Those familiar with the Old Market Quarter and the West End will hardly be surprised that we’re considered one of the best in the UK for an LGBTQ+ friendly night out, with The Old Market Assembly, in particular, racking up quite the fanbase thanks to its live performances of comedy, cabaret and theatre. And it’s even garnered the attention of the pros at The Bottle Club.
Ranking in their ‘best UK LGBTQ+ bars’, the beloved venue took fifth place, ranking just behind On Bar in Manchester, The Viaduct in Leeds, Marys in Cardiff and The Royal Vauxhall Tavern in London. The bar ranked highly for its ranking on search engines like Google, scoring 8.8 out of 10, as well as for its presence and following on Instagram.
The Old Market Assembly marks the only Bristol venue to grace the list, which is quite the feat considering we’re blessed with some fantastic venues within Bristol’s Old Market Quarter and West End. Not only does the LGBTQ+ friendly venue host entertainment but it also boasts a roof terrace and offers delicious pizzas and Sunday roasts.
In addition to The Old Market Assembly being named one of the best LGBTQ+ bars in the UK, Bristol also came in fifth place as one of the best LGBTQ+ party destinations in the UK, falling behind Manchester, Brighton, London and Edinburgh who claimed the top four spots. Bristol lost out on a higher ranking due to its score for the choice of hotels within the city and the drinks prices. The city did, however, rate higher than most for its general and hate crime safety, ranking in fifth place in those categories out of twelve cities.
Deserving winner Brighton scored high across the board, with only drinks prices and hotel choice letting it down. Otherwise, it was named the safest place in the UK for the LGBTQ+ community to party, with minimal hate crimes reported in the area.
The research utilised a number of tools when gathering the data, including cost of living database Numbeo, reviews on multiple hotel booking sites, and hype on social media.