Bath, England

What is the first thing you think of when hearing Bath, England? Many will tell you that they think of a spa resort, the healing waters, hot springs, movies such as “Vanity Fair” and “The Dutchess” or a vibrant social life, but there are others that will say two words Jane Austen.

Although it is commonly known that Jane Austen never liked Bath, it did not stop her for making it the primary setting of two of her novels Northanger Abbey and Persuasion and the City has not held it against her by honoring her name with the Jane Austen Centre and a city walk.

According to legend Bladud, King Lear’s Father, inadvertently discovered the healing property’s of Bath’s Hot Spring Waters when it cured his leprosy.

Bath is a city in Somerset in the south west part of England. It is situated 99 miles (159 km) west of London and 13 miles (21 km) south-east of Bristol. There are known and recorded events taking place in bath (Bath Abbey) as early as 973 (Edgar was crowned King of England at Bath Abbey in 973) and even Roman inhabitants of the area as early as 60-70 AD. The City itself was not established until 1590 by Queen Elizabeth I.

The population of the city is about 80,000, however there are close to 1 million visitors that stay a duration of time and approximately 3.8 million visitors that come just for a day visit per year. So the city is full despite its average population.

You can imagine with that many tourists per year that the city has a large service sector. But not only that, it is rapidly growing in the information and communication technologies and creative industries sectors. In addition, there is a large healthcare and education sector (2 universities). This provides employment for the population of Bath and the surrounding area.

Demographics show an astoundingly high population of people with a white ethnic background (97.2% which is much higher than the national average of 90.9%) and the area is largely Christian based.

The City of Bath is located in a spectacular area. It sits at the bottom of the Avon Valley and has the River Avon running through the center of town. The city is surrounded by rolling limestone hills known as the Cotswolds. Bath is built in and among this valley and is surrounded by hills, because of this the city has steep roads and the buildings look like they are climbing the hills. It truly is a spectacular sight.

The city is world renowned for its spa resorts which were built during the Georgian Era around the already constructed Roman Baths and Temples (built in 60-70 AD and a bathing complex built over 300years). The Roman Baths and Temples along with the Georgian Spa and Resorts were built using stone from area and they surround the natural hot springs which rise to temperatures around 114.8 degrees Fahrenheit (46 degrees Celsius). In between the time in which the Romans left Bath and England gained it the Saxons inhabited it. By the 9th century the old Roman street patterns were lost and Bath had become a royal possession. King Alfred was king at the time and he laid out the town afresh, making the south-eastern quadrant as the abbey precinct. This is the same Bath Abbey that King Edgar was crowned in and it remained Bath Abbey until it was granted City status in 1590.

Bath truly jumped on the road of construction and development in the Georgian Era. In the early 18th century Bath acquired the Theatre Royal along with the Pump Room and Assembly Rooms. Most buildings in Bath are made from the local, golden-colored Bath Stone, and many date from the 18th and 19th century. The dominant style of architecture in Bath is Georgian.

Along with the rest of Southwest England, Bath has a temperate climate which is generally wetter and milder than the rest of England. The annual temperature is approximately 10 °C (50.0 °F). January is the coldest month with a temperatures around 1 °C (33.8 °F) and 2 °C (35.6 °F). July and August are the warmest months in the region with daily temperatures around 21 °C (69.8 °F). The average annual sunshine totals between 1,400 and 1,600 hours (approximately 58 to 67 days). The area does receive a little snowfall with the average being about 8-15 days. November to March have the highest wind speeds, with June to August having the lightest winds.

As I said earlier, one of Bath’s principal industries is tourism. The tourists can primarily be categorized into heritage tourists and cultural tourists. Bath has not failed to maintain elements to represent every piece of Bath’s heritage from the Roman Baths (including their significant Celtic presence), to Bath Abbey and the Royal Crescent all the way to “Thermae Bath Spa” which was opened in 2006 (The city is trying to recapture its historical position of being the only city in the United Kingdom offering the opportunity to bathe in naturally heated waters).

One of the drawing features of Bath is the public parks. There are several of them, the main one being Royal Victoria Park. Royal Victoria Park was opened in 1830 and is a short walk from the centre of the city and is overlooked by the Royal Crescent. The park is very large, consisting o f 57 acres. Housed within the park is a skateboard ramp, tennis courts, bowling, a putting green and a 12- and 18-hole golf course, a pond, open air concerts, and a popular children play area. In addition to these attractions there are enormous amounts of lawn. The Royal Victoria Park has received a “Green Flag award”, the national standard for parks and green spaces in England and Wales, and is registered by English Heritage as a Park of National Historic Importance. At this park there is also nine acres which contains one of the finest collections of plants on limestone in the West Country. Other parks in Bath include: Alexandra Park, which crowns a hill and overlooks the city; Parade Gardens, along the river front near the Abbey in the centre of the city; Sydney Gardens, known as a pleasure-garden in the 18th century; Henrietta Park; Hedgemead Park; and Alice Park. There is also a linear park following the old Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway line.

