Bath is a small city made for visiting: the Romans came for its hot springs, the Georgians rebuilt it in honey-coloured stone as a spa resort, and the whole city is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Roman Baths are on the United Kingdom page; this page covers bathing in the same warm water today, the Abbey tower, the Georgian upper town and the walks on the green hills around the centre.
The city sights sit within about 20 minutes' walk of Bath Spa station, so planning is about time slots, not transport. Thermae Bath Spa and No. 1 Royal Crescent are worth booking ahead, the Abbey opens only in the early afternoon on Sundays, and hotels fill up for the Christmas Market from late November.
Sink into Bath's naturally warm water in an open-air rooftop pool looking over the city and its hills.
What it is
Thermae Bath Spa is where you get into Bath's naturally warm, mineral-rich water, which you cannot touch at the Roman Baths. The main spa, the New Royal Bath on Hot Bath Street, about 200 yards from the Abbey, sells a two-hour Thermae Welcome session: the open-air rooftop pool looking over the city and its hills, the indoor Minerva Bath and a Wellness Suite of steam rooms, an infrared room and an ice chamber, with towel and robe included.
How to do it
In 2026 it costs £44 on weekdays and £49 at weekends. It opens 09:00 to 21:30, with the pools closing at 21:00. Book your slot online; a few walk-in sessions are released each day.
Good to know
It is adults only, minimum age 16. Bring swimwear and flip-flops, and expect your phone to be locked in a pouch.
Climb 212 steps behind the clock face and above the fan vaulting to a roof looking down on the Roman Baths.
What it is
Bath Abbey stands where Edgar was crowned the first king of all England in 973, and the present church was begun in 1499 under Bishop Oliver King. The tower tour climbs 212 steps behind the clock face and above the fan-vaulted ceiling, with the story of the bells, up to the roof, where the Roman Baths and the Thermae rooftop pool lie below.
How to do it
Entry costs £9 in 2026 and includes a free 30-minute guided Highlights tour of the floor. The tower is a separate guided tour, £18 with the Abbey and its museum included: an hour, Monday to Saturday. Book online or at the Welcome Desk. The Abbey opens 10:00 to 17:30 on weekdays and to 18:00 on Saturdays, but only 13:00 to 15:30 on Sundays.
Good to know
Children under 5 cannot go up the tower. Suitcases are not allowed inside.
Walk from the Circus to the Royal Crescent and step inside No. 1
The Circus and the Royal Crescent
2 to 3 hoursBook ahead
Walk from a ring of townhouses to a sweeping curve of 30 houses, then step inside the first one built.
What it is
Bath's upper town is the work of a father and son. John Wood the Elder designed the Circus, a ring of townhouses with three entrances built from 1754 to 1768; his son's Royal Crescent is 30 houses in one sweeping curve built from 1767 to 1774, facing Royal Victoria Park. One house can be visited: No. 1 Royal Crescent, the first built, furnished as a Georgian home from the dining room to the servants' hall, with film and sound in some rooms.
How to do it
Brock Street leads west from the Circus to the Crescent. Standard admission to No. 1 was £16 in 2026, under-18s go free with a paying adult, and every ticket is an annual pass you can reuse for 12 months.
Good to know
Opening days change through the year, so check its calendar before you go. Skip the Assembly Rooms round the corner: they are closed for works until 2027.
Cruise the Avon from Pulteney weir, under Pulteney Bridge
Pulteney weir
1 hourNo booking needed
Board an open-top boat below a bridge lined with shops for an hour's round trip up the Avon.
What it is
Pulteney Bridge, designed by Robert Adam and finished by 1774, is one of only four bridges in the world lined with shops across its full span on both sides, and it crosses the Avon just above a curved weir. From the landing at Pulteney weir, Pulteney Cruisers have run open-top boat trips for over 50 years: an hour's round trip upriver toward Bathampton, with a live commentary on the way back.
How to do it
In 2026 boats left from 10:00 until late afternoon, more often at weekends, for £15, children 5 to 15 £5, paid on board with no booking. To walk to Bathampton, follow the canal towpath from Sydney Gardens to the George Inn, under an hour.
Good to know
They sail from spring to autumn when the river allows: a green board at the weir means they are running. The boats no longer stop at Bathampton.
See Gainsborough and Stubbs at the Holburne Museum
Great Pulteney Street
2 hoursNo booking needed
See Gainsborough and Stubbs in Bath's first public art gallery, the house Bridgerton fans know as Lady Danbury's.
What it is
The Holburne was Bath's first public art gallery, and since 1916 it has filled the former Sydney Hotel at the far end of Great Pulteney Street; Bridgerton fans know the building as Lady Danbury's house. The core is Sir William Holburne's collection of fine and decorative arts, with paintings by Gainsborough, Stubbs, Ramsay, Zoffany and Guardi. Until 10 January 2027 the temporary shows are Eric Ravilious and the artists of the chalk downs, and the ceramics of Richard Slee. The café opens onto Sydney Gardens.
