Bristol at Christmas - illuminations and twilight tours
The Twilight and Illuminations Tour, the Broadmead Christmas markets, and an honest local guide to what is worth seeing in Bristol over the festive period here.
Christmas in Bristol is a short season - perhaps five weeks from the moment the Broadmead lights switch on in mid-November to the last day of the illuminated harbour walk in early January. It is also, increasingly, a surprisingly good one. The Insight Bus runs a dedicated twilight circuit in December; the Harbourside lights take about an hour on foot; and the city's independent shops, which in summer feel almost wilfully scattered, seem to arrange themselves helpfully for Christmas shoppers.
The Twilight and Illuminations Tour
From late November through early January, Bristol Insight runs an open-top evening circuit - the same nineteen stops as the day tour, but with the city's Christmas lights strung between them. The tour leaves Broad Quay at 16:30 and 18:00 daily; it takes about seventy-five minutes and a lap-blanket is genuinely a good idea. Ideal for either a romantic date or a family outing.
Christmas markets
Bristol's main Christmas market spreads across Broadmead and down Cabot Circus, from roughly the last week of November through to 23rd December. It is small compared to the European tour circuit - think hot cider stalls, Bath Cheese Company, Somerset gin, and a brass band on the Horsefair - but it is also easier to enjoy. A secondary, more independent-craft-focused market opens weekends on Wapping Wharf.
Illuminations walk
If you prefer walking, start at Millennium Square, follow the harbour round past the Arnolfini and We The Curious, cross at Pero's Bridge, and finish at the SS Great Britain lit up in blue and gold. It takes under an hour at a slow pace. Queens Square behind the harbour is lit every year with a large decorated tree and is worth the detour.
Practical info
Twilight tour tickets can be bought on the day at the Broad Quay ticket office or the day before online. In late December, book at least 48 hours ahead. The tour runs in light rain - it only cancels for high winds. Food and hot drinks are available at the Broad Quay stop both before and after the tour.
"If you have the time for only one thing, do the bus. The Illuminations look better from a slow open-top at twenty minutes to six than they ever do on foot."
For a longer read on the city in winter, see our slow-read guide to Christmas in Bristol, and if you are visiting from Bath for the day, the day-trip guide from Bath maps out a sensible half-day in Bristol ending at the Illuminations tour.
Imogen Pearce
Editor
Imogen Pearce is a Bristol-based travel writer who has lived in the city for over fifteen years. She edits Bristol Insight and contributes to regional lifestyle and travel publications.
She writes most often on neighbourhoods, walks, food and the slow architecture of the city. Her day involves more long coffees on Boyce's Avenue than is strictly professional.