By The Green Parent
25th August 2022
Throw in acres of green space, and you’ve got a picture-perfect, family-friendly city to visit. We’ve picked out some of the most fun things you might do:
EAT
Aesop’s Cafe, Easton
More like a jungle than an eaterie, this deli, apothecary, plant-shop and vegan and veggie cafe is a beautiful place. Try one of their colourful, lush veggie stacks. aesops.co.uk
St Nicholas Market
Get lost in the indoor maze of stalls and historic architecture that is St Nicks Market, which has been trading since 1743. From bikes and bongs to Japanese toys, hot sauce and records, there’s something fun to browse for every member of the family. It’s one of the best places in the city to come and eat; pick up boxes of Portguese stew, spicy wraps, fresh juices or hunks of flavoursome cheese to go. bristol.gov.uk/web/st-nicholas-markets
Better Food Company
An independent natural food store with three branches in Bristol (pictured). Each has a cafe selling their home-made organic goodies. Mainly vegan and veggie.
PLAY
The Clifton Suspension Bridge Rock Slide
Designed by Brunel, The Clifton Suspension Bridge (free, £1 to cross in a car) is a monument to engineering beauty and perfection. Its sweep dominates the Avon Gorge; come at dusk to see the illuminations that are switched on half an hour before dusk every night and light the bridge until midnight. Of more interest to wild kids, however, is the natural rock slide which lies just beyond the path to the Observatory above the bridge for bottom-bumping fun. cliftonbridge.org.uk
Blaise Castle House Museum
Not only is the Blaise Castle Estate (free) home to an excellent free museum that documents how Bristolians lived through time, but there are also two magnificent playgrounds with a sand pit, zip wires, treehouses and climbing towers and enough woodland in which to run wild. Walk through the woods to the disused castle and you may even stumble on a cave to explore. bristolmuseums.org.uk
RAINY DAYS
Harbourside
Once a bustling port, now Bristol’s Harbourside is home to families, street performers, and tourist attractions. Spot Brunel’s SS Great Britain (ticketed); visit The M Shed’s (free) Bristol-focussed exhibits which don’t shy away from the history’s shameful slave-trading past, ride the train that chugs up and down outside its doors and gaze at the hulking cranes that once hauled in goods from around the world; visit wonderland We The Curious (ticketed), billed as an ‘indoor festival’ of science, art, people and ideas; or enjoy arthouse cinema at the Watershed. If you’re lucky enough to be visiting in July, you might even catch the enormous, free Harbour Festival, with circuses, live music and sea-borne fun. visitbristol.co.uk
Cabot Tower
Get your bearings. The Cabot Tower is perched at the top of Brandon Hill Park, and has panoramic views right across the city. The good news: it’s free to climb. The bad news: you’ll have to tackle lots of narrow steps to get to the top. But it’s worth it! Look out across the city and the harbour and plan your itinerary. visitbristol.co.uk
MAGIC & MYTH
The Giant’s Chair
Goram and Vincent were giant brothers. They had fallen in love with the beautiful Avona (after whom the river Avon was named). She challenged the pair to drain a huge lake; the winner would win her hand. Both giants chose to dig gorges. However, while Goram fell asleep in a stone chair, Vincent was industrious and bagged the girl. Sadly, Goram drowned himself in the Severn. You’ll see the giants’ traces across the area; the Hazel Brook and Avon Gorges, Goram’s chair and footprint at Hazel Brook. You can still visit Vincent’s cave – its entrance is via the Clifton Observatory. The two islands in the Severn estuary, Steep Holm and Flat Holm are said to be Goram’s head and shoulder.
GO WILD
Leigh Woods
Get a spectacular view of the Suspension Bridge while climbing trees, making days, and playing in carved-out trunks.
Badock’s Wood
This jewel-like nature reserve is tucked into an urban area. Find secret surprises including waterfalls, sculptures (pictured), and even a Bronze Age burial mound!
SWIMMING
Snuff Mills
This huge, peaceful estate is made up of woods, parkland and rivers wide and deep enough in which to take a dip. There are also some excellent wild play areas, and a toddler-friendly water zone.
MY BRISTOL
Kerry Pearce has three sons and lives in Bristol
St. Paul’s and Felix Road Adventure Playgrounds
These places have brought so much community spirit to our lives. The regulars went camping together last year and felt like one massive tribe. We get veg boxes as a group, have a community garden and make up food and activity packs for families in need. The playgrounds provide freshly cooked food for everyone to eat together and get the kids involved in baking in the kitchen or cooking things on the fire outside. We love the banana pancakes and hot chocolate in winter. Mmm!
M32 & St George Park Skate Parks
The skate park under the M32 is always a great option in bad weather. St George is wider and surrounded by a beautiful park with a lake, play area and cafe (hot drinks to keep warm and a caffeine fix to stay sane!).
Urban Tandoor
This has unbeatable veggie options and also provided free curries for kids lunches when the meal vouchers got stopped.
Wild Swimming
For a treat, we go over to Cliveden and take a dip in the marine lake which gets topped up by high tide and cleared out regularly.
Pump Tracks
We take our bikes to Laurence Weston, where there’s also a skate park and play area. Patchway is the biggest track, where BMX Bristol train, and over at Ashton Underpass there’s a pump track with a little dirt track and skate spot next to the river; it’s fun to roll round there if it’s raining.
