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!

Tag: Clifton

A row of multi-coloured houses in the Cliftonwood area of West Bristol - credit Jess Siggers

The local's guide: Cliftonwood

Dec. 19, 2025

Bristol-based photographer Jess Siggers guides us around Bristol's most colourful neighbourhood... Not Clifton, not Hotwells, but sandwiched in between… Cliftonwood (so called due to the small wood we have in the middle, which forms part of Goldney Hall gardens) is a (surprisingly peaceful…

Bristol Ferry at Bristol Harbour Festival - Credit Paul Box

Itinerary: A long weekend in Bristol

Oct. 13, 2025

Planning to spend a few days in the city? Here's a list of must-sees in Bristol to get you started... Day one: The Harbourside Grab a coffee by the Harbourside and visit M Shed, a museum telling the story of Bristol’s past and present, before climbing aboard The Matthew on the quayside nearby. The…

Long tailed tit on branch - credit Kathi Held

Birdwatching in Bristol: Avon Gorge

Oct. 10, 2025

The Downs and Avon Gorge are a mosaic of incredible habitats within one stunning landscape. One of the best things about this rich array of habitats is the diverse range of species they host! None more so than our bird species. Birds are universally considered an ecological indicator as they inhabit…

Woman walking through Redland Green in North Bristol - credit Bristol Barkers

The local's guide: Redland

Oct. 01, 2025

Frankie Wallington tells us the best bits about this leafy area of North Bristol... OK, so I haven't strictly stuck to one area, but I live at the very top of Redland (practically on the Downs) and it’s a bit of an unknown area at times, unless you live here and then you know it’s awesome. So, I’m…

Itinerary: Explore Brunel's Bristol

Aug. 13, 2025

Legendary engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel is one of Bristol's icons - he may have been born in Portsmouth, but many of his greatest engineering achievements were right here in Bristol. Two of the city's best-known attractions, the Clifton Suspension Bridge and SS Great Britain, were designed by…

The sign o n the Clifton end of the Clifton Suspension Bridge in West Bristol - credit Lee Pullen Photography for Clifton Suspension Bridge Trust

The story of the Clifton Suspension Bridge

Jan. 08, 2023

The Clifton Suspension Bridge is probably Bristol’s most well-known landmark, but did you know that it was almost not completed? For nineteen years, the two towers of the bridge were left abandoned, with no suspension chains and no work taking place on site. Image - Clifton Suspension Bridge The…