A UNESCO World Heritage city, Bath has its origins as a Roman spa town, and the thermal springs which first brought it to prominence are still a crucial part of its attraction for modern visitors.
Almost 100 miles to the west of London, and just a few miles to the south-east of Bristol, the Somerset city of Bath is a popular choice for a romantic getaway or a cultural sojourn. The city is connected to Bristol and to the sea by the River Avon, which is navigable by small boats, via a system of locks. The river is connected to the River Thames by the Kennet and Avon Canal, and recent restoration work means that the route is once again popular with narrow boat users. Bath is also on the National Cycle Network.
Things to do in Bath The Romans built a magnificent temple and bathing complex around Britain’s only hot spring. Naturally hot water still flows through the steaming pool, and visitors to the extensive ruins and treasures of the Roman Baths can also take lunch or afternoon tea in the 18th century Pump Room, and indulge themselves with a trip to a modern thermal spa at the New Royal Bath.
The novelist Jane Austen was perhaps the city’s most famous resident, and a number of visitor attractions celebrate her work and life in Regency England, including an eponymous visitor’s centre and tea rooms, and a variety of specialised tours.
Whilst there is much to see and do in the city itself, the local environs are also packed with a fascinating range of places to visit, including the National Arboretum at Westonbirt, the WWT Wetlands Centre at Slimbridge, and the stately home and animal park at Longleat. The caves and gorges at Wookey Hole and Cheddar are also within easy reach of the city.
Top Destinations
The Royal Crescent – One of the world’s best known architectural landmarks, the Crescent was built between 1767 and 1775, in response to the increasing number of visitors to the resort town and spa. Considered by many to be one of the finest achievements of Palladian architecture in Bath, the great curved façade of the Crescent consists of some 30 houses. The identical façades of many of the buildings in Bath were intended to give an impression of palatial scale and classical decorum, although they often disguised wildly differing interiors and rear exteriors. One of the properties in the Crescent now houses a fine hotel, whilst another has been beautifully restored and opened to the public by the Bath Preservation Trust, to demonstrate exactly how the interior of a Georgian townhouse might have looked and functioned.
Pulteney Bridge – Perhaps one of the most beautiful bridges in the world, and reminiscent of the Ponte Vecchio in Florence, with shops built into its structure, this romantic crossing was designed by Robert Adams to connect central Bath to the other side of the River Avon, and is best viewed from the Parade Gardens Park by the Crescent weir.
Prior Park – The classical features of this Palladian gem were commissioned on a hill overlooking Bath by the philanthropist and quarry-owner, Ralph Allen, to demonstrate and promote the new, crisp stone-cutting techniques, which were being favoured by the architect John Wood to create the classical façades for which Bath later became famous. The landscaped gardens at Prior Park are now owned by the National Trust, and open to the public. The gardens include the iconic Prior Park Palladian Bridge, which is now a Scheduled Ancient Monument.
Radstock – Once a prosperous mining town, Radstock is now home to the Radstock Museum, which houses a wide variety of exhibits, demonstrating life in Somerset since the 19th century. Near to the town, the spoil heap from the old Writhlington colliery is now the Writhlington SSSI.
Bradford on Avon – The Kennet and Avon Canal runs through this Wiltshire town, which is also the site of St Laurence’s church, one of the relatively few surviving English Saxon churches that does not show later medieval alteration or rebuilding.
Castle Cottage, Marshfield, near Bath, Gloucestershire, Stroud
This charming holiday cottage is the middle one of a small terrace of three, with fields to the rear and rolling countryside views to the front. It’s a peaceful, rural setting, yet less than 1 mile from the village and ...
Set in St. Catherine's Valley, an area of outstanding natural beauty, Stable Cottage offers you relaxing and comfortable accommodation of the highest standard, from which to explore the many pretty villages and National ...
