Our next destination was Bath. We had heard about it a little bit and it is supposed to be of historic value. To take advantage of our rental car, we decided to make our way to Bath, a small town 40 miles north west of Stonehenge. We were on our way on A36 (a local road) in minutes.
The drive to Bath was interesting but scary. A one lane, two-way, narrow, and extremely curvy road had a speed limit of 50 miles per hour. All sorts of vehicles—trucks, 18-wheelers, tour buses—were running at relatively high speed. Besides that, driving up and down the hills was fun. The route was scenic. Once in a while, when you approach small towns, you will also find some vehicles parked right on the pavements with half of its body on the one lane road. This was totally insane. Then there were these ancient Roman-style houses lined up on the other side of the hill. And there were so many of them that formed the town of Bath.
Hundreds of thousands of people visit the town of Bath every year for its beautiful Roman architecture and culture. The most popular sites are the Roman Baths and Pumps, Abbey Church, Pulteney Bridge, Royal Crescent, Royal Victoria Park, The Circus Building, etc. As we reached the city center, I was surprised to see so many tourists from all over the world walking up and down the city with a map in their hands trying to locate these spots. It is recommended to buy a small map of the town of Bath for £1 or £2 so that you don’t miss anything.
The Roman Baths and Pumps, The Abbey Church, and the shopping center are right at the city center. Entrance fee to the Bath was £11 for adults but with student discount it is £8.50. So guys, don’t forget to carry your student ID card with you while visiting Europe. They also have different fees for children and family and joint saver tickets. An audio tour is included with the entrance fee. You will be given an audio device that narrates the history of the site. The water in the bath is still warm. Water from the bath is drained out from the Roman drain to the river Avon. It has been well maintained by the government to preserve it historic value.
A little further towards the river Avon is the Pulteney Bridge built in 18th century. This one-of-a-kind bridge is famous for the shops on both the sides. The Royal Crescent museum, the Circus buildings, and the Royal Victoria Park are about 10 minutes walk from the bridge to the north.
There is a big municipal parking right below the Royal Crescent Museum that is pretty reasonable. If I remember right, it was £2 and change for 4 hours. There is hourly parking here and there but it might be more expensive than the municipal parking. It is safe and is usually in observation by police.