Before we went on our trip last year, 10 days in England sounded like plenty to me. Until I realised the amount of ground we had to cover, which meant that we only got about half a day in each location (except for London). One of the places that I would love to visit in our upcoming trip – assuming we have time to revisit – would be Bath! We only spent a night and half a day there, but it was fantastic.

Warning: extremely photo heavy post ahead.

Accommodation – Three Abbey Green

I found this from a guidebook and it was easily the best place we stayed at in the trip! To be honest, I booked the room because of the Jane Austen wing, but we loved the whole place. The rooms are gorgeous, the family running the BnB very friendly, and it’s extremely conveniently located.

We were actually a bit worried about getting our luggage to the BnB because I read that Bath doesn’t allow parking at certain areas (which is where Three Abbey Green falls under). But it turns out that it’s a five-minute walk from the nearest car park, which was very near. It’s also about 30 seconds away from our dinner place, one minute from the Roman Baths, and only a few minutes from Bath Abbey. If only all the places we stayed in were so conveniently located.

My parents got to stay in the Jane Austen wing – look at the name of their room:

I really loved the little details, like the door stoppers:

And the thoughtful little touches, such as milk in the fridge and a bookshelf in the hallway:

The next morning, we came down to flowers at the breakfast table!

Here’s a picture of the menu:

We each got to order a main

And then help ourself to the breakfast table, which had some fantastic jams (which we bought and brought back home):

Cereal, yogurt, etc.

Three Abbey Green was one of the pricier places that we stayed at, but it’s worth every penny. If you’re looking for a place to stay in Bath, I would definitely recommend them.

Three Abbey Green Homepage

Food – Sally Lunn

This was probably the first thing I booked (one month before the trip) because I heard that the Sally Lunn bun’s were famous. We arrived early but managed to get seated immediately.

Sally Lunn is located in one of the oldest houses in Bath. According to its origin story, Sally Lunn was originally Solange Luyon, a refugee who fled to Britain to escape persecution. While in Bath, she had her name adapted to English and she invented the famous Bath bun, which quickly became legendary. The restaurant also contains a museum about Sally Lunn, but it was closed when we got there.

I don’t know if it’s just Bath, but I found that the people were really friendly. The staff here were generous in their recommendations and offered to help us take photos. We felt really welcome here.

I drank the Sally Lunn tea, which is a black tea that paired well with all the foods we had. We also tried the Sally Lunn buns in a variety of forms, such as:

With soup

With beef and mushrooms – these were called Trencher dishes because the bread used to function as a plate. Luckily we had actual plates too.

And as a bread pudding with clotted cream.

Everything was delicious! I don’t think you need to book one month in advance, like I did, but they do recommend reservations for dinner. If we ever went back to Bath, I would love to try their afternoon teas!

Sally Lunn’s Homepage

Visit – Roman Baths

This is where Bath got its name so obviously, we had to visit. If you’re staying in Three Abbey Green, remember to show them your keys to get 10% off!

It’s really like a giant museum that takes you through the history of Bath. There are great views of Bath Abbey besides it and the audio guide does a very good job taking you through the history of the place. You’ll want to be able to slow down and listen to everything.

Did you know that 1,170,000 litres of hot water is produced every day at the Baths? The water is a toasty 46 degrees, which is a bit hotter than what most onsens are.

The museum is full of interesting things, such as the ancient Roman curses! They are really petty, such as people complaining that their bathing tunic was stolen and asking the goddesses to curse the thief.

I also learnt that in Roman Times, Bath used to be called Aquae Sulis. It was also known as Aquae Calide (meaning ‘hot waters’).

You can even try the waters at the end of the museum. It used to be really popular, and if you’ve read Jane Austen, you may remember reading that people come to Bath to ‘take the waters’ for their health. There’s a quote on the next wall that says:

“If they cannot be cured by drinking and bathing here, they cannot be cured anywhere.”

The water tastes super metallic though. No one liked it, although my dad took a second mouth when he heard about the supposed health benefits.

Visit – Bath Abbey

This is one of the Churches that allow photo taking, so I took advantage of that and took so many photos. Entrance is free, but you’re encouraged to make a donation.

The Abbey was so pretty! And there were so many cool details.

The lecturn is an eagle to symbolise the gospel spreading on eagle’s wings. And it’s wearing Advent colours!

More photos of the Abbey

I even saw some stained glass windows, although at that time, I hadn’t read the How to Look at Stained Glass so I just went “pretty”, took a picture and walked off. (I sound like an uncultured traveller, probably because I am)

A different window:

Visit & Food – Jane Austen Center & Regency Tea Room

I wrote about this in a previous post, so I won’t spend too much time here. I would highly recommend it for fans of Austen – just be aware that tickets are timed tickets as the tour starts with a talk about Austen and her life. The museum itself focuses on her time in Bath but it also contains a lot of information about Regency England.

I really wish that we had more time to spend in Bath. There are so many things that I didn’t get to visit, like the Fashion Museum, the Pump rooms, the therma Bath spa, etc. It also seems like a really nice little town where you could just wander about and soak in the atmosphere. Fingers crossed that I get to visit again!