Blog & Guides

Welcome to the Visit Bristol blog, your one-stop shop for ideas, inspiration and handy tips to make your time in Bristol that bit better!

From suggested itineraries to festival round-ups and unmissable things to do, our guides aim to showcase the best of the city, whatever the time of year. We publish new blogs every week and keep our blog posts up-to-date with the latest information, so you can trust that you’re getting the most accurate and useful tips for your trip.

Planning a trip with the family? Check out our guides on Places to stay with kids in and around Bristol and Things to do with teenagers. We’ve also got a list of 60 free things to do to keep costs down.

Coming here to sample as much of the food scene as you can? Have a read through our list of Bristol’s Michelin-starred restaurants, top cocktail bars and pub gardens, or find the best places to go for vegan food while you’re here. We’re sure you’ll also want to try a tasty Sunday roast while you’re here – we've rounded up a few of the best of those too!

If you’re local to Bristol, or here for a few days, we’ve also got plenty of suggestions for day trips to the north, south, east and west of the city so that you can experience as much of the region as possible. Maybe you want to tick off all of the World Heritage Sites near Bristol, or discover our most accessible outdoor attractions.

We’ll also have seasonal guides to help you get the most out of Summer in Bristol, from rooftop bars to scenic cycle routes, or find out what’s on for Christmas in and around the city.

Keep checking back for more brilliant Bristol inspiration!

Category: Itineraries

An exhibition inside the Royal Photographic Society exhibition space at Paintworks Bristol - credit Derryn Vranch

Itinerary: Discovering photography in Bristol

Mar. 24, 2023

Experience the best of Bristol's pioneering and inspiring attractions using public transport, and minimise your carbon footprint at the same time. For these journeys around Bristol, you can use a Freedom Travelpass for West of England for unlimited train and bus travel across Bristol, Bath, North…

The 'Galaxy' area of Wake The Tiger Bristol - credit Andre Pattenden

Itinerary: A day of innovation and discovery in Bristol

Mar. 13, 2023

Experience the best of Bristol's pioneering and inspiring attractions using public transport, and minimise your carbon footprint at the same time. For these journeys around Bristol, you can explore the city on foot and by using a FirstDay, Bristol Zone – unlimited travel on First buses for one day…

Graves at Arnos Vale Cemetery in Brislington, Bristol

Itinerary: A guide to Bristol's historic cemeteries

May 11, 2022

Bristol-based author Charlie Revelle-Smith offers an insight into the unusual inspiration that led him to write the first installment of his Bristol Mysteries series. A graveyard may not be the first place to come to mind when imagining a perfect day out in the city, in fact, admitting that you’d…

W G Grace plaque in Clifton - credit Graham Flack

Itinerary: Hunt out Bristol's unique plaques

May 25, 2021

Maurice Fells, author of local interest books including The Little Book of Bristol and Clifton History You Can See, introduces his latest work which looks at the city's unusual plaques. Nobody knows just how many commemorative plaques there are in Bristol. The city with its streak of quirkiness…

One of the unicorns atop Bristol City Hall on College Green in central Bristol

Itinerary: Go unicorn spotting in Bristol

May 17, 2021

Local travel blogger Giulia goes on a unicorn hunt around Bristol... Unicorns have been significant to Bristol ever since they first appeared on the city seal in 1569. They were chosen to represent virtue on Bristol’s coat of arms, where they feature at the two sides of the image of a golden ship…

A view of Ladye Bay in Clevedon near Bristol at sunset - credit Dave Peters

Itinerary: A day out in Clevedon

Mar. 29, 2021

Clevedon near Bristol is a charming Victorian seaside town with a pebbled shoreline and stunningly restored Grade I listed Victorian pier. If you’re visiting Bristol and fancy an outing to the coast, Clevedon has plenty to offer. The Marine Lake on Clevedon’s seafront is one of only a handful of…

An aerial view of Castle Park and St Peter's Church in central Bristol

Itinerary: The secrets behind Bristol's oldest churches

Mar. 09, 2021

It's easy to walk past Bristol's many magnificant churches and appreciate them just for their beauty, but these historic buildings have also built up centuries of stories and secrets. Bristol-based author Charlie Revelle-Smith has curated the popular @WeirdBristol books and Instagram feed in which…

Vicars' Close and Wells Cathedral in the City of Wells

Itinerary: A day trip to medieval Wells

Dec. 17, 2020

Within an hour’s drive of Bristol is England’s smallest city – Wells. Popular with film-makers and tourists for its medieval architecture and quaint streets, Wells sits at the foothills of the Mendips within easy reach of the bigger cities of the region as well as the beautiful Somerset coast. Wells…