Places to Go
Christmas Steps: a Bristol street that has been climbing since 1669
Paid for by a wine merchant, renamed after a queen and still lined with small independent shops, Christmas Steps is one of the oldest streets in the city centre.
Christmas Steps is a short, steep climb out of the old city. It has stone steps, worn handrails and a row of narrow shopfronts on either side. It looks made for the season, but the name has nothing to do with Christmas, and the steps are older than almost anything else around them.
A knifesmiths’ street
The name most likely comes from the medieval Knifesmith Street. Over the centuries “Knifesmith” was worn down in everyday speech until it sounded like “Christmas”. Around 1480 the Bristol writer William Worcestre recorded the street as “knyfesmythstrete”, also known as “Cristmastrete”. He also called the road Steep Street, which anyone who has walked up it will understand. City rent books from the 1500s and 1600s already list it as Christmas Street.
Stepped in 1669
The steps came later. In 1669 a wine merchant, Jonathan Blackwell, paid to have the street “steppered down”. A Bristol chronicle written a few years later records that he “new made the stepps” and finished them in 1669 at his own cost. A plaque at the top still records the work and the date. Historians aren’t certain whether there were rougher steps here before Blackwell’s, since “new made” can mean built or rebuilt.
The same plaque says the street was renamed Queen Street during the mayoralty of Sir Robert Yeamans in 1669–70. You can follow the names on Bristol’s old maps: Millerd’s map of 1673 marks “Queene Str”, Rocque’s map of 1743 has “Queen Str. or Stipe Str.” and maps from the 1820s show “Queen Str Steps”. The name Christmas Steps only appears on official plans in the 1870s and 1880s. The old nickname had won.
What you see today
The steps you walk on now, with the stone alcove seats near the top, were largely rebuilt between 1865 and 1881. Historic England lists the four flights of steps, the niches and the plaque at Grade II. Many of the buildings along the street are listed too. The Sugar Loaf pub at No. 1 dates from around 1720, and the houses on either side range from the late 1600s to around 1800.
The steps don’t stop at the top. They cross Colston Street and Perry Road and carry on towards St Michael on the Mount Without, so you can make a short, steep walk of it.
Why go now
Christmas Steps is home to small shops, galleries, cafés and bars, known locally as the Christmas Steps Arts Quarter. In the run-up to Christmas it is a good place to find a present that wasn’t made in a warehouse, then stop for a drink on the way back down.
Tips for your visit
- Wear shoes with grip. The stone is polished by centuries of feet and gets slippery when wet.
- Stop at the top to read Blackwell’s plaque before you head on up the hill.
- Combine it with a walk around the old city. Christmas Steps is a few minutes from the Centre and the harbourside.
Map
Sources
Last checked 8 November 2026. Details change, so check the official link before you go.