44417LON
Roman Baths Museum visit
Bath free time & lunch
Stonehenge visit
ALWAYS CHECK VOUCHER FOR BOOKING TIME AT STONEHENGE. TIMINGS STATED HERE ACT ONLY AS A GUIDE.
- All entrances are paid by voucher
- Timings given are from hotels located in west of London. For the east, i.e. The Tower Hotel, contact office for earlier departure time. Allow extra 45mins.
- Confirm visits in advance & ask about special events, closed areas of sites.
- Private Hire coaches are not allowed to use Pulteney Bridge. Coming from London follow the Pulteney Road (A36) South and use North Parade (Good view of Pulteney Bridge). Discuss with routing your driver.
- Parking for Bath is outside THE ABBEY HOTEL, North Parade and also Terrace Walk. From here, it’s a short walk to the Abbey and the Roman Baths.
- No chewing gum allowed in Roman Baths Museum
opening times, entrances, tel numbers are listed on the yellow pages.
Shopping – good mix of high street, gift and souvenir shops.
13:30 Depart Bath for Stonehenge. Take A36 to Knook, then B390 via Shrewton and A360 (Timing assuming a 14.30 booking at Stonehenge, check voucher, and amend timings accordingly.)
14:30 Arrive Stonehenge.
8:00 Depart London for Bath on the M4 and exit onto A46 at junction 18. (Short rest-stop at Leigh Delamer4 or Membury Services.)
10:30 – 11:00 Arrive Bath and conduct Sightseeing Tour by coach.
Bath
Sightseeing Tour
Do your panoramic of the city first, doing your best to cover as many of the sites below, traffic and restrictions allowing:
Pulteney Bridge
The Abbey
The Assembly Rooms
The Circus
View of Royal Crescent (from Royal Avenue across Victoria Park)
Queen Square
Roman Baths Museum
Drop group in lay by on North Parade/Terrace Walk. This will be your meeting point. Impress on group that they must be on time as coaches are not able to wait. Walk them past Abbey to the museum. Entrance is now strictly by booked timeslot. Different timed lanes outside the entrance. You alert museum staff and pay the entrance by voucher. Individual tickets to be handed out, group then receives a brief welcome chat from a member of staff, Teachers will be given hi-vis to wear so that they are easily identifiable as responsible for the students. Barcodes on tickets are scanned before collecting audio wands.
Facilities in the Museum Buildings
Audio handsets distributed by staff – these are interesting, easy to use, not essential, but worth using.
The Pump Rooms – taste the spa water, small charge and sample the delicious cakes (esp. the famous Bath Bun) and tea in this elegant café. There is more often than not a chamber ensemble playing.
Toilets – gents to the left of main entrance and down stairs and ladies to the right. Inform steward on your way in. The next toilets aren’t for a while.
Shop and Toilets are at the conclusion of the visit.
Ensure group is aware that once they have left the museum, they are unable to re-enter. The exit from the Baths is on Stall Street. They then have free time in the city for lunch/shopping etc.
Facilities/places of interest in city
Bureau de change – Marks and Spencer (Stall Street) is left at the arcade. Post Office 6, Union Street
Cash-points – bottom of High St. (across from the Abbey), Union St and on Bath Street, opposite Roman Baths shop exit.
Abbey – worth looking inside, small fee, fab vaulted ceiling.
Sally Lunn’s – One of Bath’s oldest buildings, home to the Sally Lunn Bun.
Assembly Rooms/Museum of Costume – Museum and Ambience.
8:00 Depart London for Bath on the M4 and exit onto A46 at junction 18. (Short rest-stop at Leigh Delamer4 or Membury Services.)
10:30 – 11:00 Arrive Bath and conduct Sightseeing Tour by coach.
