Bath is a beautiful city. Unfortunately, all and sundry think so too, and most of the interesting architecture is obscured by vast parties of tourists all wearing radioactive cagoules and rucksacks containing the whole western hemisphere. In trying to avoid them you only encounter hoards of beggars who assume that anyone going to Bath is rich and gullible and therefore worthy of being plagued. If you are prepared for these motley crews, Bath is worth a visit. When I went it poured down all weekend but I still had a good time. The most obvious attractions are the Roman baths themselves and the adjoining Pump Rooms. In the former you get herded around in a convoy of braying foreign students, looking at the history of the baths and then at a murky example of a bath itself. Signs are everywhere telling you not to touch the water, thus ensuring that everyone routinely dips their hand in as they go past. The Pump Rooms are where everyone wants to go and eat, therefore they know they can charge what they like, and do. The setting is lovely but value for money isn’t great and you often have to queue for a table. You can, however, ‘take the waters’ for about a quid, which tastes disgusting and will do you no good at all but at least you can say you’ve done it. Having studied 18th Century culture and society in the final year of my degree, I loved No 1 Royal Crescent, a house furnished as it might have been in the Georgian era. The beautiful Museum of Costume was my favourite Bath attraction, but it’s safe to say that it’s not one for the blokes. The best thing about Bath is that there is always something to do and something to see. Having catered for tourists in a big way for over 250 years, they know what they’re doing. The shopping is good, if you like that sort of thing, and the city is vibrant and lively in the evening with a good selection of nice restaurants. Whether you’re a couple, a single or a family, there’s something of interest in Bath – as long as you don’t mind fighting through the crowds.
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Jul 27th, 2000
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