The West Loft Suite, on the top floor of this elevated Clifton townhouse, is one of the city's finest rooms – like a mini apartment, with super king-size bed, copper bath tub and views front and back. But all 10 rooms are pretty cool – even the smallest comes with robes and slippers, REN toiletries and a decent city view. The decor is modern-Georgian: a mix of antiques and contemporary art, hints of Bristol's nautical history and painted panelling in a rich palette of Farrow and Ball. Downstairs there's a clubby lounge with fireside armchairs and tables laid for breakfast. , doubles from £115 B&B (£125 at weekends) With a sunny courtyard garden, complete with pond and shrubbery, this is an urban oasis in the thick of the city – the harbour, the shops and the Old Vic theatre are a short stroll away and St Nicholas market (the Georgian arcade better known as St Nicks) is just outside the gates. The former hostel was reinvented as a boutique guesthouse by the people behind Brooks in Bath;
the rooms are compact but high-spec (travertine marble bathrooms, Cole & Son wallpapers, crisp cotton linen) and with twins and triples on offer, it's a good choice for families and groups of friends. The triumph is the big, airy open-plan lounge-diner: sit in a designer chair looking at the terrace through picture windows, breakfast on organic produce, or help yourself to a drink from the honesty bar. , doubles from £70 B&B Owner Fran Jones promises not to preach but she is passionate about the environment, and her newly refurbished B&B is a temple to all things green, organic and fair. There are solar panels on the roof and wool insulation under the floors; the soft grey carpet is made from recycled plastic bottles, the toiletries are by Ecover or Faith in Nature, even the bedding is fair trade (ditto the towels). The rooms are light, fresh and simply furnished (the wood is traceable American ash) with luxury beds and posh white eco showers. On a quiet street in Southville, it's close to the Tobacco Factory theatre, a short walk to the harbour, the SS Great Britain or local cycle paths (there is a bike store in the garden).• 61 Greenbank Road, 0117 902 9166, thegreenhousebristol.co.uk, doubles from £105 (two-night minimum stay at weekends)
From the front, it looks like another bland, multi-storey chain hotel but the Bristol has one of the best locations in town. On cobbled Narrow Quay, overlooking the floating harbour, it was built as a motel in 1966 (the adjoining carpark is Grade II-listed, thanks to a bit of classic honeycomb concrete). With 187 rooms, it's not exactly boutique, but a recent £20-million upgrade spruced up the decor, which is plush, fragranced (this season's aroma: Lavendar Sunshine) and colourful – soothing neutrals with flashes of fuschia and peacock. , doubles from £85 At the edge of the Avon gorge, among the honeyed stone terraces and squares of Clifton Village, Simon and Joanna Fuller's Georgian house is more homestay than hotel. Over 30 years, it has been loved and lived-in, cluttered with sofas and books, ornaments and family memorabilia. Sash windows and a wrought iron veranda give views of the river below. A cantilevered staircase spirals up to three spacious rooms, all very traditional (chintz and china, wallpapered bathrooms, dressing tables, decanters of sherry, glimpses of Brunel's Clifton suspension bridge through a curtain of trees).
Downstairs a room with a huge bathroom overlooks the Fuller's clifftop garden. • 9 Prince's Buildings, Clifton Village, 0117 973 4615. 9princesbuildings.co.uk, doubles from £85 B&B Home to artist Sadie Spikes and husband Pete, this Victorian semi in suburban Fishponds is a shrine to the vintage aesthetic – everything from the dainty porcelain tea cups to the antique beds are pre-loved finds (just add fairylights and Wi-Fi). In the rooms, it's wall-to-wall junk shop (old leather suitcases, standard lamps, snow-white bedspreads, vintage fabrics, tapestry rugs on wood floors) but it's all spotless and full of thoughtful touches: homemade cake, fresh milk, feather duvets. Breakfast on crusty bread, pastries, jams, fresh fruit or the house special, sultana and nut porridge, served in Sadie's colourful kitchen or, at weekends, in the rooms. There's a hot tub in the garden and a bus stop right outside (it takes about 15 minutes to reach the town centre) or bring a bike and cycle back and forth on the off-road Bristol and Bath Railway path.• 35 Downend Road, 0117 935 4964, theboutiquebandb.co.uk, doubles from £75 B&B (or less for longer stays; minimum two-night stay at weekends)
A big red-brick number owned by Bath Ales, the Wellington is a proper boozer. Upstairs, though, it's a different world. The rooms are quiet and nicely decorated in a simple, modern-traditional style (tongue-and-groove panelling, heritage paints, original Victorian fireplaces). The beds are king-size, the pillows are downy and the white tiled bathrooms are equipped with rain showers. It's at the far end of Gloucester Road – a two-mile strip of boho shops, cafes and bars that heads north from the city – so is a bit of a trek from town (buses take around 15 minutes), but stick around, order a beef and porter pie washed down with a pint of Barnsey (or Cornish mussels and a Bounders' cider). /pid/the-wellington, doubles from £79 The stained glass, ornate plasterwork and grand staircase make the entrance an impressive one. The rooms are plainer and a little formulaic – baroque mirrors on slabs of purple paint, matching velvet throws, cheap wood furniture – but most are large and sunny, with high ceilings, marbled bathrooms and views of tree-lined Tyndall's Park with its terraces of Victorian villas.
It's good value, too, and there's a spacious family room on the lower ground floor. A portrait of Brunel, looks down on guests as they tuck into their breakfast specials. , doubles from £75 B&B With its basic, dorm-style rooms, bunk beds and slight whiff of food and feet, it doesn't quite pass as a posh-tel, but YHA Bristol has lots of good points – not least a brilliant waterfront location in the heart of the city. In a converted, red-brick grain warehouse, it has a quayside cafe-bar serving down-to-earth meals at reasonable prices (pizzas, tempura-battered hake and chips or farm-assured burgers), a sociable library-cum-lounge, a games room, a bike store and a communal self-catering kitchen. .uk/hostel/bristol, beds from £18, private rooms from £28 per person A handsome gothic-revival building, which used to be a meeting place for workers on the Tyntesfield estate, this is an out-of-town option – less than 15 minutes (roughly 7 miles) south of the city, but overlooking Somerset fields in Wraxall village.