Our Jane Austen adventure continued as we waved goodbye to Karen and Mark and headed South. Onward to Bath, Summerset; the ‘OG’ of spa destination travel. A city built around ancient roman baths, baths around natural thermal hot springs that are still enjoyed today. It is also Jane Austen’s hometown from 1801-1806 as well as the setting of two of her novels (Northanger Abbey & Persuasion).  

On the way Jackie and I stopped in Cotswolds. Oh my goodness, why oh why, did we not spend more time in this straight out of a fairy tale place? Driving through these quaint villages was like traveling through time. Like looking at the pages of a favorite novel and watching the words appear before you in a dramatic romanticized real life place. I had no idea how lovely our lunch exploration would turn out and be assured the Cotswolds have been added on my bucket list.

But I digress. 

Onward to Bath. (read more about Bath here: https://visitbath.co.uk)

For this portion of our trip we opted to save some moolah and stay for free at a hotel  (can I get an amen for good ol’ Hilton points). Save that moolah for a nice dinner and a SPA that is!

We arrived late that night (Cotswolds capturing more of our attention and taking much more time than we realized), checked into our hotel, changed and headed off to a nice dinner at The Elder.

The Elder; a restaurant tuned to the Georgian setting around them. Effortless in the way they capture classy timeless emotions through beautiful design yet still maintaining a cozy “welcome home” feel. I stumbled upon this restaurant and was intrigued by their commitment to sustainability; it’s not often you find a charming restaurant that manages their own game/fish/veg on local lands. You can read more about it here: https://theelder.co.uk.

The meal was as lovely as the decor. And while the stuffy couple seated next to us judged us the whole meal with very loud non-verbals, our waitress was incredible. She was kind, capable, humorous and able to perform her job well while laughing at herself (and our loud American humor). This restaurant was worth the stop for sure.

Tummies full, we strolled through the streets back to our hotel and fell asleep long before our normal bedtime. 

The next morning we grabbed a coffee and headed out to spend the morning at the Jane Austen Centre (highly recommend reading about that here: https://visitbath.co.uk/things-to-do/the-jane-austen-centre-p26121). Such a fun stop, live actors, interactive activities and memorabilia from Jane Austen’s personal items to movie props. It’s a center for all things Jane Austen and we loved every second.

Our next stop took right past Jane’s family home. We wound our way through the cobblestone drives till we crested the final corner and found ourselves face to face with the Royal Crescent.  

Think a magnificent half moon of stacked stone townhomes. Each one marked by rod iron gates and climbing vines. All accented by cobblestone walkways speckled with street lanterns that encircle a vibrant green field. 

“Oh! Who can ever be tired of Bath?” ― Jane Austen, Northanger Abbey

This curved row of houses was built back in the late 1700’s. It is breathtaking and said to be among the finest examples of Georgian architecture in the UK. Once again we were transported to the 1800’s, easily seeing how Jane dreamt up a love scene between a character named Anne Elliot and her love; Captain Frederick Wentworth. 

Of course the baths back in Jane Austen’s day weren’t quite as bougie as the Royal Crescent Spa but I think she would understand the draw. https://www.royalcrescent.co.uk

Exhaling the tension of our travels we passed through the hotel entrance and entered a stone sanctuary.

Jackie and I enjoyed an hour and a half of melting in the sauna, floating in a soaking pool then reading in plush lounge chairs. I would pay for this by itself but after we were ushered into candle lit rooms and given luxurious facials and massages.

Worth. Every. Penny.

If that was not enough to convince you to pencil in a spa trip on your vacation, after our services were finished, we showered, changed and were seated in the garden for an afternoon tea.

Tea time.

If you know me, you know I am a coffee girl. Dark, strong coffee that melts like caramel on the back of your pallet. Coffee that turns a medium brown when just the right amount of cream is added. 

Coffee forever.

Not tea. 

Never tea.

But..when in Rome…London…that is.

When in London, you have tea…and no one is complaining.

Tea time quickly became my favorite meal of the day. Pages of tea flavors to begin your journey, that once chosen were delivered in a personal tea kettle with adorable little dishes and tea holder things that I couldn’t begin to name, but enjoyed with every fiber of my coffee loving soul.

Then they bring out a triple leveled tray of bite sized goodies. It was as if I entered a bakery and instead of choosing ONE item the owner brought me three plates of the very best. Just so I wouldn’t miss out, just so I could sample the goodness their establishment offered and drink all the tea my heart desired in the process.

Yes, England. I see you. Tea time it is, and tea time at The Royal Crescent Hotel after a day at their spa was an experience you must have should you visit.

With drunk satisfaction (I promise it wasn’t spiked tea, we were just beyond relaxed after all the above), we stumbled out the door and zig-zagged through the streets and back to our hotel.

We had plans to visit the Roman baths and perhaps visit the fashion museum but instead we had a wonderfully lame rest of the evening. Pub plans were thrown out the window (and under the Pulteney Bridge which was right outside our window) and instead we donned our coziest pjs, put on chick flicks and ordered room service. Lame? Maybe, but it was our trip and a night of doing nothing was just what we needed.

I do wish we had one more day in Bath. There is a lot to see/do in this historical town but adventure was calling (as was our AirBnB reservation) so the next morning we woke early, grabbed a local coffee (still love my coffee in the morning) and off we drove to our next stay singing our travel song “to the left to the left…every day we drive on the left”.

Stay tuned for Part Three.

*dislcaimer- In an attempt to remain present I intentionally left my camera behind for the bulk of this trip. Most of these are occasional cell phone pics snapped in the moment to document memories. The bulk of the images below are pulled from the web and their source cited under. Click the links to discover more about these places.