A beautiful place with lots to offer (Bath (Somerset))

Member Name: jennikitten

Product:	Bath (Somerset)
Date:	24/02/09 (89 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Something for everyone

Disadvantages: Don't want to leave!

I decided to plan a trip to Bath for Valentine's Day having asked for suggestions at work of where to go. I didn't plan much stuff beforehand, but checked a few things I was interested in food-wise (!) and how easy it would be to travel around.

- Getting there and getting around -

We went for the day by train. As I live fairly close it was very inexpensive, and we found Bath very easy to walk around as it's generally flat and pedestrian friendly. We did see a lot of buses however, so I'm assuming that using public transport would be almost as easy, though it would be unnecessary if you were just staying around the city centre.

On leaving the train station there were at least 2 maps of the local area which were quite useful.

- What to do and see for free -

There are beautiful gardens to see in Bath, and a bridge great for taking photos and looking down the brook/river. In fact, you don't have to go far to get a sense of Bath's history as there are lovely remnants of Roman Britain with plaques and signs. There's also a nice church in the centre which is worth a look from the outside if not the inside.

Further out of the city centre, there's a 'castle' called 'Sham Castle' up a steep hill, and there is also the Bath Skyline walk if it's a nice day.

- What to do for a small cost -

Bath has all the typical high street shops you'd expect anywhere, but many of the shops are old (or look it), and the shop fronts all look aged and different to other places - in a nice way! It was good to see familiar shops with an older look, makes them a bit more interesting.

There are lots of side streets with quirky little shops. There are lots of small bookshops that have lists of visiting authors that are worth checking out.

Of particular note is the handmade fudge shop located near the big church, which stocks a variety of fudge and chocolate, and we also saw it being made on a giant table in the shop (it smells lovely!). There is also a retro sweet shop with glass jars of all the old favourites. Many of these shops are very small and can get crowded, so they aren't really suitable for pushchairs, prams etc.

In the centre we also went to the amazing Italian ice cream shop - and yes it does taste like real Italian ice cream! As well as the range of flavours on offer, you can also choose from a selection of mouth-watering crepes. It's hard to miss as it has a bright pink front. Next door is also an Italian pizza place which looked lovely.

There's also a small shopping centre nearby which has a shop of children's wooden toys, including lovely brightly painted versions of all the plastic stuff you see today like kid's pretend cookers and beautiful mobiles.

Bath is also home to the Jane Austen Centre, which we didn't visit, but apparently they had love poetry recitals there for Valentine's Day and often have events going on if you're a fan.

- What to do if you're rich! -

Like many of the UK's tourist cities, Bath offers a tour bus ride where you can get on and off at the stops you wish in order to see things of cultural or historical importance. This isn't particularly well-priced and you could use Bath's normal buses to do your own tour if you wanted to plan it in advance. This may be especially good for families/groups with a car because otherwise it will work out very expensive for the bus.

There are also the Roman Baths which are now a Spa I think, great for a day of pampering!

One of the things on offer in Bath is hot air balloon rides, which you can google if you're interested. Though they are fairly expensive, you have the chance to have private or group trips, and apparently they do fairly short notice rides too so that might be worth looking into if the weather's good.

All in all, I had a fantastic day in Bath and it's a great day out because there's something to see and do for everyone, no matter what their budget is. If you're anything like me you'll end up spending a lot more than you intended though!

Summary: Worth visiting at least once in your lifetime