One of the more beautiful Bristol University halls of residence, Wills boasts an ersatz Oxford quad…read moreand elegant old buildings. It also hosts Friday night formal dinners,a flight of fantasy for the many Oxbridge rejects to call the residence home. I picked these halls myself and while I can't deny they are beautiful, I found the strong Christian presence along with the totally skewed social mix quite alienating. All the rumours about haughty boarding school kids are true, and it was a disappointment indeed to arrive at university and find I had 50% of my social circle instantly cut off purely because I was unable to attest to links with a major public school. Wills is a weird place and while I'm sure some will love it personally I'd have rather a hall of residence where I could have met an interesting mix of people rather than endless examples of the embarrassing Bristol student stereotype.

The building is magnificent. However, this is deceiving and I have spoken to many Wills residents…read morewho are upset that their room is not in the fancy building, but in the newly built purple building added on a few years ago. Trying not to laugh at these people, I give them my deepest sympathies. I was at University Hall and always found it amusing how Wills Hall literally looked down on us from the hill above, towering over us mere mortals with its divine grandeur. This catered all is one of the most expensive but the rooms and bar are very nice. The courtyard style is a nice feature and there are woods nearby to explore. Apparently built on secret underground tunnels which lead to various points in the city, you can usually find residents wandering around late at night on a mission to uncover the mystery

I spent my first year here and enjoyed every minute (that I could remember). Situated around 45…read moreminutes away from the university it is a long walk but useful in getting rid of any remnants of alcohol-induced pain. It is one of the cheapest halls but has everything you need to function away from home. The hall bar is one of the best features-being two minutes away and with cheap drink deals to get you truly legless, the bar will undoubtedly be your second home. The building itself may not be the most appealing aspect, but it is surrounded by greenery which is a great way to spend the summer. The Downs is five minutes away and perfect for barbeques, rounders and badminton! Washing and tumble-drying is also really cheap at £1.50. There is a great community atmosphere with the JCR holding events throughout the year. Far from the typical snobbery of Bristolian life, University Hall is down-to- earth and the cheeriest hall in town!

Baddock. Having been in Churchills i am going to find it hard to write an impartial review. But…read morehere goes... Baddock is the best choice to put down when you get to Bristol for the following reasons: 1. It is big therefore there is always something going on and it will be easier to make loads of new friends. 2. It probably has the best facilities out of all the halls: a squash court, and a tennis court. 3. It has one of the nicest bars, new big and cheap. 4. The rooms are nice- all reasonably sized. Enough said, just don't tell anyone i said it was a better bet than Churchills.

A Bristol University first year hall of residence, Badock is situated in the irritatingly distant…read moreStoke Bishop campus. Perhaps one of the major downsides is the location, which is a good 45 minute walk (there's no decent public transport connections either) to lectures, and even further to most of the rest of town. Although I didn't stay here myself a good friend of mine did and while her reports aren't unfavourable as such, they're not exactly glowing. The facilities are outdated, the rooms are ugly and poorly furnished, but at least the social mix of students is (compared to many other Bristol University residences) fairly balanced. The bar isn't bad either, generally fairly packed with the usual cheap drinks. It's been recently redone as well so just about everything works.

Lucky are those who are rich enough to enjoy their university years at Goldney Hall! Aside from…read moreproviding wonderful accommodation to wealthier students, Goldney Hall plays host to venues and functions from outside the university bubble. The grounds are spectacular- you could spend all day exploring the waterfalls, underground caves, ponds and statues. One impressive statue is of Hercules and his mighty club! Many photo opportunities abound. If you wish to have somewhere sophisticated and able to provide a stunning backdrop, then Goldney Hall gardens are a perfect choice.

This is part of the University of Bristol's student accommodation facilities, but some of it is…read morealso hired out as a function venue. This is the carnation in which I visited Goldney Hall last summer for a friend's wedding reception. The function room we were in was pretty standard - very posh, but nothing particularly out of the ordinary. However, the garden outside was great, lots of water features and freshly mown grass - perfect for a summer evening. I don't know how much hiring this place out costs, but if you're looking for a venue in the centre of Bristol with a bit of class, then this could be just what you're after.

