My day trip to beautiful Bath.
April 12, 2008
A few months ago, not long after my return from a hectic two weeks in Florida, I felt the need for a bit of pampering. Those coasters get stressful after a while. Bath is partly famous for it's Roman Baths and it's newly opened Thermae Bath Spa (review to follow). So I booked myself in for a few hours but because it's such a busy place I had to wait til now to go! My session didn't start til 1.30 so I went in a bit early so I could have walk round and soak up the history on offer. Not to mention all the lovely little shops.....and pubs.
I had a few things I needed to do while I was there but I got distracted by Baby Gap.
What used to be the entrance to the Kings baths
I've been to Bath loads of times before but I had never seen the Royal Crescent. Only ever on TV and on postcards. So, I found a map and started walking. The thing about Bath is, it's built on a hill and the Royal Crescent is, yes, you guessed it, right on the top. It was well worth the walk though. A breathtaking old Georgian building that seems to go on forever. I was a annoyed that I couldn't get it all in one shot though. I took a few photos and headed on back down the hill for my Spa Session.
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What used to be the entrance to …
Bath Abbey which dates back to 1499
Union Street
One end of the Royal Crescent
The other end
Amazing steam rooms.
Thermae Bath Spa opened in 2006. 4 years late and £32 million over budget. No surprise there then. I'd been past it on a few occasions and have wanted to check it out for myself for quite a while.
The best time to go is mid week when it's not so busy. If you want to book a treatment be prepared to wait. I asked for the next available Saturday for the rejuvenate hot stones therapy and had to wait over 2 months for an appointment. Also, if you book any treatment you have to book a 2 or 4 hour spa session on top which I think is a bit mean as it adds up to £32 on to your bill.
I decided to go for the 4 hour session as I just wanted to relax and take my time exploring the place.
From the outside, the place looks quite impressive. It's an old Georgian building with a modern glass front. The reception staff were very friendly and, as I hadn't been there before, took time in explaining how everything works. I was given a "smartband". It's a magnetic key to operate your locker, no need to remember any combinations. It comes with a £125 credit on it which can be used in the cafe so you don't have to carry any money around.
After being handed my robe, towel and HUGE slippers I headed off to the changing area. It's a mixed changing room with little cubicles for privacy. They are tiny and not by the looks of thing, not cleaned all that often as in both the ones I used I found left overs from previous occupants.
I was really impressed with the lockers though. You simply pick an empty locker, put your stuff in, close the door then hold your smartband up to a central panel thing and it locks it! That's all you have to do. To unlock it you do the same thing in reverse. I love technology!
The main spa is located over 4 floor as well as a roof top pool. I decided to head for the steam rooms first of all. They are amazing. There are 4 circular, glass steam rooms. one in each corner of a larger room. They are each infused with different aromas. Mint, lavender, eucalyptus and frankincense. The last one was definitely my favourite.
In the middle of the steam rooms there is a waterfall shower which kicks into gear every 10 minutes or so. There are also hot and cold showers on opposite ends and some foot baths dotted around.
From there I went up to the roof top pool. It has the most stunning views of Bath. It being a Saturday the pool was packed and it was still a bit cold for my liking.
The Minerva Bath is located on the lower ground floor and looks a lot bigger in the brochure. Again though it was too busy and I sat on one of the loungers for a while. Kept falling asleep as well. I wasn't hugely impressed by this one.
After my 4 hours of relaxing it was time for hot stone massage. All treatments are in separate areas of the spa. Again, the staff were very friendly. It's also nice to get away from the busy main spa.
A couple of bad points.
Cleanliness. I know it's probably small stuff but the rubbish in the changing rooms were a bit of a off putting. And there was a lot of dust around in the stair wells as well as in the cafe.
Drinking fountains. It's quite a big spa but I only found one tiny drinking fountain on each floor. One of them wasn't working properly. Actually I don't remember there being one by the Minerva pool. I saw one of the staff guzzling the stuff which made me quite thirsty.
There's a lot of walking up and down stairs in this place. There are lifts but they are small and very slow. Also the showers are on the lower ground floor but the changing rooms are 2 floors up. Don't get it.
All in all, a nice spa. Worth the money for the steam rooms alone. I would definitely recommend it. Just not on a Saturday. I just gets silly busy.
The best time to go is mid week when it's not so busy. If you want to book a treatment be prepared to wait. I asked for the next available Saturday for the rejuvenate hot stones therapy and had to wait over 2 months for an appointment. Also, if you book any treatment you have to book a 2 or 4 hour spa session on top which I think is a bit mean as it adds up to £32 on to your bill.
I decided to go for the 4 hour session as I just wanted to relax and take my time exploring the place.
From the outside, the place looks quite impressive. It's an old Georgian building with a modern glass front. The reception staff were very friendly and, as I hadn't been there before, took time in explaining how everything works. I was given a "smartband". It's a magnetic key to operate your locker, no need to remember any combinations. It comes with a £125 credit on it which can be used in the cafe so you don't have to carry any money around.
After being handed my robe, towel and HUGE slippers I headed off to the changing area. It's a mixed changing room with little cubicles for privacy. They are tiny and not by the looks of thing, not cleaned all that often as in both the ones I used I found left overs from previous occupants.
I was really impressed with the lockers though. You simply pick an empty locker, put your stuff in, close the door then hold your smartband up to a central panel thing and it locks it! That's all you have to do. To unlock it you do the same thing in reverse. I love technology!
The main spa is located over 4 floor as well as a roof top pool. I decided to head for the steam rooms first of all. They are amazing. There are 4 circular, glass steam rooms. one in each corner of a larger room. They are each infused with different aromas. Mint, lavender, eucalyptus and frankincense. The last one was definitely my favourite.
In the middle of the steam rooms there is a waterfall shower which kicks into gear every 10 minutes or so. There are also hot and cold showers on opposite ends and some foot baths dotted around.
From there I went up to the roof top pool. It has the most stunning views of Bath. It being a Saturday the pool was packed and it was still a bit cold for my liking.
The Minerva Bath is located on the lower ground floor and looks a lot bigger in the brochure. Again though it was too busy and I sat on one of the loungers for a while. Kept falling asleep as well. I wasn't hugely impressed by this one.
After my 4 hours of relaxing it was time for hot stone massage. All treatments are in separate areas of the spa. Again, the staff were very friendly. It's also nice to get away from the busy main spa.
A couple of bad points.
Cleanliness. I know it's probably small stuff but the rubbish in the changing rooms were a bit of a off putting. And there was a lot of dust around in the stair wells as well as in the cafe.
Drinking fountains. It's quite a big spa but I only found one tiny drinking fountain on each floor. One of them wasn't working properly. Actually I don't remember there being one by the Minerva pool. I saw one of the staff guzzling the stuff which made me quite thirsty.
There's a lot of walking up and down stairs in this place. There are lifts but they are small and very slow. Also the showers are on the lower ground floor but the changing rooms are 2 floors up. Don't get it.
All in all, a nice spa. Worth the money for the steam rooms alone. I would definitely recommend it. Just not on a Saturday. I just gets silly busy.
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