This pair of garden cottages are set in the grounds of the Jacobean Manor House - Thickwood House, dating back to the 1700’s. During the centuries it grew to become one of the most prosperous farms in the area, and its ...
Lane End, Walton Bay, near Clevedon, Somerset, Weston Super Mare
Lane End is a detached holiday bungalow with uninterrupted sea views overlooking the Bristol Channel towards the hills and mountains of south Wales. The bungalow is set in its own private gardens, a peaceful setting from ...
10 minutes from BathSituated next to the owner’s farmhouse, this character, detached property converted from a former wagon house offers spacious holiday accommodation, located in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. ...
This pair of garden cottages are set in the grounds of the Jacobean Manor House - Thickwood House, dating back to the 1700’s. During the centuries it grew to become one of the most prosperous farms in the area, and its ...
This delightful detached holiday cottage is located within the grounds of the owner’s home, which is a working livestock farm, set on the edge of a peaceful rural village, yet within minutes of the vibrant World Heritage ...
This superb 17th-century village house of great character, with its own private garden, has been elegantly restored and furnished. Situated on the village green where the ancient stocks still stand, the holiday home is ...
Set within the owner’s 230-acre arable farm, these three outstanding properties are decorated to a high standard, and each boasts a large open plan living area. There are goats and chickens on the farm, so if you are up ...
Set within the owner’s 230-acre arable farm, these three outstanding properties are decorated to a high standard, and each boasts a large open plan living area. There are goats and chickens on the farm, so if you are up ...
This pretty, 16th-century, semi-detached holiday cottage is situated in Freshford, close to the River Frome. Full of historic charm and architectural features, the cottage provides an ideal base for visiting Bath and ...
This holiday cottage has an excellent location raised above the city of Bath. Superb views over the Georgian architecture and abbey can be enjoyed from various secret seating areas in the delightful pretty garden. Local ...
33 displayed of 33 properties found, no date selected
Castle Cottage, Marshfield, near Bath, Gloucestershire, Stroud
This charming holiday cottage is the middle one of a small terrace of three, with fields to the rear and rolling countryside views to the front. It’s a peaceful, rural setting, yet less than 1 mile from the village and ...
Castle Cottage, Marshfield, near Bath, Gloucestershire, Stroud
This charming holiday cottage is the middle one of a small terrace of three, with fields to the rear and rolling countryside views to the front. It’s a peaceful, rural setting, yet less than 1 mile from the village and ...
These single storey semi-detached holiday cottages (refs 26209 and 26210) are located in an AONB, 6 miles south of Bath, and on the edge of the picturesque village of Faulkland. The cottages are built in the converted ...
These attractive holiday properties lie in the peaceful conservation village of Colerne, surrounded by rolling countryside. The Grade II* listed stable conversion (PFFH) is part of the only longhouse in Wiltshire and ...
These properties are set in a small cluster of houses along a no-through road, just over 1 mile from the heart of Frome, a bustling market town with weekly markets and an ever-growing popular monthly market which takes ...
This lovely detached, 18th-century holiday cottage is perched on a hill overlooking the Georgian Heritage city of Bath, with stunning and far-reaching views across the city skyline, and further superb views from its ...
This pretty, 16th-century, semi-detached holiday cottage is situated in Freshford, close to the River Frome. Full of historic charm and architectural features, the cottage provides an ideal base for visiting Bath and ...
This pretty, 16th-century, semi-detached holiday cottage is situated in Freshford, close to the River Frome. Full of historic charm and architectural features, the cottage provides an ideal base for visiting Bath and ...
This holiday cottage has an excellent location raised above the city of Bath. Superb views over the Georgian architecture and abbey can be enjoyed from various secret seating areas in the delightful pretty garden. Local ...
Lane End, Walton Bay, near Clevedon, Somerset, Weston Super Mare
Lane End is a detached holiday bungalow with uninterrupted sea views overlooking the Bristol Channel towards the hills and mountains of south Wales. The bungalow is set in its own private gardens, a peaceful setting from ...