Senghennydd Court is all about location, location, location. It's in a prime spot at the city…read morecentre end of Senghennydd Road in Cathays, within a couple of minutes' walk of the Student Union, and is very near to the buildings where Mathematics, Physics and Astronomy, Engineering and Computer Science are taught. It's self catered, but with the option of an evening meal (during term-time, Monday to Friday) at nearby Trevithick Restaurant. It's so close to town you're never far away from shops and nightlife - and its also only a couple of minutes' walk away from the Students' Union for entertainment, shops, cafes and so on. The accommodation is all split up into flats which each house 5 students with a shared bathroom (gross - a HUGE downside to this accommodation in my book!!), kitchen and dining room. There's a launderette and bike sheds on site, and the nearest bars, shops and restaurants are within the Students' Union or in nearby Salisbury Road, just a couple of minutes' walk away from the Halls. The pedestrianised Queen Street area of the city centre is also just a short walk away, so it's in a great location. Talybont Halls are slightly larger, have en suite rooms (YAY!!) and have a few more facilities on site, but in terms of location Senghennydd wins.

I've never been a student at Cardiff University, but I've had many friends over the years who have,…read moreand so I've managed to visit all of the halls of residence in my time... I totally agree that Senghennydd Court wins in terms of location, but that's about all it wins on in my mind. It's just a stone throw away from all of the bars and shopping areas, so you'll be close enough to stagger home whatever the state you get yourself into. On the down side, you're surrounded by carparks and trainlines and loud, drunk students. I personally wouldn't mind walking a little bit further to avoid all of that. The rooms themselves are quite small and dark, and not ensuite. These are some of the cheaper halls too, so there is a tendency for foreign students to all be put together in the same flats.

This is a far smaller, quieter place to spend your first year than most of the other undergraduate…read moreHalls of Residence. It's on a small street in a residential area and - SHOCK, HORROR! - a small number of the rooms here have shared (SHARED!) bathroom facilities. Now, as far as I'm concerned shared kitchen and dining areas are one thing (who wants to eat alone, anyway?), but shared bathrooms are a whole other unsanitary story. Most of Cardiff University's modern student accommodation offers individual en suite bathrooms for each room within a flat. Not so at Gordon Hall. Eleven unfortunate rooms on the top floor have to share bathroom facilities. So, if this appals you as much as it does me, make sure that if you live at Gordon Hall you secure one of the 80 other rooms that are en suite, rather than one of these 11 duds with shared facilities. Other than that, this accommodation is particularly convenient for those studying Mathematics, Physics and Astronomy, Engineering or Computer Science as their buildings are nearby. It's also fairly close to the students' union, the city centre, and all the main campus facilities. It has its own laundry, bike sheds, and limited car parking spaces, and there are plenty of shops, cafes and restaurants along nearby Salisbury Road.

Senghennydd Hall is in a brilliant location along Senghennydd Road in the heart of Cathays,…read moresurrounded by University buildings and facilities, including the Students' Union. It differs from many other Halls of Residence, however, because it is part-catered, which won't suit everyone! I would rather have control over my own food, but for those who can't cook / won't cook, this accommodation provides a hot evening meal (usually between 4.30-7.30pm) from Monday to Friday during term times, over at the nearby Trevithick Restaurant in the Queen's Buildings - with the price included in the overall rent. Like nearby Senghennydd Court (which is self catered but with an option to have evening meals), Senghennydd Hall is really close to the buildings where Mathematics, Physics and Astronomy, Engineering and Computer Science are taught. It's also not far away from most other university buildings, so pretty well located for most students. The other big bonus is how close it is to the Queen Street area of the city centre, with all its shops - as well as Queen Street and Cathays stations (which both have trains going through to Cardiff Central, where most intercity journeys start and end). The accommodation is all split up into flats which each house 6-11 students in their own individual en suite rooms, with a shared kitchen and dining area for the whole flat. There are some bike sheds on site, but to do laundry you need to go to nearby Senghennydd Court Halls, and for sports facilities there's the centre on Park Place on the other side of the Students' Union, about 5 minutes' walk away.