue to Thornhill Road, taking the junction with good observation.
Beulah United Reformed Church
Continue to Beulah United Reformed Church.
Canolfan Beulah
Continue to Canolfan Beulah.
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Continue to Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Deri
Continue to Deri.
Music Block
Continue to Music Block.
Majestic
Continue to Majestic.
Aneurin Bevan
Continue to Aneurin Bevan.
Gabalfa Interchange
Continue to Gabalfa Interchange, taking the junction with good observation.
Ysgol Y Berllan Deg
Continue to Ysgol Y Berllan Deg.
Crime Scene House
Continue to Crime Scene House.
Addiction Beauty Salon
Continue to Addiction Beauty Salon.
Bungalow
Continue to Bungalow.
Discovery
Continue to Discovery.
Llandennis Oval
Continue to Llandennis Oval.
Park End Presbyterian Church of Wales
Continue to Park End Presbyterian Church of Wales.
Alpha & Yapps Garages
Continue to Alpha & Yapps Garages.
McDonald's
Finish back near McDonald's, completing the loop.
14 roundabouts · 20 turns
16 roundabouts · 21 turns
8 roundabouts · 15 turns
10 roundabouts · 29 turns
This route is 22.2 km and takes about 34 min to drive at a steady learner pace. It is an independent practice loop near Cardiff test centre, not an official DVSA route.