A giant hopscotch trail celebrating Bristol’s 650th anniversary as a city will hop into parks and green spaces throughout the city centre this summer.
Brought to life by the teams at Bristol City Centre BID and Upfest, the colossal artworks will take Bristolians back to their childhood, delighting those both young and young at heart. The concept has arrived in Bristol and colourful bean bags will be available for the ultimate playground throwback where players can set targets, throw the bags and move towards the tile.
Offering a free activity for families throughout the school holidays, visitors are encouraged to use the tiles to get creative with their own games as well as the traditional hopscotch.
Three 650 tile hopscotch locations are located in Queen Square, Castle Park and College Green. Sprayed onto the grass in these iconic green spaces, each hopscotch will incorporate 650 individual tiles and also be brought to life in the shape of the numbers: 6 5 0.
The numbers signify Bristol’s 650th year as a city. It has been 650 years since King Edward III granted important rights and privileges to Bristol by royal charter in 1373. Until this time, Bristol was divided geographically and administratively by the River Avon. The charter of 1373 gave Bristol and its suburbs jurisdiction independent from other county authorities, making it a county in its own right.
Since then, Bristol has developed its own unmistakable identity, carved out by passionate locals and spirited fans, with art and culture at its core for generations.
Vicky Lee, Head of Bristol City Centre BID, said, “Creating reasons to spend leisure time in our city is a core focus for the City Centre Business Improvement District, attracting footfall and supporting revenue for our levy paying businesses, all the while creating experiences and reasons for residents and tourists to visit the city centre. With the summer holidays just around the corner, we’ve introduced hopscotch to our green spaces as a free-to-attend and must-do summer activity for families. Hopscotchers can enjoy the unique installation and then take a look around all of the fantastic retail and hospitality businesses nearby.
“We’re looking forward to transforming our city into a giant playground and see Bristolians come together, say Happy Birthday to Bristol and celebrate as a city – supporting our local businesses in the process.”
The trail will be in the city’s green spaces from the final week of July and throughout August.