Lane End, Walton Bay, near Clevedon, Somerset, Weston Super Mare
Lane End is a detached holiday bungalow with uninterrupted sea views overlooking the Bristol Channel towards the hills and mountains of south Wales. The bungalow is set in its own private gardens, a peaceful setting from ...
This semi-detached barn conversion enjoys views of peaceful countryside. It is part of the owner’s 7-acre smallholding, comprising of woodland, two wildlife ponds, an orchard, a vegetable garden and a polytunnel, as well ...
This single-storey detached holiday cottage is located in the picturesque village of Bathampton, on the southern banks of the River Avon, positioned just two miles from the ancient city of Bath. The village dates back to ...
Set within the owner’s 230-acre arable farm, these three outstanding properties are decorated to a high standard, and each boasts a large open plan living area. There are goats and chickens on the farm, so if you are up ...
Set within the owner’s 230-acre arable farm, these three outstanding properties are decorated to a high standard, and each boasts a large open plan living area. There are goats and chickens on the farm, so if you are up ...
This delightful detached holiday cottage is located within the grounds of the owner’s home, which is a working livestock farm, set on the edge of a peaceful rural village, yet within minutes of the vibrant World Heritage ...
Open countryside viewsThese two converted stone holiday cottages are situated on a working farm in the beautiful Somerset countryside, and enjoy the stunning views and use of 400 acres of the surrounding grounds, woods, ...
This pair of garden cottages are set in the grounds of the Jacobean Manor House - Thickwood House, dating back to the 1700’s. During the centuries it grew to become one of the most prosperous farms in the area, and its ...
This pair of garden cottages are set in the grounds of the Jacobean Manor House - Thickwood House, dating back to the 1700’s. During the centuries it grew to become one of the most prosperous farms in the area, and its ...
What a fantastic location for a holiday in the Bath area. This wonderful, semi-detached holiday cottage is situated within the gated grounds of Mill Island Moorings, with views over the Avon and Kennet River. Set in an ...
Rose Cottage is a delightful and tastefully restored Grade II listed holiday cottage with many original features, including a large stone fireplace in the living room and beamed ceilings throughout. One of a pair, the ...
Shaplands Barn has been lovingly converted - offering light and airy living. One of a pair, it lies in a quiet lane in a small village. The village is in an AONB and is famous for being on the Cotswold Way. Only 4 miles ...
These single storey semi-detached holiday cottages (refs 26209 and 26210) are located in an AONB, 6 miles south of Bath, and on the edge of the picturesque village of Faulkland. The cottages are built in the converted ...
Set in St. Catherine's Valley, an area of outstanding natural beauty, Stable Cottage offers you relaxing and comfortable accommodation of the highest standard, from which to explore the many pretty villages and National ...
Set in St. Catherine's Valley, an area of outstanding natural beauty, Stable Cottage offers you relaxing and comfortable accommodation of the highest standard, from which to explore the many pretty villages and National ...
Set in 6 acres of groundsThis cluster of holiday cottages (refs 27747 & 27748) lies in the picturesque 6 acres of grounds of Hinton Grange, a former hotel now lived in by the owners. The Drake Studio (27747) is ...
Set within the owner’s 230-acre arable farm, these three outstanding properties are decorated to a high standard, and each boasts a large open plan living area. There are goats and chickens on the farm, so if you are up ...
This superb 17th-century village house of great character, with its own private garden, has been elegantly restored and furnished. Situated on the village green where the ancient stocks still stand, the holiday home is ...
Nestled at the end of a lane, this single-storey barn conversion is located on the owner’s working farm and has been lovingly restored from the original old stables. The internal doorways have been built with wheelchairs ...
This Grade II listed, 17th century stone cottage is set in an elevated position, above a quiet lane in the pretty Somerset village of Coleford, midway between Bath and Wells. What was once the village lock-up, and the ...
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