In addition to the parks another draw to bath is “The Circus”. “The Circus” consists of three long, curved terraces designed to form a circular space or theatre intended for civic functions and games. The three façades have a different order of architecture on each floor: Doric on the ground level, then Ionic on the piano nobile and finishing with Corinthian on the upper floor, the style of the building thus becoming progressively more ornate as it rises. In addition to the circus Bath has five theatres; Bath Theatre Royal, Ustinov Studio, the egg, the Rondo Theatre, and the Mission Theatre. These theatres attract internationally renowned companies and directors. The city also has a long-standing musical tradition; Bath Abbey is home to the Klais Organ and is the largest concert venue in the city, with about 20 concerts and 26 organ recitals each year. Another important concert venue is the Forum, a 1,700-seat art deco building which originated as a cinema. Bath also holds the Bath International Music Festival and Mozart fest every year. Other festivals include the annual Bath Film Festival, Bath Literature Festival, the Bath Fringe Festival and the Bath Beer Festival, and the Bach Festivals which occur at two and a half year intervals. The city is home to the Victoria Art Gallery, the Museum of East Asian Art, and Holburne Museum of Art, numerous commercial art galleries and antique shops, as well as numerous museums, among them Bath Postal Museum, the Fashion Museum, the Jane Austen Centre, the Herschel Museum of Astronomy, the Roman Baths and the Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution.

There are almost 300 places to stay in Bath including over 80 hotels (2 of which have 5 star ratings) and 180 bed and breakfasts (many of which are located in Georgian buildings). You can also find other accommodations at hostels and campgrounds. The city also contains about 100 restaurants, and a similar number of public houses and bars.

A great resource for Bed and Breakfasts in Bath is the book Best Bed & Breakfast England, Scotland, Wales 2008-2009. I have this book at home and love all of the resources and information contained on each Bed and Breakfast, including their contact information, distance to featured site in the city and the amenities. All of the facilities in this book have been inspected by the Worldwide Bed and Breakfast Association. All of the Bed and Breakfasts in and around Somerset, including Bath are on pages 205 to 223.

Several companies offer open-top bus tours around the city, as well as tours on foot and on the river. There are a few ways to get to Bath and once there get around bath.Bath is approximately 13 miles (21 km) south-east of the larger city and port of Bristol. Bath is linked to this city by road and those visiting can either drive there or use a Park and Ride facility. The Park and Ride facility has sites at Odd Down, Lansdown and Newbridge, with a Saturdays-only site at the University of Bath. In addition, a Bus Gate scheme in Northgate aims to reduce private car use in the city centre. National Express, a coach service, operates from Bath Bus Station to a number of cities. Internally, Bath has a network of bus routes run by First Group, with services to surrounding towns and cities. The city is connected to Bristol and the sea by the River Avon, navigable via locks by small boats. The river is also connected to the River Thames and London by the Kennet and Avon Canal via Bath Locks and is popular with narrow boat users. Bath is also on National Cycle Route 4, with one of Britain’s first cycleways, the Bristol & Bath Railway Path, to the west, and an eastern route toward London on the canal towpath. Although Bath does not have an airport, the city is about 18 miles (29 km) from Bristol International Airport. Bath is served by the Bath Spa railway station, which has regular connections to London Paddington, Bristol Temple Meads, Cardiff Central, Swansea, Exeter, Plymouth and Penzance, Westbury, Warminster, Salisbury, Southampton, Portsmouth and Brighton. There is also a suburban station on the main line, Oldfield Park, which has a limited commuter service to Bristol as well as other destinations.

Bath has made themselves known for a variety of foods. The Sally Lunns Buns (a type of teacake) have long been baked in Bath. They were first mentioned by that name in verses printed in a local newspaper, the Bath Chronicle, in 1772. At that time they were eaten hot at public breakfasts in the city’s Spring Gardens. They can be eaten with sweet or savoury toppings. The Sally Lunn Buns are sometimes confused with Bath buns which are smaller, round, very sweet, very rich buns that were associated with the city following The Great Exhibition. Bath buns were originally topped with crushed comfits created by dipping caraway seeds repeatedly in boiling sugar; but today seeds are added to a ‘London Bath Bun’ (a reference to the bun’s promotion and sale at the Great Exhibition). The seeds may be replaced by crushed sugar granules or ‘nibs’. Bath has also lent its name to one other distinctive recipes including Bath Olivers – the dry baked biscuit and The Bath Chap, which is the salted and smoked cheek and jawbones of the pig.

Sports are an important facet of Bath culture. Bath Rugby is a rugby union team. Bath City F.C. and Team Bath F.C. are the major football teams (soccer) affiliated with the University of Bath. There are many cricket clubs based in the city, including Bath Cricket Club.

In addition, there is a Bath Cricket Festival which sees Somerset County Cricket Club play several games at the Recreation Ground. The Recreation Ground is also home to Bath Croquet Club.

The Bath Half Marathon is run annually through the city streets, with over 10,000 runners. Bath also has a thriving cycling community, with places for biking including Royal Victoria Park, ‘The Tumps’ in Odd Down/east, the jumps on top of Lansdown, and Prior Park. Places for biking near Bath include Brown’s Folly in Bath east on and Box Woods, in Box.

Bath is also the home of the Bath American Football Club, which has been playing American Football in the city since 2001. TeamBath is the umbrella name for all of the University of Bath sports teams, including the aforementioned football club. Other sports for which TeamBath is noted are athletics, badminton, basketball, bob skeleton, bobsleigh, hockey, judo, modern pentathlon, netball, rugby union, swimming, tennis, triathlon and volleyball. The City of Bath Triathlon takes place annually at the university.

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