We spent five jam-packed days in Bristol this summer and had an amazing family holiday. Here are some highlights from the trip that I would especially recommend for children.
The Sightseeing Bus Tour
Bristol is a brilliant city with lots of fascinating history, so the City Sightseeing Bus Tour is a must as long as you are old enough (probably 8+) to appreciate it. Unlike most city tours, which involve plugging in earphones and listening to boring commentary, this has real guides – which made the ride a much nicer and friendlier experience. Another upside to having a guide on board was that if you couldn’t spot something, they could then point it out to you. Our guide cracked jokes and told us extra facts when we were caught in a traffic jam. I learnt so much more than I thought I would and although the full tour is possibly too long for younger children, I really recommend it. Of course you don’t have to listen to it all in one go, as you can get on and off the bus.
Keep the tummy smiling
Near to the first and last stops of the bus ride is AngelBerry, a delicious serve-yourself frozen yoghurt shop with lots of flavours and toppings. I had blueberry, pomegranate and pina-colada, all of which I loved. You can eat your yoghurt on the water steps across the road from the shop, My brother and I had a fantastic time messing around on these.
Fun times
You should definitely visit At-Bristol, a superb science museum which has lots of things to do for all ages. I preferred it to the Science Museum in London, as it is much more interactive and has extremely engaging activities. I especially liked In The Zone – a game which measures your power, heart rate, stamina, reflexes and speed through different tests. I liked it so much I went on twice!
Another place I enjoyed visiting was Bristol Zoo. My highlight of the day was feeding the Lorikeets – brightly coloured birds who sit on your arm and eat nectar from a little pot. It was a little bit frightening, but still wonderful experience. The zoo is filled with astonishing animals such as meerkats, a pygmy hippo and lions.
As well as looking at these animals, we also went to the Gorilla feeding, where the keepers were throwing fruit and vegetables to the gorillas. They told us all about the gorillas they keep there and my favourite was Jock, the massive grey silverback leader of the group. It was very interesting and – like At Bristol- I enjoyed it more than the zoo in London.
Another great thing to do is a relaxing walk along the harbour. This can be as little or long as you like, but you will almost certainly find something fun to do there. We found a little mini-golf course and passed lots of interesting looking museums. We also came across The Matthew, a replica of John Cabot, the explorer’s ship. There were some posters outside giving information that was very interesting. The last thing we saw was the SS Great Britain, which had been the longest passenger ship in the world when it was first manufactured. Unfortunately we didn’t have time to go onboard but looked amazing.
Walking across the Clifton Suspension Bridge was fantastic too. It boasts breathtaking views, with one side being the busy, bustling city of Bristol while the other side takes you into North Somerset, the home of Weston Super Mare and the Grand Pier. We spent an afternoon in Weston Super Mare and the Pier is massive, with lots to do. I adored the large arcade that was full of great games. The only downside was that many of the machines were broken, meaning that we spent a lot of time waiting for people to come over and help us out.
Nearby are some fabulous shops, such as lots of ice-cream places and a sweet shop. We had supper at Winston’s Fish Bar and I was very pleased with my plaice and chips.
I had a fabulous time in Bristol and if you go to the places we did you will definitely do so too. Have a great time!
