*POST UPDATED OCTOBER 2026.
Hello friends, happy Sunday! I hope this post finds you enjoying the cosiest of Sunday mornings: coffee in hand, feet up, and in the mood for a light spot of armchair travelling. I’m dropping by to interrupt your Sunday ever so briefly to share my latest travel guide with you, 48 Hours in Bristol, England. Husband and I visited the UK’s south-western city back in April for a speedy weekend getaway and had such a great time! Other than flying in/out en route to Bath a few years back, neither of us had ever been to Bristol before, but we were both blown away by what the city had on offer: fantastic restaurants, wonderful tourist-ing, and just a generally lovely vibe! Can I tell you about it?
Everything we learned and loved about Bristol is listed below, divided into the usual categories for ease: fun facts / getting there / where we stayed / where we had coffee & pastries / where we ate brunch, lunch, dinner / where we drank / and where we tourist-ed. We really squeezed a lot out of our short time in town, so prepare yourselves for a jam-packed guide!
Enjoy!
fun facts
Time for a quick fun fact or four? I thought so!
Bristol is the fifth largest city in the UK! Home to 580,000 people, it comes in just behind Liverpool, Glasgow, and the obviously larger cities of Birmingham and London.
apparently, Bristol is the home city of anonymous street artist Banksy! I just love the way the world is like: yeah we don’t 100% know who Banksy is — but he’s from Bristol for sure! How crazy?! There are two top contenders in the ‘who is Banksy?’ game — most likely Robin Gunningham, but maybe also Robert Del Naja — and geographic profiling of Banksy’s artworks fits both. The mystery continues!
Bristol is also the home of Ribena and Fry’s Chocolate! We didn’t have either during our time in the city, but it’s pretty cool knowing they originated there.
the world’s first ever bungee jump happened in Bristol, from the Clifton Suspension Bridge! I cannot imagine anything more terrifying — especially after seeing the drop from the bridge with my own two eyes! — but a member of Oxford University’s ‘Dangerous Sports Club’(??) made the leap in 1979 and lived to tell the tale! You can actually watch it on YouTube here.
getting there
Here’s how we made the journey to Bristol for the weekend:
we flew with Ryanair from Dublin airport to Bristol airport. It was a delightfully short 44-minute flight.
from Bristol airport, we boarded the A1 Flyer and took it all the way to Temple Meads train station in the city, which took about 20-minutes. The A1 Flyer stop was located just outside the terminal main exit, and a single ticket cost £9 at the time of our visit. For more information about the A1 Flyer, click here.
from Temple Meads train station, we walked into town to drop off our bags at the hotel, which took about 20-minutes. *Actually, we stopped at Hart’s Bakery, below, first, which I’d HIGHLY recommend you do also!*
on our return journey two days later, we made the same journey except in reverse: A1 Flyer from Temple Meads train station back to Bristol airport. Conveniently, the A1 Flyer departs from the exact same stop that it drops you off at, so it’s easy to find. We only had to wait 2-ish minutes for one to show up, but I believe they run every 8-minutes, so you’ll never be stuck for long. Would recommend!
