Bath Attractions and Things to Do

The Roman Baths are the city's biggest tourist attraction and receive more than one million visitors a year. Discovered many years before, it was during the Roman occupation of Britain that the bathing complex was gradually built up. Visitors can see the Baths and Museum but cannot enter the water.

The Abbey Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, commonly known as Bath Abbey, is an Anglican parish church and a former Benedictine monastery. Founded in the 7th century, Bath Abbey was reorganised in the 10th century and rebuilt in the 12th and 16th centuries.

These delightful small, sunken gardens are Bath's most centrally situated pleasure grounds. Overlooking the River Avon they give fine views of Pulteney Bridge and the weir. There is a small entrance charge to the gardens from Easter until the end of September. Dogs are not allowed in the gardens.

Pulteney Bridge is a Grade I listed building and crosses the River Avon in the centre of Bath. Designed by Robert Adam in a Palladian style and completed by 1774, it connected the city with the newly built Georgian town of Bathwick. It is one of only four bridges in the world with shops across its full span on both sides.

The Bath Visitor Information Centre is now located in Bridgwater House, just south of Bath Abbey. It is one of the busiest centres in the country, welcoming over 535,000 visitors per year.

The Victoria Art Gallery offers a varied programme, from historical to contemporary, embracing national and international as well as local talent. The displays are on two floors; the permanent collection occupies two rooms on the first floor, whilst the ground floor is given over to two temporary exhibition spaces.

The Jane Austen Centre houses a permanent exhibition telling the story of Jane’s experience in the city between 1801 and 1806 and the effect that living here had on her and her writing.

Open to the public on selected days each week for Guided Tours, 12 Old Orchard Street may be one of the more anonymous buildings in this city of architectural gems.

Bath has played a vital role in the development of communications, and improving the British postal service. It can thus boast many "firsts" as you will discover when you visit this fascinating museum.

Royal Crescent, The Circus and Queen Square are three famous parts of Bath that you must visit. A pleasant walk starting from Queen Square, go up Gay Street to the Circus, west to Royal Crescent then return to Queen Square via Gravel Walk (or via Royal Avenue for those with push chairs/wheel chairs).

No.1 Royal Crescent, Bath (Grade I) was built to the designs of John Wood the Younger between 1767 and 1774 as the first house in the Royal Crescent, a Bath stone crescent of thirty houses with a uniform Palladian design to the principal facade.

Steeped in history, this is the oldest and some say finest park in the city, planned and laid out by the architect Harcourt Masters in 1795. The picturesque 12 acre grounds were very popular at the end of the 18th and early 19th century when breakfasts, promenades and concerts were held there.

The Fashion Museum is one of the world’s great museum collections of historic and fashionable dress. Designated as a collection of outstanding national significance, the Fashion Museum was recently listed by CNN as one of the world’s Top 10 fashion museums.

The Holburne Museum sits within its own grounds at the end of Great Pulteney Street with Sydney Gardens situated behind. A fascinating collection of art, porcelain, silver, books and furniture all housed in one of Bath’s fine buildings.

Beechen Cliff is located just south of the city centre and although a rather steep climb, the magnificent panoramic views of the city and the surrounding wooded vales and hills make the effort worthwhile. A popular postcard view of Bath over the past 100 years which can be found by turning left at the top of the steps.

The Museum of Bath Architecture is the new name for the Building of Bath Collection. This unique collection interprets the rich architectural history of Bath and the people who transformed a provincial town into the world famous Georgian Spa.

Housed in an eighteenth century Real Tennis Court, the Museum traces the development of Bath as a retailing and manufacturing centre and, since the seventeenth century, as a tourist and health resort.

A specialist museum dedicated to telescope maker and astronomer William Herschel. 19 New King Street is the Astronomers’ House, the site where he discovered the planet Uranus in March 1781. The house has been fully restored in the authentic style of the period.

This unique museum houses a fine collection of ceramics, jades, bronzes and much more from China, Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia. The Museum of East Asian Art is the only museum in the UK dedicated solely to arts and cultures of East and Southeast Asia.

The re-creation of an eighteenth century town garden behind number 4 the Circus was the first project of its kind to have taken place in Britain. The skills of the archivist, archaeologist and garden historian have together produced an authentic town garden to add to Bath’s existing Georgian attractions.

A beautiful and intimate 18th-century landscape garden set in a sweeping valley where visitors can enjoy magnificent views of Bath. Restoration of the 'Wilderness' has reinstated the Serpentine Lake, Cascade and Cabinet.

Royal Victoria Park was laid out in 1829 becoming one of the earliest public parks in the country and possibly the first created through public subscription. Records show how the Park has remained relatively unchanged since its creation, making it an important example of the Victorian style.

The American Museum takes you on a journey through the history of America, from its early settlers to the twentieth century. With its remarkable collection of folk and decorative arts, the Museum shows the diverse and complex nature of American traditions.

The Beckford Tower is perched on the northern slopes of Bath overlooking the valley. The 120-foot neo-classical Tower, which enjoys uninterrupted views of the countryside, was constructed as a study retreat and to house Beckford’s precious collection of art and rare books.