Exploring the UK: how to spend 24 hours in Bristol

Last weekend I travelled down to Bristol with four of my favourite people for a weekend of laughs, food and lots of gin. It was such a lovely weekend and I'm suffering from major blues having to come back to real life. Bristol is such a fun, vibrant and great city that I thought I'd put together a little guide to make the most of 24 hours in the city

Where to eat
Bristol is home to an incredible food scene and I wished we fitted in more meals. We started our Saturday with a bang with brunch at Porto Lounge.  Located in the Fishponds area of the city, it overlooks Victoria Park. Looking to fuel up for the day I opted for the Vegetarian breakfast, but judging by noises of appreciation, the pancakes were an excellent shout. Piled high on the plate was a courgette and sweetcorn fritter, crispy hash browns, juicy baked beans, sweet slow-roasted tomatoes, sautéed button mushrooms, wood-roasted peppers, fried egg, spinach and a slice of wholemeal toast. A beauty of a breakfast and one that went down very well indeed!

For dinner we plumped for for a bite to eat at pizza and cider specialists Stable in Harbourside. I've been to the branch in London so was pretty excited to see how the two compared. It's a fantastic place to go with a group of friends as you simply wander up to the bar to order your pizza and drink - no headache of spilting the bill! The pizzas as predicted were absolutely delicious thanks to the thin crispy base and generous toppings. As a massive fan of Caribbean food, I decided to go for the special of Jerk chicken. Spicy, tender chicken, salty bacon and a combination of red onion and fresh spring onions was topped gooey mozzarella cheese on a tomato sauce base. It had a great kick to it and I was pretty sad when it was demolished.

Where to drink
We started our night with a couple of cocktails at The Milk Thistle. Hidden away in a old building and accessible only by an intercom, this classy, old-fashioned bar has a cocktail menu to die for. It felt like we had stepped back in time and set up shop in someone's living room. The staff were fab and we put the world to rights in front of a stuffed badger wearing sunglasses. As you do. I'd fully recommend booking a table here to kick off your night.

We ventured towards Harbourside and further into town to a bar called Kongs. With an industrial vibe, this bar boasts retro arcade machines, a ping pong table and table football. The perfect place to hang out with a couple of gin and tonics while laughing with friends. It had a really diverse crowd and was somewhere I could imagine spending the night. But we had a club beckoning us so we only stayed for a couple.

Like I mentioned, in a bid to hang onto our fast disappearing youth we decided to hit the town hard and ended up at Pryzm, a stones throw away from the Habourside. Full to the brim of stag and hen dos, I haven't been to a club like this for years. But it was so much fun! With seven themed rooms, five bars and two clubs, it was absolute massive but we spent our time in the cheese room dancing to the likes of Five and Spice Girls. The floor was sticky, only plastic glasses were allowed and I lost count at the amount of people who trod on my feet. But it was so good to dance until 4am with my favourite girls and really let our hair down. I was feeling pretty smug at stumbling in my friends house at 4.45am but was soon feeling very sorry for myself on the train home.

What to do
Bristol is a great place to just wander aimlessly, soaking up the quirky streets. I would definitely recommend a self-guided Banksy walking tour. We managed to spot his most recent street art above - the girl in the pearl earring. I know people have mixed views on street art but it's something I really enjoy seeing. It's just a shame some people have tried to devalue a few pieces by chucking paint over them. A walk along the harbour is also a fab way to whittle away a few hours. For only 90p you can get a short boat journey across the harbour to S.S Britain. If shopping is your jam, head to the undercover Cabot Circus for an incredible selection of shops, restaurants and bars. We actually hid out in the crazy golf to hide from the rain!

This is my second visit to Bristol and each time I visit I fall in love a little bit more. I'm very grateful for having a friend there and will try not to leave it so long before I visit next!