Hands up who’s been to Bath? I spent last weekend in the small but beautiful city, and it seemed like everyone I spoke to before my weekender had not only been, but had recommendation after recommendation of things to do. It’s no surprise – Bath has a lot going for it, and is a perfect little haven for those looking for the bustle of the city and the peace of the countryside in one place.
Coming from London, it took me an hour and a half to get there by train (direct from Paddington to Bath Spa) which is super reasonable considering it’s the other side of South England. The sky was a cool grey, but in fact made for a good weekend for sightseeing and relaxing, which was exactly my plan.
I’d been invited to Bath by Bath Tourism to discover the wellness offerings the city has to have, ranging from its historic Roman Baths (built around the only natural hot spring in the UK!) to its modern spas, and I have to say that no matter what you get up to when you’re there, Bath is a relaxing place. The streets are all a gorgeous honey colour, built from local stone, cafés provide shelter to sit and chill, and it almost feels wrong to go about on a screen all day. One of the first decisions I made when I reached Bath was to put my phone away, and walk around with a paper map and a good dose of curiosity.
Over the weekend, I visited two vegetarian cafés, got my nails done, took an insightful bus tour, learnt about the mystical Roman Baths, pottered around a vintage fair, and stayed at the luxurious, crushed-velvet-clad Combe Grove Hotel. It sounds like a lot, but in fact everything ran so smoothly that I left feeling calm and accomplished (partly down to Bath, partly down to the comfiness of my bed at Combe Grove). You can read my highlights in the following posts:
Chapel Arts Café
Combe Grove Hotel
Bath Vintage Market
Beyond The Kale
I’m going to be sporadically posting my specific highlights of the weekend over the next week, and my favourite destinations that I scouted out in my 48 hours there, but if there’s one thing to take away from my time there, it’s that Bath is the perfect weekend away. There’s plenty to do (but not too much!), the pace of life is steady, and when you wake up in the morning with the soft patter of rain against your window rather than sirens, you immediately feel well rested.