We’ve always wanted to go and visit Bath for many reasons…
- It is not that far from London
- Jane Austen
- The Roman Thermae Spa
Travelling to Bath from London is not that cheap: a return ticket costs in fact about 48£ per person.
This is why we decided to go straight away when we heard about the offer going on with the Oyster Card from the 26th June for a Month: you can travel to lots of different destinations in England from as little as 5£ each way, or get discounts on other activities within London itself.
The main reason for a visit to Bath was indeed my link to the author who spent a couple of years in the city as well as many people’s description of its beauty.
I’m not a Jane Austen person if with this term you think I’m desperately in love with romantic stories at all costs and a very feminist view of life, but I had to spend lots of time studying her works and life at Uni… and since then we’ve never left each other.
Jane is in fact mentioned in most books, sometimes on newspapers and magazines, for some reasons. So after years of hate and love the relationship with Jane has become more peaceful so that we’ve decided to go and visit her for a Tea.
Bath is a beautiful small city not very far from London. It only takes about a hour and a half from Paddington Station. The surroundings are stunning and as you approach the city becomes clear why this place is so beautiful.
From the train station the city centre is just a few minutes walk.
You can purchase a Visitor Card online or from the tourist centre for as little as 3£ we didn’t buy it this time but I’m sure it is convenient for anyone staying a little bit longer than just an afternoon or so.
We went through most of the main attractions in the city, Including the Sally Lunn’s Refreshments House and Museum, The Cathedral, The Roman Thermae, The Jane Austen Museum, The Circus and the park.
It is all worth a visit but most of all the Thermae are a must. The ticket is not cheap. It costs about 11£ pp but it couldn’t be avoided… is like going to Rome and not visiting the Colosseum I guess.
Before visiting Jane Austen we stopped at a nice café opened for lunch so we dined al fresco with nice panini and a small jug of Pimm’s to share. How British are we becoming?
The Jane Austen museum wasn’t as good as I did imagine: the ticket costs about 6.50£. Every 20 minutes or so you can enter a room where a very nice lady tells you more about life and works of the dear author, but apart from that you can have access at the museum which can be visited in 5 minutes, with general reproductions of portraits and clothes of that time. Then you can sit down and watch a very quick video… and then leave, but not before greeting Jane Austen at the door!
We also decided to stay a bit longer for the experience of having a tea in the Regency tea room, which unfortunately doesn’t have a terrace and is very tiny, so it’s a shame a so pricey museum doesn’t offer as much as it maybe could.
The real house where Jane Austen lived is on the same street at 25 Gay Street where at the moment there’s a dentist.
It was a beautiful warm and sunny day in Bath so we decided to spend the last hour or so at the Park.
Altogether Bath is definitely one of the most charming cities in England we’ve visited so far and we are very looking forward to go back again… maybe for a SPA weekend? 
