Bath Hotel

suejb2

Hi everyone,it will be my dads 80th this April and frankly he doesn't need or want anything so we (brothers & sister) thought of clubbing together and buying him and mum a short stay somewhere. I know they haven't been to Bath so thought this would be a possible place,can you recommend:
A) A very central hotel (not too much walking needed),they are both active but in a slower pace.Not too posh but lovely all the same.
Things to do and see in 2/3 days or do you need more time,they won't have transport,maybe we could pre-book things so its all done for them. thanks Sue

penguingirl

We stayed in a Best Western in Bath last year that was very central, and it was good because breakfast was in the adjoining tea rooms which felt quite leisurely. Of the top of my head I think there is also a central Hilton. The only pain with Bath is that parking is difficult- we just parked up in a carpark and walked (about 10 mins) to the hotel, so that might not be ideal for your dad, but the bus station and train station are pretty central. And I think some attractions do discounted entry with train tickets.

I'm guessing you already have the roman spa on your to do list? We really enjoyed it, and spent about half a day there. We also enjoyed looking around Bath Abbey. We didn't go to them, but there's also a fashion museum (can be bought with a combined ticket for the baths), an astronomy museum and the jane austen centre.

We had 3 nights in Bath and found that was a nice length of time (we had one day out of the city when we went to Cheddar Gorge)- there are lots of places in Bath to do things like have afternoon tea which are relaxing.

richardw

I've stayed at the Best Western Abbey Bath hotel and it is in a good location http://www.abbeyhotelbath.co.uk/

WestonDave

On the basis that you say they won't have transport then I'll not worry about the perennial issue of car parking in Bath.

For a hotel I'd agree that the Abbey is a good location - another one nearby which is a nice smaller hotel is Pratts - http://www.prattshotel.co.uk/pratts-hotel.htm or you could consider the Francis in Queen Square - further from the station but nearer to places like the Theatre, and some of the sights like the Circus and Royal Crescent. (not to say that the first two are a long way away - you can walk from one end of Bath centre to the other in 15 minutes if you try!).

Might be worth checking what is on at the Theatre Royal - http://www.theatreroyal.org.uk/ - it does tend to get booked up in advance so maybe booking them something suitable would be a nice bonus.

What to do depends a bit on the weather - might be worth starting with an open top tour (if its cold and wet they can sit downstairs) which allow you to jump on and off at various points so act as a nice way to see things and also get around to places they want to spend more time. They are run by "City Sightseeing" and do two routes - one is the city route which stays within Bath centre, and the other is the skyline route which goes up onto some of the surrounding hills to get the views over the city.

There are a number of sights to look around such as the Roman Baths, Abbey, various architectural sights like the Circus and Royal Crescent, but I'm wary of too much walking hence suggesting a day on the bus would be a good way of being able to spend some time at each without having to walk between them. I suspect at that sort of age, they will get as much pleasure from a quiet coffee etc than charging about trying to see everything. Tea etc in the Pump Rooms (attached to the Roman Bath's) is very pleasant or Sally Lunns cafe (oldest house in Bath apparently). If its nice then there are plenty of seats in Victoria Park or along the river to just sit and enjoy the day. If they are into shopping there are some nice little shops in the back streets.

I'd say 2-3 days without transport would be plenty.

suejb2

Thank you so much you have all given me some great info, I truly appreciate it .

Sally_A

Agree with everything DaveWeston has posted.

The Francis would be a good central hotel but probably quite pricey, or maybe The Royal York hotel that now comes under the Travelodge banner.

Also more obscure places, the Herschel Museum, Jane Austen Museum, and plenty of Art galleries.

As for eating out, there are plenty of the "chains", but also a lot of independents - what sort of food do you all like?

hamsterfan1

I would also recommend Pratss - we had our wedding reception there - nothing was too much trouble

lil.smartie

http://www.threeabbeygreen.com/

This place is lovely, couldn't get more central either & the owners are very friendly too!

Kate

suejb2

Thanks for the ideas please feel free to add anymore,Sue

bex2012

The best thing about Bath is that it is a very 'walkable' city - it doesnt feel overly massive. For a central hotel, you could try Dukes http://www.dukesbath.co.uk/ which is right on Great Pultney St, with Holburne Museum at the top. Ive never stayed there, but my sister in law loves it (we tend to stay a little bit further out). The Abbey sometimes has classical concerts on (our friends saw Handel's Messiah being performed just before christmas). People always say about the Spa, but when we went it was packed. The Cross Bath spa might be a nicer option, as it only allows 12 people in at time. Probably the best website for you is this one: http://visitbath.co.uk/
HTH!