The Bear Pit at Stokes Croft

Edgy. Bohemian. Rough. Awesome. Typically Bristol! All true words about the almighty Bear Pit!
I can’t really explain how much I love The Bear Pit. Which is weird, because it’s not somewhere I ever spend much time. The only time I do spend there is to walk through, either on my way to town or Stokes Croft. And in that little snippet of time, the few seconds it takes me to walk from one end to the other, I fall in love with Bristol a little bit more!
What used to be a pretty dangerous area full of down and outs, is now a thriving centre for independent traders, buskers, quirky shops and amazing restaurants — oh, and down and outs. But in a weird way it’s the down and outs that make the Bear Pit so special. You don’t feel intimidated by them in there. They drink their cider and have a giggle and keep themselves to themselves. It’s their little haven!
In almost every entrance/​exit you’ll find a busker or two of varying standards. Music greets you in and out, which I love!
There is now, or will be when it’s open, an old Bristol Bus converters into a café. A fruit a veg trader selling your 5 a day for £1 and one the best coffee shops in Bristol.
But you can’t forget the Bear itself. The amazing bear which is now as iconic as the Clifton Suspension bridge and Wallace & Gromit.
I wouldn’t plan a night out in the Bear Pit. But make sure you absorb it’s awesomeness every time you walk through!

This community project is simply fantastic.
As an ‘until recently’ Bristol resident, I know how the ‘Bear Pit’ has more or less always been a no-​go zone; Walking through here after dark was very much out of the question.
However in recent months, a group of hard working community volunteers have set about turning this terrible, bleak plage into one of Bristol’s most vibrant, cared for areas.
An amazing example of a community project to reclaim a neglected bleak area of it’s own city and transform itself into a beacon of civic pride.
I hope that this project has massive success and truly wish that this model is carried over to other similar areas of Bristol, such as under the Cumberland Basin flyover.