The most pleasant walk around Bristol Harbour follows the southern quay from the M Shed museum to the Cumberland Basin locks.

On the way, you’ll pass Brunel’s steamship, the SS Great Britain, see the colourful houses in Cliftonwood and walk past a working shipyard.

Allow 45–60 minutes for the route, which is about 2 km long, including short stops. The walk is free.

The name ‘Floating Harbour’ refers to the inner harbour, where locks maintain the water level even at low tide. The original course of the River Avon was diverted to a new channel, the New Cut, in the early 19th century. Between the New Cut and the harbour lies Spike Island, along whose quay you’ll walk.

🏨 YHA Bristolis a great hotel right on the waterfront, from where everything in the city centre is just a few minutes’ walk away.

Walking route from M Shed to Cumberland Basin

1. M Shed and Wapping Wharf. Start beneath the four cargo cranes in front of the M Shed museum. From there, continue with the water on your right. If you fancy a bite to eat along the way, turn off just past the museum towards the shipping container eateries in the CARGO area.
2. SS Great Britain and Banksy. Follow the waterfront to Brunel Square, just before the entrance to Bristol Dockyards. Allow another three hours to visit the ship and the museums. Just beyond the site, on Hanover Place, look out for Banksy’s mural *Girl with a Pierced Eardrum*. Instead of an earring, he used an alarm box on the wall.
3. Baltic Wharf. From the path along the water’s edge by The Cottage Inn, you can see the hillside with its colourful houses in Cliftonwood across the harbour. It’s well worth stopping here for a photo.
4. Underfall Yard. At the visitor centre of this working shipyard, you’ll learn how the harbour’s water level is regulated. If the gates to the site are closed due to work, walk round them via Cumberland Road. You can enter the visitor centre from Nova Scotia Place.
5. Cumberland Basin. From the locks, look westwards along the river. You’ll see the Clifton Suspension Bridge nestled amongst the rocks of the Avon Gorge. If you fancy continuing on to the bridge, cross the Junction Lock Bridge into Hotwells and walk up via Granby Hill and Wellington Terrace.
6. Return via the other side of the water, where there is a lovely promenade.

A short detour to the Spike Island gallery

Just a short distance from the route, you’ll find Spike Island, a free contemporary art gallery. It’s housed in a former tea packing factory at 133 Cumberland Road.

If you’d like to take a look inside, check in advance to see which exhibition is currently on and when the gallery is open.

Official website and opening hours:spikeisland.org.uk.

What I thought of it

Definitely the most laid-back place in Bristol.

I was lucky with the weather. It was lovely; autumn was just beginning and the trees were ablaze with colour.

Even in bad weather, though, there are plenty of restaurants, bistros, a museum and galleries in Harbourside.

For me, along with the Clifton Suspension Bridge, it’s one of the two main must-see attractions in Bristol.

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