Bath
Sightseeing Tour
Do your panoramic of the city first, doing your best to cover as many of the sites below, traffic and restrictions allowing:
Pulteney Bridge
The Abbey
The Assembly Rooms
The Circus
View of Royal Crescent (from Royal Avenue across Victoria Park)
Queen Square
Roman Baths Museum
Drop group in lay by on North Parade/Terrace Walk. This will be your meeting point. Impress on group that they must be on time as coaches are not able to wait. Walk them past Abbey to the museum. Entrance is now strictly by booked timeslot. Different timed lanes outside the entrance. You alert museum staff and pay the entrance by voucher. Individual tickets to be handed out, group then receives a brief welcome chat from a member of staff, Teachers will be given hi-vis to wear so that they are easily identifiable as responsible for the students. Barcodes on tickets are scanned before collecting audio wands.
Facilities in the Museum Buildings
Audio handsets distributed by staff – these are interesting, easy to use, not essential, but worth using.
The Pump Rooms – taste the spa water, small charge and sample the delicious cakes (esp. the famous Bath Bun) and tea in this elegant café. There is more often than not a chamber ensemble playing.
Toilets – gents to the left of main entrance and down stairs and ladies to the right. Inform steward on your way in. The next toilets aren’t for a while.
Shop and Toilets are at the conclusion of the visit.
Ensure group is aware that once they have left the museum, they are unable to re-enter. The exit from the Baths is on Stall Street. They then have free time in the city for lunch/shopping etc.
Facilities/places of interest in city
Bureau de change – Marks and Spencer (Stall Street) is left at the arcade. Post Office 6, Union Street
Cash-points – bottom of High St. (across from the Abbey), Union St and on Bath Street, opposite Roman Baths shop exit.
Abbey – worth looking inside, small fee, fab vaulted ceiling.
Sally Lunn’s – One of Bath’s oldest buildings, home to the Sally Lunn Bun.
Assembly Rooms/Museum of Costume – Museum and Ambience.
Stonehenge
Booking times must be adhered to. You have a half hour window either side of your slot. If you know you are going to be vastly outside that time, telephone: 0370 333 1181. then you need to phone ahead. Groups who do not follow this have been turned away.
Two hours are now being allocated to this visit.
If the weather is inclement, you can shorten the time. However, remember that whatever the weather the group will have to wait for the mini coach and have the journey there and back which is 10 minutes each way. 90 minutes is probably the minimum that you could operate this visit.
There are no longer on-site audio guides. On the maps there is a QR code to download commentary to phones. But mobile data or wi-fi required. Groups don’t go via the visitor centre, which does have wi-fi, prior to boarding the shuttle bus. The night before encourage passengers to go to App Store (Apple/Google Play) to download audio guide.
Approaching the site.
From the west – Route remains the same. Visitor Centre is 1 ½ miles prior to the stones on A306 at Airman’s Cross. Follow signs for coach parking.
From the east – A344 is now closed. Continue along A303 at Longbarrow Roundabout turn right follow A360 and turn right into Visitor centre. Follow signs for coach parking.
Group Admission: At Stonehengethere is a Groups Welcome Centre, with toilet facilities at the Coach Park. There are no facilities at the Stones. There is also a dedicated Groups shuttle service directly ahead from Welcome Centre. Tour Manager to hand in voucher and collect tickets/wrist bands. Wrist bands are to be retained by passengers as they may be requested for use on the shuttle service to the stones and entrance to the exhibition.
The Visit: Groups visit the Stones first before returning to the Exhibition, Café and Shop. Once at the Stones the group can return to the Visitor Centre on an individual basis. Younger students (13-14) may be required to remain in teacher led groups.
Return shuttle journey – Group will be dropped at the main visitor centre. (See details below.). Warn that queues for bus can be long so allow plenty of time. The walk takes 30 minutes.
Visitor Centre
The main centre consists of two buildings. One houses new exhibition galleries and toilets, the other the shop and the restaurant. Between the two buildings is a large covered orientation space. This will probably be good place for the group to a re-assemble at end of the visit and then walk the entire group back to the coach park.
16.30 Depart Stonehenge
18.00 Arrive West London
If your hotel is located in the east of the city and you have dinner booked for the city centre, check voucher to see if you have the time required to travel out and back in again. It might be easier to get dropped off near the restaurant. Everyone will need to take all bags from the coach.