Austen--A Walk through Bath

Start at Bath Abbey.
Tour the Roman Baths, located just outside the abbey. After your tour, have tea at the Pump Room, where you can taste the city’s famous spa water for yourself.
Turn right onto Stall Street, left onto Westgate Street, and right onto Barton Sreet. Barton Street becomes Gay Street. Stop by the Jane Austen Centre at no. 40, Gay Street.
Walk north to the end of Gay Street, noticing no. 25, where Austen lived. The street ends at the Circus, a circular row of houses that are some of the most expensive in town.
Turn left into the Circus onto Brock Street, traveling west, to end at the Royal Crescent. Taking a tour of No. 1 Royal Crescent, at the corner of Brock Street, is an opportunity to see the posh interior of the crescent’s homes. The Circus and the Royal Crescent are exemplary of the beautiful architecture that Austen’s characters would have encountered in Bath.
Next, walk west to the bottom of the crescent. Turn left onto the street in front of the Marlborough Buildings and you will come to Royal Avenue.Turn right (west) here to stroll through Royal Victoria Park. The park contains a pond and ample green space for spreading out with a picnic.
Next, backtrack through the Royal Crescent and proceed through the Circus to the east. When you reach the corner of Bennett Street, on your right you will see the Assembly Rooms and Museum of Costume. Along with the Pump Room, the Assembly Rooms were the centre of the social scene.
Walk back into the heart of town by going back through the Circus and traveling south on Gay Street. You will pass Queen Square on your right side. After another block, you will find the Theatre Royal on your right. This is the theatre in which Charles Musgrove would have reserved a box for Anne’s family and friends.
Continue south and turn left (east) onto Westgate Street.
Turn left onto Union Street and travel north until you reach Milsom Street. This is the heart of the shopping district, where people shopped both in Anne’s time and now.
At the end of Milsom Street, turn right (east) onto George Street and right (south) onto Broad Street.
Just after Broad Street turns into High Street, turn left onto Bridge Street. You will walk across Pulteney Bridge and go through Laura Place, where some of Anne’s acquaintances stay in Persuasion.
Bridge Street becomes Great Pulteney Street after you pass through Laura Place, walking northeast. The street ends in Sydney Gardens. Located in the gardens is the Holburne Museum. When the Holburne House was a hotel, the gardens were the place to see concerts and fireworks. Austen saw these and in fact lived just across the street at 4 Sydney Place in the autumn of 1801.
If time allows, you may choose to explore the two-mile nature trail that winds along the banks of the Avon Canal.