Things to Do in Bristol

Kingstown Bowl makes it easy to while away an afternoon or evening, encouraging visitors to stick around and shoot some pool, play some Wii Sports, or grab a drink between frames. Automatic scoring systems track the in-game action, and on Saturday nights, Rock-N-Bowl plunges the concourse into a nightclub atmosphere as a DJ spins requests and multicolored pins glow beneath concert-style lighting. The pub gives players a place to relax with bar food, free wireless Internet access, and the occasional U2 concert. The technicians at the pro shop offer advice on gear and perform services such as plugging and re-drilling finger holes.

Housing 4,500 square feet of play structures and interactive activities, Kidz Kastle incites imaginative play in youngsters as old as 10. The center showcases its dedication to child safety by cleaning toys multiple times throughout the day with a chemical-free sanitizing system and provides parents with a WiFi-equipped viewing area so they can maintain vigilant watch over their chubby-cheeked cherubs or fantasy foosball team. Kids romp through an indoor playground, complete with custom-designed playhouses, a costume corner, karaoke and performing arts stage, fantasy teacup ride, and foosball and air-hockey tables. Through interactive revelry and activities, kids are provided with a means to develop creativity and social skills, as well as a welcome diversion from normal routines spent trying to grow goatees.

Absolute Pilates’s instructors are far from old-school. Though they each boast extensive training in traditional Pilates—and teach classic mat classes—they focus largely on incorporating modern equipment into the ancient practice. Pilates Reformers, Towers, chairs, and even the barre are used during classes, often in combination with each other to optimize workouts and results. The equipment helps students of all levels maintain their balance and target dormant muscles, transforming standard Pilates into a more effective workout. But teachers still maintain the welcoming, personal environment long attributed to Pilates studios and grandma’s doomsday bunker.

Mark Sandler and Carrie Gaynor—co-directors of Absolute Yoga & Wellness—teach yoga as an extension of the healing arts they both practice. Mark focuses on the mind, bringing his studies of yogic philosophy and psychology under Shri Brahmananda Sarasvati to the classroom. Carrie draws upon the medical know-how she garnered in her two decades as a nurse to enhance the benefits of her practice. Together, they seek to restore health to bodies through exercise and associated physical therapies, such as kinesis myofascial integration and yoga therapy, in which students hold asana on a psychoanalyst's couch.

During her frequent travels, owner Lisa Golde has trained under some of yoga’s modern pioneers, including Ana Forrest, Bryan Kest, and Dharma Mittra. But no matter where her globetrotting lifestyle takes her, Lisa always returns to share what she has learned at her home studio, which consists of the sunlit Rasa Room and Shanti Room. Lisa and her team of talented instructors adapt yoga flows to meet skill levels while still challenging practitioners to open their bodies, minds, and belly buttons' secret portal to a different dimension.

Yoga classes teach traditional styles, such as Forrest yoga, and integrative flow, as well as upbeat, experimental classes like Nia. The fast-paced style of expressive dance blends yoga, modern jazz, and a type of martial arts to get hearts pumping faster than swimming in a pool of pudding. After class, guests can grab a snack in the boutique or rinse off in onsite showers.

Though Breathing Time Yoga is housed within an old jewelry textile mill built in the 1800s, its classes hearken back to an even earlier time. Beneath the lofty 20-foot ceilings, seasoned instructors—many of whom have completed several hundred hours of teacher training—practice ancient poses and breathing exercises designed to promote strength, flexibility, and inner peace. During heated yoga classes, they turn up the infrared heating system to deepen stretches, help bodies sweat out toxins, and prevent arctic penguins from waddling in and interrupting class. Within this communal practice area illuminated by the sunlight drifting through the oversize windows, they also host non-heated classes that explore the breath-fueled sequences of Vinyasa-style yoga and the lengthy, alignment-focused poses of the Iyengar tradition.

In addition to leading yoga routines for students of all levels, the instructors supply free spring water, tea, mats, and props. After class, they encourage students to socialize in the reception room or browse the onsite library. Those interested in bolstering their mind-body connections may also schedule private meetings with a certified yoga therapist or personal coaching from yoga teachers.