Bristol: how to get there and around
Airports, stations, ports, where the hotels are and what the numbers say, from public data rather than a brochure.
Bristol is a city of 479,024 people in United Kingdom (England), 21 m (69 ft) above sea level. The nearest large airport is Bristol Airport (BRS), 12 km (7 mi) from the centre. Our booking partner lists 1,121+ places to stay.
Key facts
Daylight in Bristol runs from about 7 h 55 min a day in late December to 16 h 42 min in late June (computed for 51.46° latitude), which matters more than the forecast when a day is built around one flight or one crossing.
Getting there
Bristol is served by 4 airports with scheduled flights within 100 km. The closest large one is Bristol Airport (BRS), 12 km (7 mi) from the centre, with a longest runway of 6,598 ft, which limits it to short and medium-haul aircraft. The alternatives are Cardiff International Airport (CWL, 52 km), Bournemouth Airport (BOH, 92 km), Exeter International Airport (EXT, 98 km).
Flights to Bristol: every airport, routes and times
Buses to Bristol · Driving and car hire
Where to stay
Our booking partner lists 1,121+ places to stay in Bristol (statistics below are from the first 1,000). Of the 523 with a star rating, the largest group is 4-star (252), and 13 are five-star. Across 244 properties with at least 50 reviews, the average guest score is 8.3 out of 10. Guests have left 250,336 reviews in total.
Hotels in Bristol: the full picture, and book
Our booking partner lists 7 hostels in Bristol, out of 1,121 places to stay of every kind — 0.6% of everywhere it lists in the city, a small share: this is a city where nearly everything on offer is a hotel or an apartment. Across 6 hostels with at least 50 reviews, the average guest score is 7.6 out of 10, 0.7 below the 8.3 its hotels average. Guests have left 13,586 reviews across them.
Hostels in Bristol: the full picture, and book
Nearby cities, and how to get between them
- London, 171 km — flights · buses · car rental · tours
- Birmingham, 124 km — tours
- Dublin, 324 km (Ireland) — flights
- Manchester, 227 km — tours
- Sheffield, 228 km — tours
- Leeds, 270 km — tours
- Liverpool, 219 km — tours
- Cardiff, 41 km — buses · car rental · tours
- Leicester, 165 km
- Bradford, 266 km
Twin towns and sister cities: Hanover, Toulouse, Tbilisi, Bordeaux, Porto, Kumamoto, Beira.
Common questions
Which airport serves Bristol?
Bristol Airport (BRS), 12 km (7 mi) from the centre, plus 3 other airports with scheduled flights within 100 km.
How big is Bristol?
About 479,024 people live in Bristol, across 110 km² (GeoNames and Wikidata).
What time zone is Bristol in?
Europe/London, currently UTC+1.
What currency is used in Bristol?
The Pound (GBP). Traffic drives on the left.
Are there hostels in Bristol?
7 of them, bookable on this site. Hostels in Bristol.
How many hotels are there in Bristol?
Our booking partner lists 1,121 or more places to stay in Bristol, bookable on this site.
Which cities are near Bristol?
London (171 km), Birmingham (124 km), Dublin (324 km), Manchester (227 km), Sheffield (228 km).
Where these facts come from
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, elevation, time zone, postal codes
- Wikidata (CC0): area, sister cities, visitor numbers, heritage listings, stations and ports
- OurAirports (public domain): airports, runways
- Natural Earth (public domain): map outlines
Data compiled 14 September 2026. Hotel and hostel figures are from our booking partner’s catalogue on that date. Journey times on this page are estimates from distance, not timetables; check the operator before you rely on one.