News / Sunday Times Best Places to Live
Hotwells and Cliftonwood named among best places to live in UK
Two distinct but closely entwined neighbourhoods in Bristol have been named among the best places to live in the UK.
Hotwells and Cliftonwood feature together in the The Sunday Times Best Places to Live 2025.
The Chew Valley in Somerset has been named the best place to live in the South West of England while Saffron Walden in Essex is the overall best place to live in the UK in the annual list.
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The Chew Valley is praised for its “combination of beautiful landscapes and forward-thinking rural enterprises”, as well as its “picture-perfect villages and the proximity of Bristol”.
The other shortlisted South West areas are Chipping Campden in Gloucestershire, Malmesbury in Wiltshire, Penryn in Cornwall, and both Sherborne and Southbourne in Dorset
Change could be coming to Hotwells in the next few years with the Western Harbour development – photo: Martin Booth
The guide says that “despite Bristol’s issues – patchy public transport, terrible traffic and damaging council cuts – few cities offer such an intoxicating combination of friendly people, walkability and an abundance of culture and innovation”.
“It makes sense to live between its two special centres of gravity: the regenerated Floating Harbour and Georgian Clifton.
“The steep warren of Victorian streets in Hotwells and Cliftonwood offers a nice mix of houses, not too much passing traffic and a superlative community spirit, where volunteering is a big part of life.”
White Hart Steps (named after a long-forgotten pub) connects the bottom of Jacob’s Wells Road with Cliftonwood – photo: Martin Booth
Best Places to Live editor, Helen Davies, said: “What makes our guide unique is that we actually visit all the places we choose and talk to locals to find out what life is really like there.
“That means we can see what people really love about the places they live.
“That could be anything from exceptional schools and fast trains to beautiful houses and countryside.
“The health of the high street is important, but more than anything else, what we are looking for are towns, villages and cities with strong communities who work hard to make the best of where they live, and play hard too.
“We also consider affordability. High house prices are no barrier to inclusion – as long as they provide value for money.
“Different people will be looking for different qualities when they are choosing a place to live.
“One thing all our chosen locations have in common is that the people who live in them are proud to call them home.”
Cliftonwood is full of colour around every corner – photo: Martin Booth
Main photo: Martin Booth
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