In celebration of Mike’s Birthday I decided to book a night for the two of us in Bath. Mike had not been to the city since he was very young and it has been a fair few years since I had been myself, so it felt like the perfect get-away from London.
I am so glad we made the trip because I had completely forgotten what an absolutely beautiful city Bath is! No wonder the whole city is a listed world heritage site. Everywhere you go is just drop dead gorgeous.
The whole setting was made even nicer by some lovely warm weather and all the spring blossoms that had came out in time for our arrival!
We took an early train from London on Saturday morning and arrived by midday in Bath. We walked to our lovely hotel, Villa at Henrietta Park, and checked in.
This small boutique hotel was perfect for our stay in Bath. It is located in the centre of Bath, just around the corner from the iconic Pulteney Bridge, but far enough away from the hustle and bustle that you are able to relax.
The rooms are very nicely decorated and the beds are huge. You can’t wait to dive in!
After checking in and dropping off our coats – it was so warm outside we didn’t need them – we headed to an Italian restaurant, Sotto Sotto, for lunch.
When looking for places to eat in Bath, Sotto Sotto consistently came out as a top recommendation, so I knew it was a place we could not miss out on.
Luckily it didn’t disappoint! Delicious, simple Italian food as good as they make in Italy. They even had gluten free pasta for me!
The staff were so accommodating, we even got a few recommendations for our trip to Italy in the Spring!
If you are ever in Bath, make sure to put Sotto Sotto on your list, just be sure to book in advance, they generally get booked up quite quickly!
After finishing our meal we headed out into the sunshine to check out the sites. We popped in and out of the shops.
Bath has some great vintage shops and boutiques.
We made our way to the Royal Crescent, a row of thirty terraced houses laid out in an arch.
It is famous for being one of the greatest examples of Georgian architecture to be found in the UK.
Wouldn’t it be nice to have one of these as your home?
We then spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around Bath’s beautiful parks, including Green Park and Sydney gardens.
As well as stopping into Sally Lunn’s for a Bath bun in the late afternoon.
It felt almost rude to consider going to Bath without a visiting to Sally Lunn’s, which is a bit of a Bath institution. Although it is a little bit of a tourist trap, it is still worth a trip to get your delicious bun to take away.
After resting our tired feet back at the hotel watching an episode of The Replacement (I would strongly recommend this BBC mini series if you have not watched it before!), we wandered into town for some pre-dinner drinks at Opium Bar. Tucked away under a bridge, this intimate and quirky bar serves up some mean cocktails.
For dinner, we went to a Spanish restaurant next door to Sotto Sotto, La Perla (not to be mistaken with the lingerie brand!).
Set underground, like Sotto Sotto, the setting was lovely and intimate and the food was tasty. We particularly liked the scallops and squid!
Although both restaurants were lovely, if we had to choose a winner between the two, it would be without a doubt Sotto Sotto.
The next morning, we woke up to another beautiful sunny day in Bath.
We had heard good things about a hipster brunch joint, Hunter & Sons, so decided to skip breakfast at the hotel and head back into the city centre.
We were greeted with delicious coffee and perfectly cooked eggs, what more could you ask for?
As it was a Sunday morning and the city was still relatively quiet, after brunch Mike and I took a climb up one of the many hills surrounding the city centre to Lansdown Crescent and Hedgemead Park to get a view of city below.
The streets were just as charming outside of the city centre as they were inside of it.
Before catching our train back to London, we made sure to take back some sweets as souvenirs. Stopping in at Maison Georges Larnicol for some chocolates. A French chocolatier in the middle of Bath.
The chocolates are sold by weight, so you get to pick and choose from numerous types and flavours of chocolates. They were delicious and reminded me of the amazing chocolatier we went to in Amboise twelve months earlier.
They also have an amazing selection of Easter eggs to choose from.
A perfect weekend trip from London. We had such a lovely stay in this beautiful city, and I can’t wait to go back again soon!
Steph xo
