Bristol

The Avon Valley Railway is a welcoming heritage line centered at Bitton station in South Gloucestershire, tucked between Bristol and Bath. The route is a piece of the old Midland Railway branch that connected Birmingham to the South Coast, opening in 1869 before being shut down during the Beeching cuts of 1966. Starting in 1972, dedicated volunteers began relaying the tracks and fixing up the station, slowly bringing steam engines back to this scenic part of the valley.

Nowadays, visitors can enjoy a trip on a vintage train pulled by steam or diesel locomotives across a three-mile stretch from Oldland Common through Bitton to Avon Riverside. The beautifully restored Victorian station at Bitton serves as the hub, featuring a café, a shop, and plenty of trains to look at, all running right alongside the popular Bristol and Bath Railway Path. Riverside strolls, boat trips, and a full calendar of special events make it a great place to visit.

Still docked in the Bristol dry dock where she first began, the SS Great Britain is one of the most significant historic ships on earth. Designed by the visionary Isambard Kingdom Brunel and launched in 1843, she was the first ocean-liner to pair an iron hull with a screw propeller, and briefly the largest passenger ship in existence. After years of crossing the Atlantic and carrying emigrants to Australia, she was rescued from the Falkland Islands in 1970 and brought home for careful restoration.

Visitors can explore every inch of the ship, from the recreated cabins and galley to the massive engine room, filled with authentic sights and smells. A clever glass "sea" allows you to go down into the dry dock to see the hull beneath the waterline, while the nearby Being Brunel museum explores the engineer's incredible life. It remains one of Bristol's top-rated attractions.