Tour Highlights   
City Bus Tour
ss Great Britain
Harbour Ferry Tour      
Walking Tour of Old City

This tour can easily fill a day, alternatively it could be done in a half day if no attractions are stopped at.

You might like to start by getting your bearings. The Bristol Open Top Bus provides excellent 1 hour guided tours of the city, or else take on board your own guide for a personal introduction to Bristol. However you  do it make sure you properly explore all the following:

Clifton Village. Favoured by rich merchants of the 18th century and genteel folk for decades after, Clifton's architecture is a delight and includes Royal York Crescent, the longest terrace of its type in Europe. Perched above the city on the edge of the Avon Gorge, the suburb is perhaps best known for the Clifton Suspension Bridge. Designed by the famous Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the bridge was considered an engineering impossibility when first proposed. Today it is wonderful for a hair raising stroll over the River Avon.

Allow 1 hour

Of course Bristol owes its very existence to the water and your visit should include a drive underneath the Suspension Bridge across Durdham Downs. At the very top pause for stupendous views of the Avon Gorge as the river winds its way into the city. Follow the river to the harbour, taking Bridge Valley road and driving underneath the Suspension Bridge. The tidal reach of the Avon is the second highest in the world, so ships
entering it had to be "Ship Shape & Bristol Fashion".

Allow 1/2 hour The Floating Harbour. Park by the ss Great Britain and Maritime Heritage Centre. From here you can visit Brunel's famous passenger liner, the world's first great iron screw propelled ship, or pick up one of the regular ferries operated by the Bristol Ferry Boat Co. (If you have more than 20 people it may be cheaper and more convenient to arrange a special boat to meet you). If you are taking the ferry arrange it to drop off in the City Centre. If driving you may also drop off your group here.

Allow 1 hour for the ss Great Britain

Allow 45 minutes for a ferry tour The City Centre and Harbourside. New public squares and a stunning new footbridge link art galleries, restaurants, cafes and shops toExplore At-Bristol and Wildwalk At-Bristol. On this tour we do not have time to enter the attractions but the area is lovely to walk around and offers plenty of choice for lunch. Plenty of benches make the area perfect if your group wants to make the most of a sunny day.

Allow 30 minutes, plus any lunch time

Walking Tour of the Old City. From Harbourside head off for Bristol Cathedral, a perfect example of a Hall Church and dating back to the 12th century. Park Street rises steeply up to the University Tower, great shopping if you have the time! Walk past the Swallow Royal Hotel to the Centre, crossing over to Queen Square. This was once Bristol's finest place to live, popular amongst merchants making their living on the harbour. The Customs House is still in use, and America's first consulate was located here, evidence of the trading power of this city. Nearby King Street is famous for the Theatre Royal, Britain's oldest continually worked theatre, the Old Duke jazz pub, and the Llandoger Trow - a pub famous as the meeting place of Daniel Defoe and a real life Robinson Crusoe.

Corn Street a couple of minutes walk away is Bristol's old commercial heart. In recent years many of the banks have moved out, and their magnificent buildings have become bars, restaurants and cafes. The old Corn Exchange is now part of St Nicholas Markets, selling arts and crafts, books, exotic foods and fruit and veg..  Finish your tour by walking down Broad Street to see the last remnant of the medieval city walls - St Johns Gate. On the way look out for the bell ringing Quarterjacks of Christchurch and the fantastic Art Nouveau exterior of the Edward Everard building. Coaches can pick up from outside the Thistle Hotel on Broad Street.