Bristol, verdict by verdict

Bristol is England's most creative city outside London: Brunel's steamship SS Great Britain riding its glass sea, his suspension bridge spanning the Avon gorge for free at any hour, a harbourside turned from docks into museums and cider bars, Banksy's home turf with insider-guided street-art walks, St Nicholas Market's stall-by-stall lunch circuit, and one of the country's best independent food scenes. It rewards wandering more than list-ticking.

The trade-offs are hills, spread and access: Park Street and Clifton involve real climbs, the sights scatter enough that the cross-harbour ferry or a bus pass earns its keep, and the airport sits on a hilltop forty minutes south on a single bus link with a drop-off fee that confuses first-timers. Surviving Banksys are few and weathered, M Shed reads thin next to the harbour outside it, the SS Great Britain's door price draws grumbles, and weekend waterfront noise reaches city-centre rooms.

Two to three days is the right dose: harbourside and the ship on day one, Clifton village, the bridge and a street-art walk on day two, with Bath twelve minutes by train or Cheddar Gorge's free clifftop circuit if there is a third. April to October shows the harbour at its best, August adds the balloon fiesta. Sleep in the compact core, higher floor if the weekend hum matters.