Haaa, Jane Austen. Green rolling hills. Tormenting love stories. Georgian architecture.
Bath is all of these things, and more. It also happens to home to one of the oldest signs of Roman presence in the British Isles, the famous Roman Baths.
Roman Baths in Bath, uh?
The bath complex was built somewhere around 60 AD, and was used by the Roman until they left Britain in the 5th century. The actual state they are in is quite different from what they were like in their original days, having suffered several attempts of demolition, and further refurbishments. They didn’t get their present glory until the 18th century when a local business man decided to “spruce it up” and built the Georgian structures we see today.
How do they work?
Geothermy! The rainfall water goes down into the ground as deep as 4,000 meters, where the geothermal energy warms it up to over 60°C – the pressure created by that energy makes the water go all the way up to the surface. Pretty simple, really! Everyday, more than 1 million liters of water rises to the ground.
Are the Roman Baths fun to visit?
Absolutely! I had a lovely afternoon exploring the Baths, despite the rather strong sulphur smell! Visiting the Roman Baths is like a free (well, £12.25, really) lesson in science, history and architecture! There are actually 4 different baths to discover, a temple, as well as a very informative museum. The Roman Baths are one of the most important places in not only Somerset, but in all of Britain.
Just in case some people show up in their bathing suit and tongs (I once overheard people asking where they could change – true story) – the Baths are NOT a spa. It’s a highly historical place, and not open to bathers or seekers of wellness. There are, however, dozens of actual spas throughout the city.
What else is there to do in Bath?
The Baths are definitely the most popular thing to do in Bath, but the city doesn’t lack interest – quite the contrary! You could visit the Bath Abbey, the famous Royal Crescent, the bridge of Sydney Gardens over the Avon canal, the Pulteney Bridge, and many other things. A simple stroll through the quaint streets of the city is actually quite fun.
Bath Abbey
Have you ever been to the Roman Baths in Bath? Was it your favorite activity or did you prefer the rest of the city?
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I didn’t realize that the main baths in Bath were not actually part of a spa, but I guess it makes sense.
I seem to have been through a number of Roman Bath towns over the last few months. One in ruins in Turkey and another in modern chiq around the corner here in Germany. The Romans certainly knew how to bathe.
Definitely not a spa, unless you want to die of a mysterious disease! :P
My God, this place is right up my alley – looks amazing!
It is! And not just the baths, the whole city is amazing.
I would love to visit this place, looks gorgeous.
I highly recommend it!
We’ve visited the Roman Baths and thought the site was awesome — beautiful and informative at the same time. Our guide emphasized like TEN TIMES that we shouldn’t drink the water or even touch the water, as some sort of bacteria could entire our brains and we would all die. It certainly kept us on our toes the whole time. ;)
I loved it too! Suprising things to learn there.
I was on one of those visit-3-places-in-one-day tours when I saw Bath, so I did not have much time. But it’s a beautiful city, and I’d love to go back and spend more time…. especially at the spas :-)
I need to relax in one of these right about now!
The problem is that if you drink or even touch the water you might die. :-) Not a spa!
Bath is one of my favorite locations in UK. We arrived there on a rainy day, just to discover that all hotels are fully booked. Lucky we found a lovely B&B far better than most of the hotels around, where a lovely old lady took care of our needs. The moment we sorted out our accommodation, the rain stopped and we could start to enjoy this great place BATH.
Gotta love those old English ladies :)
haha I didn’t know that you couldn’t bathe at the baths… good thing I learned before I turned up with my bikini on!
If you do bathe at the baths you might die. Up to you. :)
Very interesting to see the Roman influence in Bath. Thanks for including the mini science lesson on how baths get refilled with hot water.
[...] is very typical of the Georgian era and is still today in very good condition. And of course, the Roman Baths are quite something. As for Stonehenge, there isn’t much more to say than what’s [...]