How to do it
It is a 15-minute walk from Bath Spa station. It opens daily 10:00 to 17:00, from 11:00 on Sundays and bank holidays, last entry 16:30. A £16.50 ticket covers everything for the whole day, under-18s go free and slots are not timed.
Try on Regency costumes and meet character actors in a Georgian terrace telling the story of Austen's years in Bath.
What it is
Jane Austen lived in Bath for several years from 1801 and set much of Northanger Abbey and Persuasion here. The Jane Austen Centre, in a Georgian terrace at 40 Gay Street between Queen Square and the Circus, tells that story through character actors in Regency dress, costumes you can try on and a life-size waxwork of the author unveiled in 2014.
How to do it
Tickets cost £18 online for adults and £9.95 for children, and booking ahead is advised. It opens daily from 10:00; from 3 November to 4 April it closes at 16:30 from Sunday to Friday and 17:30 on Saturday, and last entry is an hour before closing.
Good to know
In September the Jane Austen Festival brings ten days of balls and talks, opening with a costumed promenade: 10 to 19 September 2027.
Join a free walk with the Mayor of Bath's Honorary Guides
Abbey Church Yard
About 2 hoursFree
Walk Bath for two hours with volunteer guides who have led free tours since 1934 and take no tips.
What it is
Since 1934 the volunteer Mayor's Guides have led free two-hour walks through the city, and they take no tips. The classic city centre walk covers about 3 km with steps and slopes, takes in the Royal Crescent and the Circus, and does not go inside buildings.
How to do it
It runs every day except Christmas Day, at 10:30 and 14:00 from Sunday to Friday and at 10:30 only on Saturday, from outside the Pump Room in Abbey Church Yard by the board saying 'Free Walking Tours Here'. No booking is needed, but arrive ten minutes early, because latecomers may be sent to the next walk. From 1 May to 30 September an extra evening walk leaves at 18:00 on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Good to know
Check for their badge, because other "free" tours expect a gratuity.
Time needed
About 2 hours
Best time
10:30 any day, or 18:00 on summer Tuesdays and Thursdays
Eat a Sally Lunn bun in one of Bath's oldest houses
North Parade Passage
1 hourNo booking needed
Eat the original Bath bun, a large brioche-like round, in what calls itself the oldest house in Bath.
What it is
Sally Lunn's, at 4 North Parade Passage a few steps south of the Abbey, calls itself the oldest house in Bath and the home of the original Bath bun: a large, light, brioche-like round, served with sweet or savoury toppings and a pot of tea. It is not the small, sugar-crusted Bath bun of bakery counters. Down about twelve stone steps is the free cellar museum, with the old faggot oven, the bakery Sally Lunn used in the 1680s and an archaeological dig reaching back to Roman times.
How to do it
The restaurant opens every day from 10:00 to 21:00 and takes no daytime reservations except for the set afternoon tea at 15:30; candlelit dinners can be booked. Visit the cellar museum before or after.
Browse the Bath Christmas Market chalets around the Abbey
Around Bath Abbey
Half a dayFree
Wander among more than 250 wooden chalets around the Abbey and the Roman Baths for handmade gifts and Christmas food.
What it is
From Thursday 26 November to Sunday 13 December 2026, more than 250 traders fill wooden chalets across the city centre, from Abbeygate Street in the south to Milsom Street in the north, around the Abbey and the Roman Baths. Expect handmade gifts, decorations, Christmas deli food and street food stands. In the same weeks the Bath on Ice rink opens in Royal Victoria Park, and the Roman Baths run a pop-up bar at weekends.
How to do it
Entry is free. Stalls open at 10:00 and close at 19:00 from Monday to Wednesday, 20:00 from Thursday to Saturday and 18:00 on Sunday. Drivers can use the Park & Ride buses, which run until 23:30 from Monday to Saturday.
Good to know
It is the busiest stretch of Bath's year, so book rooms early.
Walk the six-mile Bath Skyline loop above the city
Bathwick Hill and Claverton Down
3.5 to 4 hoursFree
Walk meadows and woods above Bath for the views back over the city, with a detour to a castle that is only a front.
What it is
The National Trust's Bath Skyline is a circular walk of 6 miles (9.6 km) through the meadows and woods on the high ground east of the city, and the views back over Bath are the reason to do it. A 200-metre detour leads to Sham Castle, a castle front built in 1762 for Ralph Allen to improve the view from his town house: from behind it is only a wall with turrets. Further on it passes Bathwick Fields and an Iron Age hill fort, and runs close to Prior Park.
How to do it
It starts on Cleveland Walk, off Bathwick Hill, and is signed to be walked clockwise; allow three and a half to four hours. It is free, and dogs are welcome under close control.
Good to know
Expect a bit of everything: roads, surfaced paths, steep climbs, steps, a rocky, uneven stretch and a stile, with mud after rain.
Cross the Palladian bridge at Prior Park Landscape Garden
Ralph Allen Drive
1.5 to 2 hoursNo booking needed
Walk down a steep valley garden to a Palladian bridge over the lakes, with the city spread out beyond.
