Bath Hop-On Hop-Off Sightseeing Bus Tour

The City Tour and Skyline Tour routes

Bath's hop-on hop-off bus runs on two loops. The City Tour starts by Bath Abbey and passes Grand Parade, the railway station, Queen Square, the Assembly Rooms, the Royal Crescent, Royal Victoria Park and Milsom Street; a full loop takes about 50 minutes, with buses every 30 minutes from 09:45 to the last departure at 15:45.

The Skyline Tour heads east across the river along Great Pulteney Street, then climbs Bathwick Hill and Widcombe Hill to Claverton Down and Prior Park, with views that most visitors never see. It runs every 30 minutes from 10:30 to 17:30, and a loop takes 45 to 50 minutes. Riding both routes on the first day is a great way to plan what to visit on foot.

Bath Abbey and the Roman Baths

The first stop sits beside Bath Abbey, a Gothic church begun in 1499 on a site used for Christian worship since the 7th century. Its west front is carved with angels climbing ladders to heaven, and inside the fan-vaulted ceiling is among the finest in England. Next door are the Roman Baths, the reason the city exists: natural hot springs that the Romans turned into a temple and bathing complex nearly two thousand years ago.

The bus is an easy way to reach this area and then explore on foot, as the Abbey, the Roman Baths and the Pump Room stand around one small square. Entry to these attractions is not included in the bus ticket, so check the Roman Baths opening hours and book tickets in advance in busy seasons.

The Royal Crescent, the Circus and the Assembly Rooms

Bath is famous for its Georgian architecture, and the City Tour passes its greatest examples. The Royal Crescent, built between 1767 and 1774, is a sweeping curve of 30 terraced houses behind a single grand façade, facing a wide lawn and Royal Victoria Park. Close by, the Circus forms a perfect circle of townhouses, and the Assembly Rooms were the social heart of 18th-century Bath.

From the open top deck you see these buildings from above the street, which shows their scale far better than walking past. Hop off at the Royal Crescent stop to stroll along the façade and visit the park, then pick up the next bus to Milsom Street and the city's elegant shopping streets.

Pulteney Bridge and Great Pulteney Street

Pulteney Bridge, completed in 1774, is one of only a handful of bridges in the world lined with shops on both sides. Below it, the River Avon spills over a curved horseshoe weir, creating one of the most photographed views in Britain. The best viewpoint is from Grand Parade, a short walk from the first bus stop.

Across the bridge, Great Pulteney Street runs in a broad straight line of Georgian terraces to the Holburne Museum, which the Skyline Tour passes. It is one of the grandest streets in Bath, and seeing it from the top deck as the bus heads out of the centre gives a real sense of how the city was planned in the 18th century.

Prior Park and the views over Bath

The Skyline Tour is the part many visitors enjoy most. Climbing out of the valley through Bathwick and Widcombe, the bus reaches Claverton Down and Prior Park, an 18th-century landscape garden with a Palladian bridge set in a green valley above the city. From the hills you can look back over the rooftops and church towers of Bath framed by fields and woods.

Hop off at Prior Park if you want a walk in the gardens, or stay on board for the full loop and enjoy the views and commentary. It is the best way to understand why Bath sits in a bowl of hills and why its golden stone, quarried nearby, gives the city such a harmonious look.

Bus ticket with the Frankenstein museum

Two options combine the bus ticket with entry to an immersive museum about the creation of the novel Frankenstein, set in a restored Georgian townhouse in the heart of Bath. Its floors use soundscapes, scents and interactive displays to tell how time spent in Bath helped shape one of the world's best-known Gothic stories.

To visit, show your bus ticket at the museum entrance; it is open daily from 11:00 to 16:00, with longer hours in some school holidays. It is a good indoor choice on a rainy afternoon and fits well between bus loops, as it is in the city centre close to several City Tour stops. Allow about an hour for the visit.