Bath is an historic Roman and Georgian spa city. It is also a World Heritage Site. A unique city, Bath is famous for its hot springs, Roman period baths, medieval heritage and stately Georgian architecture. Set in the rolling Somerset countryside on the southern edge of the Cotswolds, Bath offers a diverse range of attractions for its 4.4 million visitors each year: restaurants, theatres, cinemas, pubs and nightclubs, along with interesting museums, and a wide range of guided tours.
Bath is the oldest of England's principal tourist destinations and has been welcoming visitors for centuries. The three hot springs within the city were sacred to the Celtic goddess Sulis, whom the Romans later identified with the goddess Minerva. Bath first achieved its status as a sacred spa site with the growth of the Roman settlement Aquae Sulis around the thermal springs. The Roman period saw a vast complex of baths constructed - the remains of these were re-discovered in the 18th century and helped fuel Bath's modern revival as a luxury resort.
The Holburne Museum
Displays the treasures collected by Sir William Holburne: superb English and continental silver, porcelain, maiolica, glass and Renaissance bronzes. The Picture Gallery contains works by Turner, Guardi, Stubbs and others plus portraits of Bath society by Thomas Gainsborough.
No.1 Royal Crescent
Visitors can now see this grand Georgian town house redecorated and furnished to show how it might have appeared in the late 18th century. The Royal Crescent, a magnificent semi-eliptical crescent of houses designed by John Wood and completed in 1774.
Bath Abbey
The last Gothic church in England started in 1499 and built on the ruins of the former Norman cathedral, this impressively large church (of small cathedral proportions) is located next to the Roman Baths.
Roman Baths
Built by the Romans around 2000 years ago, and later rediscovered by the Victorians, the Roman Baths are the must-see tourist attraction in Bath. The baths are fuelled by England's only mineral hot springs, outputting over a million litres of hot water each day. For more information, visit tiptravel website.
