Where to live in Bristol

[MichelleM]

Hi
We are due to move to Bristol from Aberdeen in a couple of months and I'm after some advice on areas to look at.

My husband will be working in Keynsham and I have applied for a job in Newport which I am hopeful about. I am hoping to find an area that is not a nightmare for us both to commute from.

We are both 30, newly married, no kids. We would like to live somewhere that has good access/transport to the city. We both would like to be near some green space and shops / local amenities and pub(s). Preferably somewhere that other young couples / people live as we would like to meet people. We would prefer not to be on a busy road so don't mind being a little bit out of town just not too far or isolated.

 

[Geri]

You could probably do with being north/east of Bristol. Maybe St George/Kingswood?

 

[MichelleM]

You could probably do with being north/east of Bristol. Maybe St George/Kingswood?

Are they both quite safe areas? I've been looking at other forums but so many conflicting opinions I'm getting confused!

 

[wiskey]

I think pretty much everywhere is safe in Bristol except perhaps one or two estates, but then I moved from Brixton ... I dunno what Aberdeen is like.

Transport is SHIT, busses don't go where you think they ought to ... so I'd be looking at how your OH is going to get to work and work backwards from that where the transport goes.

Everywhere has shops and mostly everywhere has easy access to green space (I look out over the edge of the city and see fields). I don't know that anywhere is isolating either, gentrification marches forwards and professional young couples are all over the place. The city is small enough too that if you join a group for something that interests me then you can travel to meet them.

 

[MichelleM]

I think pretty much everywhere is safe in Bristol except perhaps one or two estates, but then I moved from Brixton ... I dunno what Aberdeen is like.

Transport is SHIT, busses don't go where you think they ought to ... so I'd be looking at how your OH is going to get to work and work backwards from that where the transport goes.

Everywhere has shops and mostly everywhere has easy access to green space (I look out over the edge of the city and see fields). I don't know that anywhere is isolating either, gentrification marches forwards and professional young couples are all over the place. The city is small enough too that if you join a group for something that interests me then you can travel to meet them.

Thanks! He would probably drive or get the train. I would need to drive as will need my car for work.

It seems really expensive near the city centre so we have been looking online at a few areas a bit further north of the city to see if we could get a bit more for or money like Bradley Stoke, Filton and a few others in that direction. What are those places like?

 

[wiskey]

Personally I'm not the one to advise you, try Geri, JTG etc - we've only lived there 10 years and I'm completely a South Bristol devotee.

 

[big eejit]

Thanks! He would probably drive or get the train. I would need to drive as will need my car for work.

It seems really expensive near the city centre so we have been looking online at a few areas a bit further north of the city to see if we could get a bit more for or money like Bradley Stoke, Filton and a few others in that direction. What are those places like?

Bristol is really expensive. You may die of boredom if you live in Bradley Stoke. Filton has good bus routes into town and is OK. You're nearer better pubs etc the closer you come in from Filton, eg Horfield, Ashley Down. But the prices go up as you have noticed.

 

[Geri]

Thanks! He would probably drive or get the train. I would need to drive as will need my car for work.

It seems really expensive near the city centre so we have been looking online at a few areas a bit further north of the city to see if we could get a bit more for or money like Bradley Stoke, Filton and a few others in that direction. What are those places like?

They're OK, I wouldn't chose to live there myself as they are a bit far from the centre and too suburban for me. They are perfectly safe, if a but dull.

Buses are not too bad depending where you live. Both Bradley Stoke and Filton are pretty well served for buses I think, and close to train stations. Traffic is bad though so getting from one side of town to another can take forever.

 

[kebabking]

with regards to cost, its important to understand that Bristol has become a fashionable destination for London flight - prices have gone through the roof in the last few years as people with big wedges of cash have abandoned London. its in the top 3 or 4 desirable cities to live in, and as is the nature of that, its pushed prices up significantly. to be blunt, Bristol is either eyewateringly expensive, offensively boring, or a shithole.

personally, if Keynsham was the starting point i'd be looking outside the city - though you'd want to be very careful about traffic bottlenecks.