Best accommodation in Bristol

Just so you know, you don't get guaranteed university accommodation since Bristol is your insurance choice. You do get to apply for it later than the students who have it as their first choice but I'm not entirely sure when that date it. Bear in mind, you may not get a chance to apply for the halls others recommend to you.

I would say that you should stay away from Stoke Bishop residences if you care more about being close to uni than being in a more social area. It's a 15 minute bus but a 40+ minute walk. But if you go outside of Stoke Bishop, it'll be self catered unless you go to Clifton Hill House which is really lovely on the inside but is on a steep hill. Additionally, there are only three residences that offer both en-suites whilst being catered: Churchill, Badock and Wills. Wills is meant to look lovely but is very expensive. Badock has a lot of parties but I wouldn't say it's got a good interior, I personally find it very depressing. I've only been inside the eating area in Churchill but it seems nice, probably the better place to go if you want both catered and an ensuite. Also bear in mind that if you stay in catered you don't have a cooker, oven or freezer. All of your hot food will either be from the cafeteria or cooked in a microwave. You will also be sharing a pantry between a floor of people and they do have a tendency to take food, my friends in catered (Badock and Clifton Hill House) have both had to keep food in their rooms because people have raided their stuff.

I unfortunately can only give other people's experiences since I stay in self catered. I'm sorry if I give a bad impression of catered accommodation, it's just what other people have said it's like.

Heyyyy
How's staying in self catered like? I can cook but i'm pretty lazy haha how many people do you share the kitchen with?

I'm in Durdham at the moment and I share a kitchen with 5 other people. Depending on your flatmates it can get messy, I have one that leaves food out until the next day then still eats it, but that's just her. I'm not that bothered though because they're lovely people and I can forgive their messiness. I know what you mean, it is a struggle to cook if you don't enjoy doing it so much but I needed to have control over my own meals since I'm a fussy eater and I don't have a routine. Catered just wasn't an option for me. What halls are you applying for?

Yeah I'm kinda scared of sharing the kitchen with messy people too that's why I'm leaning towards catered haha but there's no lunch on weekdays and dinner on weekends. I really can't decide between catered and self-catered. I'm looking at Wills, Churchill, Clifton Hill, Goldney and Manor. Do you know which halls are good for sports/more friendly? How is shared bathroom like? Thanks so much

Stoke Bishop has a couple of courts for tennis and basketball but if you really want to be close to good sports facilities, I'd suggest going in the Clifton residences since they're really close to the student union building. People seem to like Manor hall, though I can't provide a personal opinion. However, Goldney has massive garden space and Clifton Hill House is amazing on the inside of the older building, it'd be great if you get put there. It looks like an traditional hotel and it's so nice that people apparently get married there on occasion. I don't have a shared bathroom since Durdham is all ensuites, so you'd be better off asking someone else. But again, it will depend on who you live with and there's not a lot you can do about that. Regardless of where you go, your future flatmates will be a complete mystery to you.

Thank you so much for sharing, you've helped me a lot! I'm still deciding between catered and self catered. One more thing, do you have to clean your bathroom yourself?