Good for accessing different parts of Bristol with ease…read more The station itself doesn't have a ticket machine, but you can buy your ticket once on the train. The service is reliable, but I would recomend getting a timetable as you don't want to be waiting around only to find out the last train has come and gone. Bristol City has a good network of trains, and inorder to reach some of the more extreme parts from where you are located it's probabley more advisable (and quicker) to get a train, for example Lawrence Hill to Parson's street, you may have to change but it'll probably be quicker than any bus you can get.

This train station is particularly useful if you find yourself traveling between Temple Meads and…read morethe Church Road area via public transport, as there is no direct bus service linking the two. The trains aren't all that regular though, so make sure you look up the times before you start your journey. The station is basically just a couple of platforms - there's no ticket machine - which means that you can occasionally get away with a free journey (not that I condone such practices, of course). There's also a good connection with Montpelier rail station, with a journey taking between 5 and 10 minutes and only costing £1.50. Win.

First Great Western trains run throughout the West of England to primarily London. Historically,…read moreFirst Great Western hasn't been very good on the customer satisfaction list, but in the recent years they have dramatically improved their services to near perfection. In my experience, they have never been late or cancelled and have almost always arrived a few minutes ahead of schedule (which is always handy so you can grab an unexpected cup of coffee!). The trains themselves are of a very high standard. Each seat is full length (unlike First Capital Connect) and the floor has carpet on it which is a pleasant luxury. There is no chewing gum stuck to the seats, or graffiti etched onto the tables. Everything is almost spotlessly clean. In fact sometimes I wonder if I am in First Class, it is that nice! There is quite a large buffet on most of the trains (most definitely the ones headed to London Paddington) which although isn't cheap, certainly is no more expensive than the stands at the train stations. Most, if not all of the staff are friendly and very helpful. One down side I would say is that I find it hard to open the doors as you have to reach outside the window and open them from the exterior of the train which (if you are on the short side like me) is pretty difficult. There is also a large gap from the train to most platforms which again is difficult especially if you have a lot of luggage. However, I have found on many occasions that the train staff rush to help you if you are struggling which I think is great. There are toilets on board and are almost always clean, however no toilet on a train is perfect really! On board travel magazines are provided free of charge and also an emergency exit information booklet is on every seat (it almost feels like an aeroplane!). A word of warning though - if your ticket is booked in advance you MUST get on that exact train which is stated on your ticket. If you miss it, or hop on an earlier train you are fined a lot of money. Also, I have heard that if you sit in a seat already reserved then a £20 fine is given to you. Price wise, First Great Western trains are very reasonable if booked in advance online through their website. A single from Bristol Temple Meads to Gatwick Airport off peak with a Young Persons Railcard is £7.60 which is very cheap for the distance travelled. In conclusion, I would definitely recommend First Great Western, primarily for the fast, cheap and reliable service.

First Great Western is a close second to Virgin in my ranking of trains that trawl up and down our…read morecountries Railways lines. And number three is a long long way behind. It is one of the few services that you can guarantee will be fast and professional every time you take it. That does not mean to say that i like the trains in this country in general, just that i think relatively First Great Western is one of the best!

Flying from Bristol International is undoubtedly easier and, on the whole, cheaper than going from…read moreone of the London airports, and the price is even better if you can get there on the Flyer service. Unfortunately it's not 24-hour, but they go from around 6am to around 10pm (you may wish to check that!) every 20 minutes or so, ferrying passengers on a loop from Clifton via the coach station and Temple Meads, then up through Bedminster to the airport. A taxi will costs you around £22 (so £44 for a return journey) to Temple Meads, while a return on here is just £9 (singles are £6). They're also almost as quick (20 min journey or so), due to the fact that the traffic is so dense for the majority of the journey that a taxi's extra speed is negated (I was running late for a flight once and shelled out for a taxi, only for the bus I'd spurned to pull up behind us as we arrived!). If you're on the route and travelling at a reasonable time, the Flyer beats a taxi hands down for price.

A great and affordable service operating at all times of day or night, the Flyer is something of a…read moresaviour. When I started out at university I invariably had to pay £25 for a taxi, ever since the flyer service has started operating that cost has dropped dramatically. Stopping at a range of well-thought out strategic locations in Bristol, the flyer is comfortable and speedy. There's always space and no need to worry about it being booked up in advance either/ Helpful, well run and good value, I wish more cities offered an airport transport service as good as the flyer.

