Bristol Safety

Full Bristol Travel Guide »    Bristol Interactive Map »    Print This Article »

Like many larger cities in the UK, Bristol has its rough areas. The general advice seems to be that you have to use your common sense while getting around. Drunken brawls and assaults do occur in the centre of town on Friday and Saturday nights as pubs and clubs close, especially near the waterfront area, "the Centre", taxi queues and fast food joints. This has been reduced somewhat by a heavy police presence and security guards monitoring the taxi queues.

To avoid this in the Centre, especially at 11PM and 2AM kick-out times, you'd be advised to walk along Baldwin Street (between the coffee shop and Alliance & Leicester) to hail a cab from some of the smaller, less busy ranks.

There are also specific areas that do have a reputation after dark (and some in the day.) The inner city districts of St Pauls and Easton, are said to be rife with drugs and gangs, but these should not pose any danger unless you are directly involved in the narcotics trade and are as safe as anywhere else during the day. Pay attention to what's going on around you, and you shouldn't encounter difficulties, especially during the daytime. Also some outlying suburbs such as Southmead, Knowle and Hartcliffe have a reputation but it is unlikely that a visitor to the city would travel to these parts.

The main danger is to your cash from beggars. Many will approach you on the street to ask for money, and many will try offering you drugs in return for cash. They don't actually have any drugs, and will give you a bogus parcel (balls of cellophane or matches wrapped in newspaper for example) and run off with your money. They may have knives, so it's best not to make the deal in the first place.