What it is
Ralph Allen made a fortune from the Combe Down quarries that supplied the Bath stone for the Georgian city, and in the 18th century he laid out this garden in the steep valley below his mansion, with advice from the poet Alexander Pope and from Capability Brown. Its centrepiece, the Palladian bridge over the lakes, is one of only four bridges of this design in the world. The mansion above is now Prior Park College, a school, so the visit is the garden: paths down the valley to the bridge and the lakes, with the city spread out beyond.
How to do it
It opens all year. Come by bus from the city centre or on foot: about a mile, very steep, uphill from the back of Bath Spa station.
Good to know
There is no visitor parking apart from a few accessible spaces. The Tea Shed opens at weekends.
Walk the original Roman pavement around the Great Bath's green water, then sit in the same warm water a few streets away.
Tickets often sell out ahead in summer and only leftovers are sold on the day; a guided city walk with Roman Baths entry included keeps a place for you.
What it is
The route starts on the terrace above the Great Bath, then goes down through the temple remains, the museum and the original Roman pavement around the green water. If you want to sit in the same naturally warm water, Thermae Bath Spa, a few streets away, is a separate adults-only ticket with an open-air rooftop pool.
How to do it
The Roman Baths open daily from 9:00 to 18:00, with last entry at 17:00, and close only on 25 and 26 December. The Baths advise booking at least 24 hours before; any tickets left are sold on the day. Bath Spa station is a short walk from the Baths and the spa.
Good to know
Tickets often sell out ahead, especially in summer. The spring water is not for bathing or touching.
Great Western Railway trains run from London Paddington to Bath Spa in about 80 minutes; slower, often cheaper trains come from London Waterloo. Bristol Temple Meads is about 15 minutes away by train, with connections to Birmingham and Manchester. From Bristol Airport, the A4 Airport Flyer bus runs to Bath bus station in about an hour, and National Express coaches arrive from London Victoria, Heathrow and Gatwick.
Getting around
The centre is compact and best on foot: the Abbey is under ten minutes from the station and the Royal Crescent 15 to 20. The upper town, Prior Park and the Skyline mean real hills, and First buses help there: routes 6 and 7 stop on Lansdown Road, a short walk from the Royal Crescent. If you drive, leave the car at one of the three Park & Ride sites on the edge of the city, with buses into the centre every 10 to 15 minutes.
How many days
In must30's view, two full days: one for the Roman Baths, the Abbey and its tower, Pulteney Bridge and an evening at Thermae Bath Spa, and one for the Circus, the Royal Crescent and No. 1, the Holburne and a free guided walk. A third day fits the Skyline walk and Prior Park, or a coach tour to Stonehenge, which many tours from Bath combine.
When to go
Spring and early autumn suit the hill walks, and the river boats sail from spring to autumn. Summer brings the most sold-out days at the Roman Baths. The Christmas Market runs from 26 November to 13 December 2026, when rooms go early, and the Jane Austen Festival fills the streets with Regency costume from 10 to 19 September 2027. On Sundays the Abbey opens only from 13:00 to 15:30, and No. 1 Royal Crescent closes on Mondays outside school and bank holidays.
Where to base yourself
The streets between the station and the Abbey put everything within a short walk, with the trains for day trips close by. Great Pulteney Street and Bathwick, across the river, are quieter and grander, near the Holburne, Sydney Gardens and the canal. Around the Circus and Lansdown you sleep in the Georgian set pieces but walk uphill at the end of every day, and Widcombe, south of the station, is handy for Prior Park and the Skyline.
Questions travellers ask
Can you swim in the Roman Baths?
No. The water at the Roman Baths is not for bathing or touching. To bathe in the same naturally warm water, book a two-hour session at Thermae Bath Spa, a few streets away: £44 on weekdays and £49 at weekends in 2026, minimum age 16.
Do I need to book Thermae Bath Spa in advance?
It is strongly recommended, because walk-in availability is not guaranteed. A few extra slots are released each day for walk-ins, first come, first served, so arrive early if you have not booked. Bookings can be changed up to 24 hours ahead for £5.
When is the Bath Christmas Market 2026?
From Thursday 26 November to Sunday 13 December 2026, in the streets between Abbeygate Street and Milsom Street around the Abbey. Entry is free. The stalls open at 10:00 every day and close at 18:00 on Sundays, 19:00 from Monday to Wednesday and 20:00 from Thursday to Saturday.
Can I visit Bath as a day trip from London?
Yes. Trains from London Paddington reach Bath Spa in about 80 minutes, and the Roman Baths, the Abbey, Pulteney Bridge and the Royal Crescent are all within walking distance of the station. Book the Roman Baths ahead, and add Thermae Bath Spa only if you can stay into the evening.
Are there free walking tours in Bath?
Yes. The Mayor of Bath's Honorary Guides lead free two-hour walks every day except Christmas Day, from outside the Pump Room in Abbey Church Yard, at 10:30 daily and at 14:00 except on Saturdays. No booking is needed and the guides accept no tips.