Swindon is one of the traditional railway enthusiasts' meccas, as the 'Railway Town' of the Great…read moreWestern Railway (GWR), and its station has a complex but interesting history. It is still an important and busy station to-day. The line - built by the famous engineer, Isambard Kingdom Brunel, opened on 17th December 1840, to a temporary terminus at Wootton Bassett, and through to Bristol on 30th June 1841. When the GWR was being planned, Brunel and his engine designer, Daniel Gooch, decided that Swindon would make a good place to locate the main engine depot and engineering works. As well as being the junction for the line to Cheltenham and Gloucester, it was also the point at which the relatively level line from London changed to the more steeply-graded section to Bath. This was important in the early days, when steam locomotives were relatively under-powered, and the idea was that different engines would work the two sections. The GWR built what was effectively a new town - initially called 'New Swindon' - with a railway works, depot, 300 cottages for the staff, and a new station, opened in 1842. The station was - unusually - paid for by the building contractors at their own expense, and to recoup their outlay they built the first ever railway refreshment rooms (separate rooms being provided for First- and Second-Class passengers). The GWR agreed that all trains should stop there for a 10-minute refreshment break as they changed locomotives, which they did until 1895. But from the start refreshment rooms were famously awful - beginning the dreadful reputation of railway buffets! With a captive market, the owners charged high prices for inferior food and drink. Coffee was dispensed from an impressive silver urn in the shape of a locomotive, but this did nothing to improve its flavour. Even Brunel himself was moved to write this wonderfully stinging letter to the owners, in December 1842: " Dear Sir, I assure you Mr Player [the manager] was wrong in supposing that I thought you purchased inferior coffee. I thought I said to him that I was surprised you should buy such bad roasted corn. I did not believe that you had such a thing as coffee in the place; I am certain that I never tasted any. I have long ceased to make complaints at Swindon. I avoid taking anything there when I can help it. Yours faithfully, I K Brunel." To-day, railway Swindon is a shadow of its former self, with the works closed, albeit with some of the handsome buildings (Grade I listed) retained as workshops and the railway museum 'Steam'. But the main island platform buildings survive from the 1842 station, together with a new platform on the south side, opened in 2004. The historic refreshment rooms were located on the south side of the station, but sadly no longer exist, having been demolished in 1972 - in an astonishing piece of corporate vandalism by the former BR - to make way for the ghastly office block that now occupies the site. The growth and affluence of modern Swindon means that this is a busy station, serving nearly 2.5 million passengers a year, and remains the junction for the line to Stroud, Gloucester and Cheltenham. All trains from London to Bristol, Cardiff and Cheltenham stop here, as well as the occasional direct service to Oxford, offering a fast train to London every 15 minutes during the day, Mondays-Saturdays. The station has a couple of cafes (I've not tasted the coffee, though!), a small newsagents, waiting rooms and is fully accessible.

Swindon hasn't got the greatest reputation, but I've always found the people friendly. This…read moreincludes the staff at this station. It's the only place yet I've had train staff ask to say hello to my cat when I'm travelling with her (which is good, as she gets miffed about people ignoring her when she meows at them) and on a recent visit my mum was offered the chance to go onto the platform to see me off. As for the station, like much of Swindon, it's not pretty. The platforms are above street level so accessed through an underpass and up stairs. There are lifts, toilets and inside seating areas with a modern feel. Good facilities for a fairly small station with only four platforms. There's a taxi rank outside the station, and the bus station is a short walk away. Parking is up a set of steps back to platform level. I believe there is access from platform level if you need it, but you'll need to ask a member of staff.

2nd day being on this train station. The awesome person (male from South Asia) at the ticket booth…read morehad been very helpful with a smile.

All aboard for the BEST way to see the UK! The British railway system is a dream -- quick, comfy,…read moreand surprisingly affordable. Unlike in the U.S., trains connect almost every city and town, making travel effortless. We used it for our whole UK adventure and loved every mile. Whether you're off to work, sightseeing, or chasing castles, this is the way to go!

