How to spend a weekend in Bristol, England

April 30, 2018

How to spend a weekend in Bristol, England

I have to say, I have loved living in Bristol. The city itself is absolutely amazing, so much to do and endless food options. While my time with the university here has been a completely different experience, the city is well worth a visit! There is admittedly not a whole lot of tourist attractions, but it is a great place to live. I had heard so many great things about Bristol as a student city and it is one of the reasons I chose to come Bristol without having ever visited or known anyone who'd been. I think for young professionals it is a great place to be, I would recommend it to anyone looking to live in England and wanting to be more immersed in British culture than you might be in London. The best perk for me--Bristol has its own airport! Perfect for a foreigner like myself who wanted to see all of Europe while living here.

I have compiled a list of some of my favorite things to do and show people when they visit! There are also so many places that I haven't been able to get but have really wanted to so I've added them as well. Whenever someone visited me I had a days long plan of all the main sights of the city I wanted to hit. After that we would just have fun exploring new food places or going shopping in Cabot Circus. The main things on the agenda were always as follows: Clifton Suspension Bridge, Clifton Village, Cabot Tower, College Green, Bristol Cathedral, the Harbor, and University of Bristol campus. All of these places have beautiful architecture and plenty of cafes around to take a break in. By the harbor there are plenty of museums as well, and on the weekend a lovely outdoor market that I once spent a few hours wandering around.

I have slowly but surely been finding new and unique (and budget friendly) places to eat in Bristol as well. My all time favorite Bristol establishment is Browns, a lovely afternoon tea here was one of my favorite things about living here. Boston Tea Party is also a great Western England chain that I had so many great meals at with family and friends, I was never disappointed by it. Beard was an amazing pizza place near the university campus as well on St. Michael's Hill which has a couple other really good locally owned restaurants around there. I also really wanted to go to some places on Park St that have great reputations, like Mission Burrito or Swoon. Hopefully this inspires you to consider checking out Bristol, especially if you're considering moving to England.

Other perks of Bristol: quick train ride from Wales, London, Oxford, and many other worthwhile places in England, great shopping, great parks and outdoor spaces, and a great atmosphere for young people, and plenty of food options and nightlife for every kind of person.