Hidden beneath Bath lie the remains of one of the greatest religious spas of the ancient world and the thermal springs that gave the city its name. Visit the baths above ground and taste the spa water.
Today you can walk where Romans walked on the timeworn pavements around the Baths. Hot steam rooms and invigorating cold plunge pools are still visible beside the great swimming bath, replenished daily with natural hot water from deep underground.
The carved temple, recovered intact from the ruins, was once reputedly guarded by a fearsome Gorgon. You can view objects thrown into the spring as offerings to the goddess, including prayers and curses inscribed on metal tablets. Don't miss the life-size gilded head of the statue of Sulis Minerva in the temple courtyard.
Visitors are offered free personal audio guides, which reveal the stories behind those who came here, and computer reconstructions transform the ruins into a complete religious spa as it was 2000 years ago. After the visit, taste the water, savour afternoon tea beneath crystal chandeliers and listen to the music of the Pump Room Trio.