Upon arriving in London, we decided to hop on the train to Bristol instead of renting a car -- and…read morewe're so glad we did! The train stations were a breeze to navigate, tickets were very affordable, and the ride itself was smooth and scenic. Staff and locals couldn't have been kinder, always ready to point us in the right direction with a smile. If you're traveling in the UK, skip the stress of driving and take the train -- it's an absolute win!

Used in the TV show Boy Meads World, for all of those train travelers who treat their bodies like a…read moreTemple. This is a large station that services Bristol (but not literally), and is the hub of the entire Southwest UK when it comes trains. It's a haunting old station and one which we've been to on many occasions. Functionally, it's been modernized a lot in recent years during the resurgence of Bristol, but it's as grand as ever. It's actually the oldest station in the country and also the largest. Literally, in the UK. It started serving trains on the last day of August in 1840 and it connects to London Paddington. It was designed by Brunel. Who then did a lot of other railway things. But this was his first mission and he did it well.

I prefer Clifton Up, but what goes Clifton Up must come Clifton Down…read more Clifton Down is an urban built-up station in the heart of burby neighbourhoods of Bristol that has two platforms and serves quite a lot of people. It's almost exactly 4 miles from Temple Meads and is on the line to Avonmouth. The Clifton suspension bridge is amazing and the Clifton railway station will get you fairly near there. It's a lovely little part of Bristol and has a lovely little station. There are lots of gorges and what not around these parts and I definitely enjoy visiting all the stations - this one is one of my favourites.

Slightly bigger and grander than it's brothers on the Severn Beach line (with the obvious exception…read moreof Temple Meads), this is a main station on that line. It's mostly a pick up point for commuters into the centre of Bristol, as well as the odd lazy student. Worth noting that there's no ticket office or electronic ticket machine, you'll have to buy on board. The station takes its names from the nearby large park, and there's a tunnel underneath this park that the line emerges out from before coming to Clifton Down station. Having such a long tunnel for what is hardly the busiest of stations probably costs something extortionate, but it means you can get a train across hilly East Bristol. The Victorian buildings attached to the station are listed and its worth a visit just to have a look at them. Their listed status hasn't stopped them turning one of the buildings into an Australian pub, which is a bit of a crime in my opinion. But then I suppose it means you can have a quick pint before getting on the train. A bit too big for the quiet little line it serves Clifton Down Station is worth a visit for a nose around, as well as a means of getting to Temple Meads.

If you like to mince things up while in bed (such as Barbie, with boys, don't ask), then you're a…read moreBedmincer. This is not that. The little suburb of Bedminster is a tiny little station that serves its purpose well. When I was traveling extensively around Southwest England I would visit all the little towns and their Cathedrals and churches and of course their stations because I was kind of obsessed with travel and geography. This is one of my faves from inner city Bristol. It is open and cute and serves the West suburbs of town and is on the line to Weston-super-Mare. It gets extra points for having amazing murals like many Bristol stations do!

Bedminster is just about as forlorn as a station could be. Located in the south west suburbs of…read moreBristol and surrounded by Victorian terraces, and close to the hilly but attractive Victoria Park, this once substantial suburban station is now but a halt, with two basic waiting shelters on each island platform. Opened in 1884, it was rebuilt with four tracks and the two current island platforms in 1932. In 1938 it boasted some 15 staff, but became an unstaffed halt in 1968, with the buildings rationalised shortly afterwards. I remember travelling through this station (and the adjacent Parson Street) regularly on my way to Bristol since the late 1960s, and feeling sorry for its users, even then: however, one big improvement is the increase in train frequency: in the 1970s the station had only a handful of rush-hour trains a day, whereas now it benefits from a half-hourly service on weekdays. Passenger numbers have nearly doubled in the last 4 years as a result, to over 40,000 a year. The facilities are still basic: it is unstaffed, although it has a payphone, CCTV coverage and platform indicators: these are essential, as trains can operate in both directions on the tracks, so occasionally late trains will be replatformed at short notice! There is level access to each island platform, although the ramps are steeper then the recommended 1:12 slope. A nice addition is a series of murals, painted on the walls of the subways (to replace the inevitable graffiti), showing scenes of local interest and history. That said, it is still a rather uninviting prospect late at night in the dark.