Hospitality and leisure businesses in Bristol are hoping for a bumper few months as a number of new attractions open in the city alongside its regular summer events.
Throughout July, August and September, a total of more than 550 separate events will be staged in and around the city, according to destination marketing organisation Visit Bristol’ website. 
The group, which has taken as its over-arching theme ‘Bristol is always a good idea’, is keen to promote the fact that many of these events are free or have discounted tickets for families amid the cost of living crisis continues.
The success of the Harbour Festival and Bristol Pride Day, which took place over the past two weekends, will be followed by a host of new and long-established events over the next few weeks.
These range from food festival Feast On, which brings together the city’s top restaurants and chefs on The Downs this weekend to showcase their signature dishes, coveted classics and new flavours, to the iconic Bristol International Balloon Fiesta, which takes place between 9 and 11 August.
Meanwhile Bristol’s science centre We the Curious has reopened with more than 200 features to explore following a devastating fire four years ago that caused extensive damage.
The city’s M Shed museum is hosting Space Shanty: a temporary playful intergalactic experience and voyage through time, based on Bristol’s involvement with space science and travel.
Handmade using recycled cardboard and materials donated by Bristol’s Children’s Scrapstore, it features videos, lighting effects and digital installations, with galactic guide Bemmie the Rat helping visitors through the indoor maze-like space.
The 18th-century Friary building in Cabot Circus, last occupied by restaurant chain Klosterhaus and before that by Brasserie Blanc, has become the venue for LUMOSPHERE, an immersive and interactive walk-through experience where art and technology collide.
Hosted by Yuup, the Bristol-based local experiences company behind staged last December’s spectacular 500-drone Evolution light show above the city’s Seat Unique Stadium, LUMOSPHERE takes visitors on a quest to unravel the mysteries of time and space.
