‘I had a great day out in Bristol with food and beer - and still got change from £10’

As far as challenges from my editor go, being asked to have a day out in Bristol, rather than spending the day at my desk, was hard to refuse.

But there was a sting in the tail - I had to visit as many tourist attractions as I could and also squeeze in lunch, a hot evening meal and a pint. All for £10 or less.

With half-term approaching, there will be many people wondering how to entertain their kids on a budget. And with money being as tight as it is at the moment, they will be looking for a day out that doesn’t break the bank.

Of course, Bristol has plenty of great attractions for families and tourists, but many of them come with a hefty price tag. With the popular science centre We The Curious currently closed for repairs after a fire, there are fewer options this half-term but still enough places to easily fill your day.

I started my challenge by visiting MShed, which is still free to enter, although the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition on the top floor costs adults £7 entrance (under-16s go free).

With a tenner burning a hole in my pocket, I had to forgo this exhibition of 100 award-winning images and stick to the main areas. The venue wasn’t especially busy apart from small groups of junior school children in hi-vis bibs learning about Bristol people and places.

Disappointingly (well, for me anyway), the vintage green double decker bus - always one of MShed’s most popular attractions - was still closed due to damage. But then as a daily Bristol bus user, I’m used to such disappointments.

From MShed, I walked along the harbourside to the SS Great Britain, Brunel’s world famous ship, but at £22 for adults and £13.50 for children aged 5-16, this key Bristol attraction may be beyond many families’ budgets this year.

Those prices do include free unlimited return visits for a year, so there is long-term value with these tickets, but then how many people need to go back for more? It’s also worth pointing out that the SS Great Britain has also introduced a reduced ticket (£8 per person) for people in receipt of Universal Credit.

Close to the SS Great Britain in Hanover Place, eagle-eyed walkers will find Banksy’s ‘Girl with a Pierced Eardrum’ mural, now cordoned off behind a green metal fence.

There are a few phone apps for Banksy trails around central Bristol but I couldn’t justify the expense of downloading one for this £10 challenge. You can find them all on Google for free anyway.

Around the corner from this harbourside Banksy is Spike Island, with its excellent cafe and free art exhibitions. My luck was out on this visit as the gallery was closed but exhibitions resume on February 18 and run through to the end of May.

Just past Spike Island is another great harbourside attraction at the 19th Century Underfall Yard, a working boatyard with a blacksmith, rigging company and several boatbuilders. There’s a fascinating free-to-enter visitor centre complete with the original pump room which once provided hydraulic power for the harbour’s lock gates, bridges and cranes.

The Pickle cafe within the visitor centre is hugely popular, with lunchtime dishes such as Mumbai fries with dahl, salsa and coriander. The aromas from the kitchen were mouthwatering but I resisted temptation otherwise my £10 would have soon disappeared on lunch.

But I was getting thirsty so, I headed around the other side of the harbour to The Mardyke for a quick drink. At £2.60, my glass of Butcombe Original at this Hotwell Road pub must rank as one of the cheapest pints in Bristol.

They also serve a range of filled rolls for £2.50, but I decided to move on and find a cheap lunch elsewhere. I still had £7.40 left and needed to buy lunch and a hot meal of some description later on.

After popping into Bristol Cathedral on College Green - another great free place to visit and open to the public 365 days a year - I headed to the cafe lurking at the back of Central Library.

I bought a decent tuna and sweetcorn baguette for £3.50 and ate it in the cafe, which is located next to the books on intellectual property and start-ups in case inspiration strikes during your sarnie.

Interestingly, there was a sign on my table for the library’s new ‘marbles’ scheme for people struggling with the cost of living. Anybody in need of a meal or hot drink can use marbles in a jar on the counter. Each marble is worth £1 and people can use as many as they need, no questions asked.

For those on low budgets, the library cafe also serves filter coffee for £1 and it’s 10p cheaper if you bring your own cup. Having refuelled at the library cafe, I headed to Brandon Hill to visit Cabot Tower, another popular free must-visit Bristol attraction.

My penny-pinching day out continued with a quick visit to the Bristol Museum & Gallery, which is free although they welcome any donations. Some of the exhibitions have an additional entry fee but not at the moment.

I caught the We Were Everywhere exhibition about the experiences of Indians and Pakistanis during the world wars and the partition of India. It’s well worth a look. And, of course, no trip to the museum would be complete without visiting Alfred the gorilla or the Romany wagon - exhibits I’ve visited since I was a child and then with my own daughter.

After my pint and baguette, I still had £3.90 burning a hole in my pocket and hadn’t spent a penny on any attractions. It was now just before 6pm and I was getting hungry.

I wandered past a few places, nose pressed to the window to scrutinise menus, but there are very few sub-£4 options these days. In the end, it was Rana’s Dhaba Junction, the Indian fast food hut outside Primark in Broadmead that came up trumps with a huge £2 vegetable samosa that was hot, spicy and filling.

It took the cost of my day out to just £8.10. After walking around Bristol for hours, I was tired and my feet were aching but I’d managed to squeeze in several great tourist attractions for free and bought enough food and drink to keep me going.

And, yes, I could have cut corners by eating in chains like Greggs or McDonald’s, but I wanted to support local businesses during my bargain day out. OK, it wasn’t easy and it needed a bit of forward planning, but it was a great day out for minimal cost.

And with £1.90 left over, I even had enough to get the bus home.